Sri Lanka’s Cinnamon Group to host Asia’s first ever Travel Blogger Awards
View(s):Sri Lanka’s Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts is to host Asia’s first ever Travel Blogger Awards as part of the Travel Bloggers Conference (TBCasia) 2016.
Picture shows representing Cinnamon at the Thai fair : Dileep Mudadeniya and Pramukshi Kariyawasam, Assistant Manager-Public Relations, Cinnamon Resorts.
This unique concept in recognising the impact of travel blogging on the global tourism and hospitality industry was officially launched from 15 – 17 October at TBEX Thailand, one of the world’s largest gatherings of travel bloggers, writers, new media content creators, and social media savvy travel industry professionals, the company said in a statement this week.
First held in 2014, in collaboration with the Professional Travel Bloggers Association (PTBA), TBCasia was the only Asian conference that brought together travel bloggers, both internationally and locally, to explore pioneering ideas and techniques that have made the travel industry such a large playing field for innovative channels of communication today. To date, the tour has resulted in more than 6,000 tweets with a 4 million reach and 49 million impression across social media networks that was possible through the immense following each of these bloggers brought to the table with them.
Following the successful completion of TBCasia in 2014, the event is now scheduled to take place in June 2016 with the inclusion of Cinnamon Travel Blogger Awards – that recognises the advancements of the travel-blogger community worldwide.
“Against the backdrop of the successful Travel Bloggers Conference, we are proud to pioneer the Travel Bloggers Awards in 2016 to recognize bloggers’ contribution to creating awareness and interest in travel destinations. Digital media is the new frontier for the industry and by recognizing and rewarding these initiatives, Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts is proud to infuse the local travel and tourism industry with new thinking. Travellers are increasingly sourcing information about destinations from travel bloggers who are seen as an authentic source and by engaging these bloggers, we not only aim to encourage the practice of blogging, but also want to ensure that these bloggers can put forward a balanced view about Sri Lanka as a destination,” said Dileep Mudadeniya, Head of Brand Marketing at Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts.
Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts in association with airline partner SriLankan Airlines is providing 60 bloggers with the opportunity to link up with some of the most creative and sought-after minds in the industry, and become a part of an event that will shape the future of travel. Bloggers who apply and register for the Travel Blogger Awards will stand a chance of being shortlisted and hosted in Sri Lanka by Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts for a fully paid tour, the TBCasia conference and the Travel Blogger Awards Ceremony.
Return air tickets will also be provided courtesy of SriLankan airlines. The pre-conference tour which will be held from 2 – 6 June 2016 will be followed by the one-day conference at the Cinnamon Grand Colombo on the 7th of June and culminate in a gala red carpet awards night on the final day. The conference will welcome over 300 participants, including the hosted bloggers who will be given the opportunity to interact with professionals from the travel and hospitality industry, including both local and foreign representatives of tourist boards, travel agents and other stakeholders.
The conference will conclude with the grand Cinnamon Travel Blogger Awards Ceremony, where the shortlisted bloggers who participated in the pre-conference tour and one day conference, will stand a chance to become a winner in each of the following categories: Best Travel Blog of the Year (overall), Best Travel Blogger of the Year, Best Up-Coming Travel Blogger, Best Writing in a Blog, Best Travel Photography Blog, Best Travel Video Blog, Best Food Blog, Best Luxury Travel Blog, Best Airline Blog, Best Optimisation of Social Media and the Best Responsible Tourism Award.