Archive for category: News

The Australian Society of Travel Writers (ASTW) is pleased to announce that Visit USA Australia (Inc) (Visit USA) have come on board as the sponsor for this year’s coveted Travel Writer of the Year award, announced at the 2019 ASTW Convention. Visit USA previously sponsored the 2017 and 2018 award, which were both won by Catherine Marshall.

Visit USA is a voluntary body that promotes travel to the United States of America. It is funded by individual members from the Australian Travel Trade as well as from associate members in the USA. The Board Members of the organisation work vigorously to promote the US as a desirable destination of choice.

President of the Visit USA organisation Australia, Lucy Rowe said that Visit USA is thrilled to sponsor the ASTW’s Travel Writer of the Year award for the third consecutive year.

She added, “We always enjoy our fantastic partnership with the ASTW on this hotly contested initiative to promote and reward the high level of travel journalism we have in Australia. We look forward to seeing who will take out the award this year”.

The Travel Writer of the Year is awarded to the writer member with the best portfolio of three published travel stories for the judging period. It is the most coveted of the 20 awards presented at the ASTW’s Travel Journalism Awards for Excellence, an annual celebration of outstanding travel writing, photography, and tourism communications.

Established in 1992, this is a closely contested competition among peers, focusing on the very best published work of the year. Recognition of talent, a coveted trophy and prizes are the rewards for the winners.

The 2019 awards will be presented at the annual ASTW Convention in Cairns in October with major sponsor Tourism Tropical North Queensland.

For more information about sponsoring awards, lunches or events; attending events as a member’s guest or for membership enquiries, please view our website for more information or contact secretariat Justine White on secretariat@astw.org.au

About the ASTW

The ASTW is a 300-strong group of travel writers, editors, radio and television broadcasters, bloggers, guide book authors and photographers (as well as travel industry public relations and marketing professionals) whose work appears regularly in major newspapers, magazines, airwaves and websites across Australia and the world.

All ASTW members must satisfy strict criteria to join and are obligated to substantiate their membership annually by providing details of their published output or industry participation. They must also adhere to a Code of Ethics. By ensuring that only bona fide applicants are admitted, the ASTW maintains its integrity and the professionalism of the travel industry.

Justin Meneguzzi has been named the inaugural winner of the Australian Society of Travel Writers (ASTW) and Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) Rising Star Award for his article Blood and Sand in get lost magazine.

Managing Editor of Fairfax Media’s Traveller.com.au, Craig Platt, who selected the winner from a shortlist of finalists, said “Justin Meneguzzi’s story on Calcio Storico in Florence is everything you want from a narrative travel feature. Despite being about a destination that is already well-explored by tourists, it is an evocative and fresh look at a part of Florentine culture that few visitors would experience.”

The judging panel also included HKTB Regional Director – Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific, Andrew Clark; author of the Hong Kong Precincts guidebook and ASTW committee member, Penny Watson; and award-winning freelance journalist and media industry academic, Lee Mylne.

Justin wins a hosted four-night famil to Hong Kong, sponsored by HKTB, with his subsequent story published on Traveller.com.au and considered for print. He also receives an annual Rising Star membership to the ASTW.

The award and prize will be presented at the Melbourne ASTW Christmas lunch on the 6 December, 2018 by ASTW President, Helen Hayes, and HKTB’s Public Relations and Media Manager, Natalie Brown.

Justin said, “I’m so thrilled to accept the Rising Star Award from the Australian Society of Travel Writers. I love being dropped into a new destination and exploring local haunts and hideaways with my trusty camera, learning from the locals and seeing a place through their eyes.

“I also believe travel can be a force for good, and that the stories we share play such an important role in breaking down barriers, which the world needs now more than ever. These are the stories I hope to share in 2019 and I can’t wait to work with the Hong Kong Tourism Board and the team at Traveller.com.au.

Justin quit his job as a litigation lawyer in 2016 to pursue a career as a freelance travel journalist and photographer. He currently heads up the Global Content Team at Intrepid Group, working as part of the Creative team to deliver inspiring and informative travel content to travellers around the world.

The collaboration between HKTB and the ASTW is aimed at encouraging a new era of travel writers in Australia. This year’s award was open to writers and digital influencers who had their first paid travel story published in the past two years.

For more information on the ASTW, visit www.astw.org.au or for information about Hong Kong, visit www.discoverhongkong.com/au.

The Australian Society of Travel Writers (ASTW) committee today released tender documents inviting destinations to bid for the ASTW 2020 Annual Convention and famil program.

According to ASTW President Helen Hayes, hosting of the annual convention is an unparalleled opportunity to showcase a destination to leading editors, writers, digital influencers, photographers, broadcasters and PR professionals from Australia and internationally.

“As a result of their support and involvement, convention hosts will receive significant media exposure in leading Australian and international magazines, newspapers, radio stations, television programs and numerous social media outlets”, said Ms Hayes.

