AITO Travel Writer of the Year Awards 2023 now open for entries

AITO, The Specialist Travel Association, (www.aito.com), is excited to announce that entry is now open for the 2023 AITO Travel Writer of the Year (TWOTY) awards (closing date 31 August 2023).

This year, AITO will be accepting articles written over a 12-month period from 1 July 2022 through to 30 June 2023.

Martyn Sumners, Executive Director of AITO, says: “We’re glad, once again, to open entries for the AITO Travel Writer of the Year Awards 2023 after what has been a much better, but still challenging for the travel industry. We look forward to receiving entries from those travel writers – and publications – who have supported the many companies – and people – within the industry who continue to work tirelessly to bring inspirational and engaging travel experiences to the consumer.

“We encourage entries from editors (on behalf of themselves or their teams) and from individual travel writers who would like to self-nominate. We wish all entrants the very best of luck!”

The judges of the AITO Travel Writer of the Year awards seek articles that are not only inspirational, informative and interesting, but expertly written.

For 2023, there are again five Travel Writer of the Year award categories:

1. Travel Writer of the Year – short (under 1,500 words
2. Travel Writer of the Year – long (over 1,500 words)
3. Young Travel Writer of the Year (aged 30 and under)
4. Blogger of the Year
5. Trade Writer of the Year

Over 350 articles were submitted for the 2022 awards, with the most hotly-contested Travel Writer of the Year award (over 1,500 words), going to Alicia Miller for Drink it in a piece for National Geographic Traveller, and the under 1,500 words award going to Richard Madden for his article Bushwalk with the Hadza of Tanzania, written for The Daily Telegraph.

The 2023 TWOTY awards will be presented on Tuesday 31 October at this autumn’s AITO Meets the Media event – details to follow. Please save the date!

AITO TRAVEL WRITER OF THE YEAR AWARDS 2023 – ENTRY DETAILS IN BRIEF:

AITO Travel Writer of the Year (split into two categories; please specify the category you are entering):

1. Under 1,500 words or

2. Over 1,500 words

The AITO Travel Writer of the Year award is a much sought after accolade for travel writers. Recognising excellence in the field of travel writing, past winners include some of the most respected travel journalists; it’s a hotly contested category. Entrants must be bona fide published journalists.

3. AITO Young Travel Writer of the Year (30 and under)
This award is designed to celebrate the achievements of younger travel journalists. It is open to published journalists who are aged 30 and under between 1 July 2022 through to 30 June 2023.

4. AITO Travel Blogger of the Year
This award recognises the important role of travel bloggers as key influencers in the travel industry; it celebrates the skill used by many to illustrate their posts in inspirational, fresh and interactive ways.

5. AITO Travel Trade Writer of the Year
This award recognises the technical writing abilities of travel trade writers and their skills in writing relevant, interesting and insightful articles. Their knowledge of the industry and grasp of complex issues, together with their campaigning skills and commitment to the travel sector, deserve due recognition.

NB only two articles or blogs – print or online – may be submitted per writer; the submission(s) must be in Word text only format without photographs, and the article must have been published between 1 July 2022 and 30 June 2023.

Deadline for entries is 31 August 2023. Please submit entries here: Travel Writer of The Year Awards 2023 Entry Form.

For more information on AITO’s specialist travel companies and their unrivalled collection of holiday ideas, covering every corner of the world – plus their close allies and colleagues, AITO Specialist Travel Agents – visit the website at www.aito.com.

Ends

Press: For more information on AITO or AITO Specialist Travel Agents, or for quotes or comments on industry issues, please contact Sue Ockwell or Gemma Minto at Travel PR: s.ockwell@travelpr.co.uk / 07831 126356 or g.minto@travelpr.co.uk / 07833 760047.