WITH holidaymakers eager to rate, slate and berate hotels they have paid their hard earned cash to stay at online surveys are becoming a great way to discover great places to visit.

Unlike the old days when hacked off holidaymakers only had Watchdog to turn to they can now write a review whilst on the plane home, With this in mind Travel Republic has unveiled its customers’ top 20 hotels from 2012.

At number one is the Venetian Resort Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Fit for a misbehaving prince, the hotel is described by one customer as “a wonderfully luxurious experience”, and with a 120,000-square-foot casino there's enough entertainment for any Vegas thrill seeker.

The Venetian, along with the adjoining Palazzo Hotel, is part of the largest hotel complex in the world, with a total of 8,108 rooms and suites.

At number two, narrowly missing out on retaining the top spot for the third year in a row, is the Aegean Sky Hotel in Crete, offering rooms for as little as modest £26 per night.

Travel Republic CEO Kane Pirie said: “We added up the ratings our customers gave the hotels they stayed in last year to compile the top 20.

“Our customers are asked to rank their hotel from 1 (very poor) to 10 (spectacular) and you can only submit a review once you’ve made your booking and returned home, making our reviews 100 per cent genuine.

The Venetian received an almost perfect score - 9.59 out of 10 – making it the highest ranking hotel, but all the hotels included deserve recognition.

“With more than 160,000 hotels on TravelRepublic.co.uk securing a spot in the top 20 is an impressive achievement.”

In 2012 TravelRepublic.co.uk customers added more than 165,000 new reviews, taking the total to more than 550,000.

1. Venetian Resort Hotel and Casino (5 star) in Las Vegas, USA Average rating 9.59 2.

Aegean Sky Hotel (4 star) in Malia, Crete Average rating: 9.53. 

3. Aria Resort and Casino (5 star) in Paradise, USA Average rating: 9.36.

4. Princesa Yaiza Suite Resort Hotel (5 star) in Playa Blanca, Lanzarote Average rating: 9.35.

5. Les Orangers D'Alilia (4 star) in Marrakech, Morocco Average rating: 9.35. 

6. Lopesan Villa Del Conde Resort And Corallium Thalasso Hotel (5 star) in Meloneras, Gran Canaria Average rating: 9.32.

7. General Hotel (5 star) in Prague, Czech Republic Average rating: 9.31.

8. Hilton Malta (5 star) in St Julians, Malta Average rating: 9.31.

9. Delphin Palace Hotel (5 star) in Lara, Turkey Average rating: 9.31.

10. Elysium Hotel (5 star) in Paphos, Cyprus Average rating: 9.26.

11. The Cliff Bay Hotel (5 star) in Madeira, Portugal Average rating: 9.26.

12. Voyage Belek Hotel (5 star) in Belek, Turkey Average rating: 9.25.

13. De Tuilerieen Hotel (4 star) in Bruges, Belgium Average rating: 9.24.

14. Las Velazquez Apartments (2 key) in Puerto del Carmen, Lanzarote Average rating: 9.23.

15. Aloft London Excel (4 star) in Silvertown, London Average rating: 9.22.

16. Sheraton Hotel (5 star) in Krakow, Poland Average rating: 9.21.

17. Britania Hotel (4 star) in Lisbon, Portugal Average rating: 9.20.

18. Corinthia Hotel (5 star) Budapest in Budapest, Hungary Average rating: 9.20.

19. Grand Hotel Casselbergh (4 star) in Bruges, Belgium Average rating: 9.19.

20. Sunrise Apartments (2 star) in Koutouloufari, Crete.