“The 2018 convention generated in excess of 100 documented stories about the destination in leading Australian and international media outlets. This exposure has been instrumental in driving greater knowledge and increased tourism for these destinations”.

The successful tender will be required to demonstrate capacity to offer a tourism destination that is of interest to the Australian market; have facilities to host all elements of the convention; and the capacity to provide a comprehensive pre and post famil program for delegates.

The 2020 convention will be held over a weekend from late August and October, with a comprehensive pre and post famil program on offer.

Comprising more than 300 members, the Australian Society of Travel Writers (ASTW) has been the peak travel writing body in the country for more than 40 years. Members include writers, photographers, editors, radio and television presenters, filmmakers, bloggers, digital influencers and public relations representatives who are professionally engaged to produce articles, reviews, photographs, stories and social media commentary on national and international travel destinations and experiences.

To request a copy of the tender document or for further details, please email ASTW PR Representatives, Saskia Baker and Mandy Dwyer via email: PR@astw.org.au. Tender submissions are due by 15 March 2019.

For more information about the ASTW, see  ASTW Overview or email our Secretariat Justine White.

A collaboration between the Australian Society of Travel Writers (ASTW), the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) and the British Guild of Travel Writers (BGTW) has been formalised at the Society of American Travel Writers’ 2018 convention in Barbados.

Representatives from all three bodies were at the Hilton Barbados Resort to formalise the exciting new initiative in an agreement that will strengthen their ties and create an international partnership to benefit all members.

The societies have agreed to start the collaborative process by appointing three representatives to oversee it: Barbara Ramsay Orr and Danielle Lancaster as the outgoing Presidents of the SATW and ASTW along with Alastair McKenzie, the soon to be outgoing Chair of the BGTW.

Ms Lancaster flew to the convention with Delta Airlines to be a part of this ground-breaking move and commented on how extremely rewarding it was to meet with her esteemed colleagues and see their idea become a reality, after months of discussion.

She added, “I was honoured to be a part of this project, which would not have been possible without the generous support of TravMedia and Delta Airlines, who enabled me to attend the event on behalf of the ASTW committee.

“The power and reach of each of the organisations can be increased exponentially through this international partnering.”

Ms Ramsay Orr said, “We have much to share and to learn but together we also can own the global space to advocate for journalists on our shared travel and journalism issues.”

Mr McKenzie has been delighted with the overwhelming support he has encountered for this initiative, which for the most part has been “why haven’t we done this before?”

He has also been encouraged by how quickly the co-operation has moved forward. SATW and ASTW members have already been made part of the judging panel for the BGTW members awards, the Presidents of each organisation have already been made honorary members of the others and members of all three organisations are already talking together and advising each other as a community on the combined Facebook group.

Signing of the official collaboration between the ASTW, SATW and BGTW in Barbados on September 24, 2018.

Pictured are Alastair McKenzie outgoing chair of the BGTW, Barbara Ramsey Orr ex-president SATW, David Swanson the new president of the SATW and Danielle Lancaster ex-president ASTW.

Tropical North Queensland has been selected to host the Australian Society of Travel Writers 2019 Convention.

Cairns has been selected as host city following submission of the winning bid by Tourism Tropical North Queensland (TTNQ) and Tourism and Events Queensland.

TTNQ Chief Executive Officer Pip Close was in Bangkok at the Australian Society of Travel Writers 2018 Convention when the announcement of the winning bid was made last night (August 18])

The convention, to be held from 18-20 October 2019, will attract 130 delegates for a 1.5 day conference plus an educational program showcasing the region.

Ms Close said the selection of Tropical North Queensland for the convention is particularly appropriate given that the focus of the 2019 convention will be sustainability.

“Tropical North Queensland has two World Heritage areas with Ecotourism Australia-accredited operators,” Ms Close said.

“This convention will give us an outstanding opportunity to promote these natural environments and the sustainable way they are managed.

“Bringing this prestigious event to Cairns is part of TTNQ’s strategy to master our region’s story and be the gateway to the thousands of stories across the length and breadth of the destination.

“Tropical North Queensland won the bid based on the diverse travel experiences we offer and the timing is perfect with millions of dollars of tourism infrastructure just completed or under construction,

The city’s newest hotel, Riley, which opens in November 2018 will host the convention. It is the first of three new five-star hotels from the Crystalbrook Collection to open in Cairns with the next two hotels opening in 2019.

The Australian Society of Travel Writers is the peak travel writing body in Australia, with more than 300 members who provide exceptional media coverage of travel destinations and experiences.

The society’s annual convention may be held anywhere in the world, with previous destinations including South Africa, Fiji, Vietnam, South Korea, China, Malaysia and New Caledonia.

Convention host cities receive significant media exposure in leading Australian and international press, social media, websites, radio and television programs, and travel guides.

The 2017 convention was held on the Sunshine Coast, which received substantial national and international media coverage, driving greater knowledge of and increased tourism to the area.