The prestigious International Travel & Tourism Awards – which celebrates the best of travel and tourism around the world – will open nominations tomorrow (Friday 1 March) for the second awards ceremony this November (Tuesday 5 November).
The International Travel & Tourism Awards (ITTAs), presented by WTM London, will once again recognise the success of national, regional and city tourist boards as well as outstanding private sector companies and individuals.
The Awards feature 15 categories, with 14 judged by an independent panel of leading experts and senior figures in each sector.
Following feedback, a new award for Best Attraction has been added. This award recognises all types of global tourist attractions and will be judged on overall visitor experience.
The Best Regional/City Campaign has been updated to become Best Destination Campaign in order to broaden the area of entries for 2019.
Other categories include Best Tourism Board Campaign, Most Innovative use of Technology, Best Agency for Tourism Marketing, Best Digital Strategy in Tourism, Best Digital Influencer Campaign and Best PR campaign.
The final award for Outstanding Contribution to the Industry, nominated by WTM London Media Partners, will be the ultimate finale to these show-stopping awards. Award categories will open for entries on Friday 1 March 2019.
Organised by WTM London, and historically supported by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the ITTAs will showcase the very best in the global travel and tourism industry, to an audience of 500 senior industry professionals.
This year the Awards are being held at Magazine London, a brand new modern event space for the capital and the largest of its kind in London. Magazine London offers the ITTAs the space to grow and attract a larger audience. This new location is just a stone’s throw away from ExCeL – London, making it convenient for WTM London delegates to travel to the ITTAs.
South African Tourism’s European Regional General Manager, Ian Utermohlen, who walked away with gold in the ‘Most Innovative Use of Technology within a Destination’ category commented: “It gives us great recognition which will help us work with partnerships in South Africa and show the unique and diverse experiences.”
Utermohlen’s colleague Sthembiso Dlamini, Chief Operations Officer at South African Tourism added: “This award shows that our product is ready to compete on a global stage and shows our competitiveness in terms of cutting edge technology.
“The ITTAs is a great opportunity to showcase the work that we are doing globally for travel and tourism, as we think this is an important sector for global economies and this puts us on the map.”
Levi Hanssen, Content & Communications Manager at Visit Faroe Islands who won silver for Best National Tourism Board category commented: “It’s fantastic to win this award, it’s a testament to all the work we’ve produced in this last year.
“It’s been great that we’ve been able to raise awareness of the Faroe Islands as a travel destination so we have definitely reached our goals for this campaign.”
ITTAs 2018 Head Judge and Head of Travel at Euromonitor International, Caroline Bremner explained: “Travel and Tourism is a growth market and it’s very competitive so it’s always really useful to find stand out case-studies that others can review, replicate and find new ideas and inspiration while bringing it back to your own local communities and local culture.”
International Travel & Tourism Awards Co-Founder, Paul Nelson, said: “We are delighted to officially open nominations for the International Travel & Tourism Awards for year two, after such a brilliant inaugural event.
“The awards have quickly become a fixture in the industry calendar and a stamp of excellence for the trade and holidaymakers alike. Everyone in the industry should make sure Tuesday 5 November is in their calendar.”
