| (Posted 26th September 2015)
Leading players in the youth, student and educational travel industry celebrated at the Global Youth Travel Awards 2015
 The winners of the Global Youth Travel Awards 2015 – sponsored by Else Globe – were announced in Cape Town tonight during the concluding event of this year’s World Youth and Student Travel Conference – WYSTC 2015.
Having drawn an impressive number of nominations and votes, the award categories celebrate the outstanding performers within the youth, student and educational travel industry and act as a benchmark for excellence within this fast-growing sector.
David Chapman, Director General of WYSE Travel Confederation, which coordinates the awards, said: “The calibre of nominations this year across all award categories has been truly outstanding.
"As youth travel blossoms into the tourism industry’s fastest growing segment, representing approximately 23% of international tourist arrivals, it’s important to acknowledge the wealth of talent and innovation from the companies as well as individuals driving this growth.”
This year’s winners are:
THE WYSE AWARD
The WYSE award acknowledges a person or organisation that has made an outstanding contribution to the youth, student and educational travel industry: Michael McCarry
EXTRAORDINARY EXPERIENCE
Winner: International Student Volunteers
Runner up: THINK Global School
Honourable mention: SAVE Volunteering
GREEN ACCOMMODATION INITIATIVE
Winner: The Backpack
Runner up:YHA New Zealand
Honourable mention:Farfuglar ses – Hostelling International (HI) Iceland | YHA England and Wales
BEST MARKETING CAMPAIGN
Winner: STA Travel
Runner up:TrekAmerica
Honourable mention:Smaller Earth
OUTSTANDING VOLUNTEER PROJECT
Winner: Blue Ventures Expeditions
Runner up:Pod Volunteer
Honourable mention:International Student Volunteers in collaboration with Volunteer Africa 32° South
BEST TRAVEL TECHNOLOGY PRODUCT
Winner: Tripr
Runner up:WorldPackers
Honourable mention:FundMyTravel
BEST WORK EXPERIENCE PROVIDER
Winner: Austern International
Runner up:CIEE
Honourable mention:Alliance Abroad Group | Universal Student Exchange (USE)
BEST SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY INITIATIVE
Winner: The Backpack
Runner up:LooLa Adventure Group Pte Ltd
Honourable mention: BRIDGE Foundation
BEST YOUTH TRAVEL BLOGGER
Winner: I am Aileen
Runner up:Two Monkeys Travel
Honourable mention:No Money, Will Travel
CONSUMER VOTED AWARDS
The following awards were voted for by 7,500 young travellers:
BEST YOUTH TRAVEL AIRLINE: Emirates
BEST YOUTH TRAVEL DESTINATION: London
BEST YOUTH TRAVEL ACCOMMODATION: Generator Hostels
BEST YOUTH TOUR OPERATOR: Rustic Pathways
BEST YOUTH TRAVEL AGENT: StudentUniverse
Nominations for the Global Youth Travel Awards 2016 will open next year. For more information, visit awards.wystc.org. |
