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 week 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.
Caroline Robertson-Brown, Deputy Editor of Scubaverse Media, narrowly missed out on the top spot in the Best Consumer Feature award for ‘Treasure Island Barbados’ which appeared in the WINTER 2019 issue of Dive Travel Adventures magazine – go to page 72 HERE to read!
The first place in the Best Consumer Feature award went to Ronan O’Shea for his feature ‘Antigua Beyond the Beaches’ for Escapism Magazine. In third place was Nick Redman, Sunday Times Travel Magazine, for ‘Beq in Time.’ The Best Consumer Feature award was sponsored by the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism.
Here is the full list of the 2019 Caribbean Travel Media Awards winners, runners-up (2nd and 3rd place respectively) and sponsors:
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 for Ainsley’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.
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.”
Find out more about the work of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) at www.onecaribbean.org.
