Family-run Pompano Beach Club has been ranked in the world's top 50 luxury hotels and the fifth best in the Caribbean and Latin America region.

The South Shore hotel, in Southampton, has just celebrated its 50th anniversary and now has another reason to pop corks on a few more champagne bottles following the release of TripAdvisor's top list of hotels for 2006.

It is guests themselves who vote on the travel website to rate their stay at hotels and guest houses around the world.

In the latest Travellers' Choice Awards Pompano is fifth-best luxury hotel in the Caribbean and Latin America region. Disregarding the three Mexican hotels above it the Bermuda hotel is beaten by only one other in the Caribbean.

Managing director Tom Lamb is delighted the resort has made it into the top rankings for a second straight year. In the top 100 of the world's best luxury hotels, which features a number of the famed Dubai hotels and has the Beverley Hills Hotel at number 100, Pompano is the only Bermuda representative and comes in at an impressive 50th place.

Mr. Lamb said: "We are really thrilled. We work hard and are passionate about our hospitality. The key thing about TripAdvisor is that people can go on the internet and write about the hotel where they have stayed. It is a case of the old word-of-mouth advertising.

"Our staff know that if you take good care of your clients they appreciate it in this way."

He added: "We are thrilled to be mentioned up there with these great hotels of the world. We try hard to be focused on our guests and we are glad that so many of our guests have gone on to TripAdvisor to rate us. It motivates us to continue to work harder."