These Airlines are the Best in the World

All airlines were not created equal. And thanks to the 2017 Airline Excellence Awards, we can sort the naff from the high fliers to make sure we're only travelling with the best next year and beyond.

When it comes to air travel, there is one company consistently nailing its levels of service, which is why Air New Zealand has taken home the top spot, best airline in the world, for the fourth consecutive year.​

Airlineratings.com​ created the awards to rank airlines for their catering, crew and entertainment services, with Air New Zealand coming out on top thanks to its performance financially, environmental leadership and staff management.

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The airline also scooped best premium economy class for the third time​ and was praised for inflight innovations such as a 'cuddle class' - (yes, it is exactly what it sounds like).

If you only like to travel in first class - lucky you! - then you'll want to fly with Etihad​, who picked up the best first class cabin award thanks to perks such as flat beds, leather armchairs and whole APARTMENTS to chill in. If you're all about economy, Singapore Airlines totally has your back.

Here's the full list of the best airlines in the world ranked 1-10 according to airlineratings.com​.

1. Air New Zealand

2. Qantas

3. Singapore Airlines

4. Cathay Pacific

5. Virgin Atlantic/Virgin Australia

6. British Airways

7. Etihad Airways

8. All Nippon Airways

9. Eva Air

10. Lufthansa

Another website also released their rankings of the best UK airlines this week, based on punctuality, quality and speed of dealing with any compensation claims. Airhelp.com put Virgin Atlantic out on top ahead of British Airways, with budget airline Easyjet taking the fifth spot.

1. Virgin Atlantic
2. British Airways
3. FlyBe
4. Jet2.com
5. EasyJet