World-class judging panel announced as Africa Travel Week (ATW) seeks Africa’s top travel journalists, storytellers and content creators
Cape Town, 28 October 2025 – Entries for the 2026 ATW Media Awards are now open, with submissions sought from travel writers, bloggers, videographers, and photographers who produce outstanding content related to the African continent.
Building on the success of previous years, the 2026 awards feature an exceptional judging panel of global heavyweights, including Ellie Rothnie (wildlife photographer, tour leader and Canon ambassador), Kojo Bentum-Williams (Founder and Publisher, VoyagesAfriq), Barry Nield (Global Editor, CNN Travel), Divia Thani (Global Editorial Director, Condé Nast Traveller) and Tom Hall (Vice President, Lonely Planet).
"Once again, we’ve assembled a fantastic panel of judges who represent the very best in travel journalism and photography," says Megan De Jager, Portfolio Director of Africa Travel Week. "Their expertise will ensure we recognise the most compelling storytellers who bring Africa's extraordinary travel experiences to new audiences."
The 2026 awards cover five categories:
Sustainability Feature Award: Recognising stories that put the spotlight on regenerative tourism, community tourism, women-led initiatives, conservation, responsible practices and the African innovators protecting people and planet.
Visual Tourism Award: Honouring photographers and visual artists whose exceptional work showcases Africa’s natural heritage, culture and character in extraordinary ways.
Tourism News Award: Celebrating incisive, analytical reporting of developments, patterns, obstacles and innovations impacting the industry today.
Destination Feature Award: Rewarding rich, layered features that explore a destination's natural wonders, cultural traditions and communities – inspiring people to travel with deeper intention and curiosity.
Young Talent Award: Spotlighting emerging writers and creators under 25 who are shaping how the world sees the continent.
The awards are open to all media practitioners at no cost, with entries accepted for content published between 1 January 2025 and 31 December 2025.
"ATW's Media Awards recognise excellence in travel journalism, honouring those who inspire wanderlust, champion responsible tourism and showcase the authentic spirit of different African destinations," adds de Jager. “Entries close on 16 January 2026 and winners will be announced during Africa Travel Week 2026.”
Full submission criteria as well as submission and nomination forms available on our website: The 2026 ATW Media Awards.
-ENDS-
Issued by: Big Ambitions
Contact: Sonnette Fourie
Tel: +27 81 072 2869
Email: sonnette@bigambitions.co.za
Notes to editors:
About Big Ambitions
Big Ambitions is a specialist strategic communications, marketing, and training consultancy dedicated to the travel and tourism industry. With a deep understanding of both B2B and B2C markets, we provide data-driven, results-focused solutions that help our clients remain competitive, increase profitability, and navigate an ever-evolving industry landscape.
Our expertise spans tourism communications and marketing strategy, content creation, community building, and market research. We work with a range of clients, including destination marketing organisations, tourism associations, travel technology companies, tourism consultants, and travel industry service providers. By leveraging industry-leading insights and innovative strategies, we enhance the authority and credibility of both our clients and the broader tourism sector.
Now in its 33nd year, Arabian Travel Market (ATM) is the leading international travel and tourism event in the Middle East for inbound and outbound tourism professionals. Held annually at the Dubai World Trade Centre, ATM 2024 spanned 12 halls, making it the largest edition to date. The event attracted over 47,000 attendees and more than 35,000 visitors (including 6,000+ high-value buyers) and over 2,550 exhibitors and representatives from over 161 countries. In 2025, ATM will expand to 13 halls, growing across all sectors, and will continue to be a crucial gathering for the global travel and tourism industry. Arabian Travel Market is part of Arabian Travel Week. #ATMDubai
ATM takes place from 4 - 7 May 2026, at the Dubai World Trade Centre, Dubai.
https://www.wtm.com/atm/en-gb.html
Arabian Travel Week is a week-long festival of events alongside Arabian Travel Market 2025. Providing a renewed focus for the Middle East’s travel and tourism sector, it includes Start-Up Competition, Influencers' Event, GBTA Business Travel Forums, and ATM Travel Tech. The event also features ATM Buyer Networking and a series of country forums.
https://www.wtm.com/arabian-travel-week/en-gb.html
About RX
RX is a global leader in events and exhibitions, leveraging industry expertise, data, and technology to build businesses for individuals, communities, and organisations. With a presence in 25 countries across 42 industry sectors, RX hosts approximately 350 events annually. RX is committed to creating an inclusive work environment for all our people. RX empowers businesses to thrive by leveraging data-driven insights and digital solutions. RX is part of RELX, a global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools for professional and business customers. For more information, visit www.rxglobal.com.
About RELX
RELX is a global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools for professional and business customers. RELX serves customers in more than 180 countries and has offices in about 40 countries. It employs more than 36,000 people over 40% of whom are in North America. The shares of RELX PLC, the parent company, are traded on the London, Amsterdam and New York stock exchanges using the following ticker symbols: London: REL; Amsterdam: REN; New York: RELX. *Note: Current market capitalisation can be found at http://www.relx.com/investors
World Travel Market (WTM) Portfolio comprises leading travel events and online portals across four continents. The events are Arabian Travel Market, WTM London, WTM Latin America and WTM Africa.
WTM London is the world’s most influential travel & tourism event for the global travel community. The show is the ultimate destination for those seeking a macro view of the travel industry and a deeper understanding of the forces shaping it. WTM London is where influential travel leaders, buyers and high-profile travel companies gather to exchange ideas, drive innovation, and accelerate business outcomes.
Next event: 4 to 6 November 2025 at ExCel London
WTM Latin America is held annually in São Paulo and attracts more than 29,000 tourism professionals during the three-day event. The event offers a qualified content combined with networking and business opportunities. In its most recent edition, in 2024, WTM Latin America maintained its focus on the effective generation of business and managed to secure the early scheduling of more than six thousand meetings that were held between buyers, travel agents, and exhibitors. WTM Latin America contents are available in English, Spanish and Portuguese.
Next event: 14 to 16 April 2026, Expo Center Norte, São Paulo, Brasil
latinamerica.wtm.com
WTM Africa launched in 2014 in Cape Town, South Africa. In 2024, WTM Africa facilitated more than 10 thousand unique pre-scheduled appointments, an increase of more than 8% compared to 2023 and welcomed more than 10 thousand visitors (unaudited), 25% more than 2023.
Next event: 13 to 15 April 2026 – Cape Town International Convention Centre, Cape Town http://africa.wtm.com/
About ATW Connect: Africa Travel Week’s digital arm, is a virtual hub packed to the seams with interesting content, industry news and insights, and the opportunity to hear from experts on a variety of topics in our new monthly webinar series. All with the aim to keep all of us in the travel and tourism industry connected. ATW Connect focuses on inbound and outbound markets for general leisure tourism, luxury travel and the MICE/business travel sector as well as travel technology.
WTM Global Hub, is the WTM Portfolio online portal created to connect and support travel industry professionals around the world. The resource hub offers the latest guidance and knowledge to help exhibitors, buyers and others in the travel industry face the challenges of the global coronavirus pandemic. WTM Portfolio is tapping into its global network of experts to create content for the hub. https://hub.wtm.com/
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