Hawaiian islands erupt onto Conde Nast rankings

The Condé Nast Traveler 2011 Readers’ Choice Survey is on newsstands now. It’s a compilation of the opinions of 28,876 of the magazine’s readers who chose their favorite islands, cities, hotels and resorts throughout the world. So, where does Longboat Key rank in terms of island destinations?

It didn’t make the list.

One year after the island ranked as the No. 2 island travel destination in North America — topped only by Kiawah Island, S.C. — Longboat Key is nowhere to be found.

But, this year, the game changed for island destinations.

In a word: Hawaii.

Last year, Hawaiian islands were included in the Oceania island category, while the mainland islands of the United States and Canada were grouped together in the North American category. This year, the United States and Canada were separated in all categories, including island destinations. And this year, Hawaiian islands were included in the United States categories instead of the Oceania category. The Aloha State secured up five of the top 10 United States island destination slots.

Longboat Key Club and Resort General Manager Michael Welly said that last year’s ranking generated positive press for the island.

“Clearly I’m disappointed,” Welly said when told of this year’s survey. “But that doesn’t change the fact that we have one of the best islands in the world.”

Longboat Key, Lido Key, St. Armands Key Chamber of Commerce President Tom Aposporos wasn’t concerned by the news.

“From year to year, I suspect there will always be differences in points of view about places to find island vacations,” he said.

Aposporos pointed to a different source of spotlight that the area recently received — Siesta Key’s No. 1 ranking by Dr. Beach — and pointed to the proximity and similarity between the two islands.

But resident Stuart Scheyer, who logs more than 100,000 air miles per year and writes the “Energetic Traveler” column for the Longboat Observer, said he wasn’t surprised by the fact that Longboat Key wasn’t among the top island destinations. In fact, he was surprised when, for the first time in the survey’s 22-year history, Longboat Key was included.

“I am not surprised that we were not top-rated again because last year’s rating was a gift,” Scheyer said. “Comparing the facilities, ambience and amenities of the island and its principal resorts of other areas would not put us in the top 20% of other island destinations.”

But other residents, such as Shannon Gault, think that Maui, Hawaii, which topped the list this year, has nothing on Longboat Key. Gault, who estimates that she has visited Maui at least a dozen times, said that Longboat Key’s waters are calmer and don’t require a five-hour plane ride from mainland United States.

“Here we have a beach that’s probably the least-trafficked in the whole state,” she said. “The beach is pristine.”

2011: Top 10
U.S. islands
1. Maui, Hawaii 92.1*
2. Kauai, Hawaii 90.0
3. Kiawah Island, S.C. 86.6
4. Big Island, Hawaii 85.8
4. Oahu, Hawaii 85.8
6. Lanai, Hawaii 84.6
7. Nantucket, Mass. 82.4
8. Amelia Island 81.1
9. Cumberland Island,
Ga. 80.2
10. Hilton Head, S.C. 80.2
*Score out of a possible 100