London, UK, 5 November 2019: Amidst the sounds and colours of a Barbados Tuk Band, courtesy of headline sponsor, Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc., the big winners of the 2019 Caribbean Travel Media Awards were revealed last night at an exclusive networking evening held at the Crowne Plaza London Docklands.
Shortlisted by a panel of 14 judges representing the industry, the winners across eight categories were each awarded a prestigious trophy with Certificates for runners-up, in the presence of visiting Caribbean ministers and UK Chapter members, including individual sponsors of the awards.
The first award of the night went to Martin Steady winning in the Best Travel Trade category for ‘A Journey to Belize’* in Selling Travel Magazine, an excellent account of his cultural and historical journey through the Belize islands.
Within the national and regional press categories, Juliet Rix picked up the Best National Newspaper award for her inspiring coverage of Dominica two years after the devastation of Hurricane Irma featured in the Telegraph’s print as ‘The Calm After the Storm’ and online as ‘Rediscovering Dominica two years after the hurricane’; with the Best Regional Newspaper award going to Hannah Stephenson for the second year running. Her feature ‘ Spice of Life – Grenada ’syndicated nationwide for PA Media (formerly the Press Association) offered a refreshing focus on Grenada’s community spirit and its unspoilt nature.
Amongst the other accolades the Best Consumer Feature went to Ronan O’Shea who takes his readers off the beaten track to discover amazing hiking trails and coastal food in his feature ‘ Antigua Beyond the Beaches’ for Escapism Magazine.
In the biggest category overall, with over 40 entries submitted, Blogger Macca Sherifi of An Adventurous World scooped the combined Best Online & Blog Post award. In his feature and video, Macca brings the island of Dominica to life through his passionate and inspiring travel guide ‘ What to do in Dominica-My Travel Guide to Dominica’.
The Best Broadcast category brought up some surprises with two episodes of Ainsley’s Caribbean Kitchen, Antigua and Dominica, reaching the finalist stage. Presented by Ainsley Harriott, Ainsley’s Caribbean Kitchen –Antigua, which showcased the island’s local culinary treasures alongside stupendous footage, scooped up the winner’s award. View the trailer at YouTube Antigua Trailer.
In the Social Media category, three impressive campaigns made the shortlist with the winner of the Best Social Media Campaign going to #WhatCoolLooksLike for the Traverse Antigua Conference 2019. Up to 10 UK influencers representing blogs including Dejashu, Travel Documentaries, I Want You To Know, Sandy Makes Sense and Travel Colourfully were part of a Campaign involving 33 content creators who individually presented excellent content across numerous social media platforms.
In the final category for 2019, Audrey Gillan and Nicola Trup scooped the Best Caribbean Round Up award for their feature, ‘Caribbean Cook Up’ in National Geographic Traveller, a fascinating and beautifully illustrated culinary journey through the Caribbean.
Carol Hay, the CTO’s director of marketing for UK and Europe, said “Congratulations to all the finalists and winners in the 2019 awards; the Caribbean Travel Media Awards have successively drawn a high standard of entries in all categories, each entry playing their part in raising awareness of the Caribbean as a region, and this year has been no exception.
“I would like to personally thank all the entrants who took time to submit their entries and express my gratitude to our headline sponsor, Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc, our individual award sponsors who very generously provided the prizes and the Judges for taking time out to review the entries.”
The 2019 Caribbean Travel Media Awards winners, runners-up (2nd and 3rd place respectively) and sponsors were:
Best Travel Trade Feature:
MARTIN STEADY for ‘A Journey to Belize’, Selling Travel
In 2nd place: Andrew Doherty, TTG with ‘Jamaica Beyond The Beaches’
In 3rd place: Kathryn Liston, Selling Travel, with ‘My Journey – St. Vincent & the Grenadines’
Sponsor: Discover Dominica Authority
Best National Newspaper Feature:
JULIET RIX for ‘Rediscovering Dominica two years after the Hurricane’, The Telegraph and Telegraph.co.uk
In 2nd place: Ian Belcher, The Times for ‘How Grenada turned up the heat’
TIED with James Henderson, The Telegraph for ‘Go Organic, local… and Jamaican’
In 3rd place: Fiona Hyde, Irish Times, for ‘Holidaying solo on the honeymooner’s island of Saint Lucia’
Sponsor: St. Kitts Tourism Authority
Best Regional Newspaper Feature:
HANNAH STEPHENSON, ‘Spice of Life Grenada’, PA Media
In 2nd: Priya Joshi, PA Media for ‘In Jamaica, The Jamaican Way’
In 3rd place: Jane Harris, Waterfront Magazine with ‘Happy Landings Saint Lucia’
Sponsor: Saint Lucia Tourism Authority
Best Consumer Feature:
RONAN O’SHEA for ‘Antigua Beyond the Beaches’ Escapism
In 2nd place: Caroline Robertson-Brown, Scubaverse, for ‘Treasure Island Barbados’
In 3rd place: Nick Redman, Sunday Times Travel Magazine, for ‘Beq in Time’
Sponsor: Cayman Islands Department of Tourism
Best Broadcast (TV & Radio) Feature:
AINSLEY HARRIOTT forAinsley’s Caribbean Kitchen – Antigua, ITV
In 2nd place: Greg McKenzie, BBC Travel Show for ‘Swapping dance moves for hard hats in Saint Martin’
In 3rd place: Ainsley Harriott, Ainsley’s Caribbean Kitchen – Dominica, ITV
Sponsor: Bahamas Tourist Office
Best Online and/or Blog Feature:
MACCA SHERIFI for ‘What to do in Dominica-My Travel Guide’, An Adventurous World
In 2nd place: Ursula Barzey, Caribbean & Co for ‘10 Islands To Visit in St Vincent & The Grenadines’
TIED WITH
Laura French, Lonely Planet, for ‘Wildlife, beaches and rum: Embracing Guadeloupe’s rustic charm’
In 3rd place: Heather Cowper, Heather on her Travels for ‘Kaaboo Cayman Review’
TIED WITH
Ella Alexander, Harper’s Bazaar (Online) for ‘Beyond the beaches, a cultural guide to Jamaica’
Sponsor: Tobago Tourism Agency
Best Social Media Campaign:
#WhatCoolLooksLike campaign for TRAVERSE ANTIGUA CONFERENCE 2019
In 2nd place: Charlie and Jess Wild for Kuoni & the Travel Project ‘Secret Antigua’
In 3rd place: Ursula Barzey, Caribbean & Co for ‘Celebrating Creole Day& Other Things To Do In Saint Lucia’
Sponsor: Cayman Islands Department of Tourism
Best Caribbean Round Up:
AUDREY GILLAN & NICOLA TRUP for ‘A Caribbean Cook Up’, National Geographic Traveller
In 2nd place: Lucy Thackray, Mandarin Oriental Magazine for ‘Six luxury trips from Canouan’
In 3rd place: Jo Cooke, Travel Weekly for ‘Eight of the best Caribbean Cities’
Sponsor: Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc.
View photos from Awards.
