WHEN Bill Kellaris was contacted by the world's largest online hotel search site trivago last week, he passed it off as just another email.

Little did he know, he had just been informed Waterview Airlie Beach, the business he owns alongside his wife and brother, and just been named highest-rated accommodation in the Whitsundays in the Trivago Awards 2017.

"It feels great but it was totally unexpected,” he said.

"I get (emails) from travel agencies all the time and I (initially) didn't pay much attention to it.”

The award is a step up from last year where the hotel came in second.

Based on 175 million ratings from more than 250 booking sites worldwide, the awards analyse ratings and reviews of hotels across Australia based on live figures as at September 2016.

Hotels and accommodation which feature on Trivago with 300-plus are the only ones included in the awards as well as destinations with a minimum of 12 hotels and 1000-plus reviews.

Waterview Airlie Beach also placed 28 in the Trivago Awards 2017 top 50 Hotels in Queensland and Airlie Beach placed 25 in the top 30 destinations in Queensland.

In the list of 15 hotels and accommodation in the Whitsundays, Pinnacles Resort in Airlie Beach came in close second followed by Mantra Boathouse Apartments in Airlie Beach.

Mr Kellaris has owned Waterview Airlie Beach for nearly 18 years now and said winning the award was just another reason to continue giving guests the best possible experience.

"We don't want to, at any point in time, make people feel uncomfortable and we encourage them to come and talk to us every day,” he said. "The critical thing is to remain humble and continue doing what you're doing.”

So what makes the hotel so unique and makes guests keep coming back?

"Our location - our strength is we are the closest place to the main street with views and those views are an integral part of the business,” he said. "What our motto is, put simply, at Waterview Airlie Beach, our aim is to help our guests create fond memories at the Whitsundays and Airlie Beach that will last a lifetime.”

For more information, visit whitsundayapartments.com .au/waterview-airlie-beach or call 49481748.

WHO TOOK OUT THE TOP SPOTS

1. Waterview Airlie Beach (Airlie Beach)

2. Pinnacles Resort (Airlie beach)

3. Mantra Boathouse Apartments (Airlie Beach)

4. Beach Club (Hamilton Island)

5. Sea Star Apartments (Airlie Beach)

6. Martinique Whitsunday (Airlie Beach)

7. Whitsundays Rainforest Retreat (Airlie Beach)

8. Whitsunday Reflections (Airlie Beach)

9. Bluewater Harbour Motel (Bowen)

10. Coral Sea Resort (Airlie Beach)

11. Summit Apartments (Airlie Beach)

12. Whitsunday Sands Resort (Bowen)

13. Airlie Apartments (Airlie Beach)

14. Marina Shores (Airlie Beach)

15. One and Only Hayman Island (Hayman Island)