The search is on for England's biggest fan...

VisitEngland.com is searching for a budding travel writer / broadcaster / social networker to take an all-expenses paid 70 day trip around England.

The chosen 'biggest fan' will take a trip around England in a van, following on the heels of the Olympic  Torch Relay

Requirements for the position are simple - you have to be a real England enthusiast who would be able to entertain England with videos, photos, blog posts, facebook and twitter updates.

According to the enjoyEngland website, the perfect fan is...

• is a go-getter who instinctively knows where the action is, and uncovers the best stories
• can write like a dream. All the better to blog with…
• has an mean eye for photography
• is charismatic, with a great sense of humour when things don’t go to plan…
• is utterly engaged with the task, and engaging by nature
• has a full, clean UK driving licence
• is over 21 years of age
• is available for adventures countrywide between 14 May – 27 July

Interested?

All you need to do is send VisitEngland 100 words on your favorite place in England along with a photograph by April 9th.

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'The Next Great Storyteller' Competition closes soon...

National Geographic and Matador Network have teamed up in a competition to find 'The Next Great Storyteller.'

Think you have what it takes to a great travel storyteller?

Can you move, touch, surprise, and entertain with your stories?

Then this is the competition for you.

Here's what you have to do.

Submit a story in any of these four categories by March 31st...

Blog (300 words or less)Magazine Article (700 words or less)Video (No more than 3 minutes)Photo Essay (5 photos or less on a single subject)

The First Prize winner in each category will be...

"...invited to a “Storytellers’ Day” with the National Geographic Traveler editorial staff at National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, DC. Airfare from any location in the US and one night in a hotel will be paid for by NGS for each winner. Each winner will also receive a one-year subscription to National Geographic Traveler magazine."

There's not much time left.

To find out more and to enter, head over The Next Great Storyteller page.

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Go with Oh Travel Blogger competition...

Imagine free accommodation for a month in four European cities.

Sounds a lot like an impossible dream.

But the folks over at Go with Oh, a holiday accommodation site, is going to make this dream happen for some lucky blogger.

Interested?

All you have to do to enter is write a blog post about 5 things you'd most like to do in one of Go with Oh's accommodation destinations.

It shouldn't be to hard to do, given that their destinations are Barcelona, Paris, Berlin, Rome, Vienna, Prague, Venice, Dublin, and Florence.

In fact, the only hard part would be decided which destination to write about.

Check out Go with Oh's Blogger Competition page for more information on how to enter this amazing competition.

Are you in?

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52 Perfect Days Food and Wine Travel Writing Contest...

52 Perfect Days fourth annual travel writing contest is now open for submissions.


The topic this year is Culinary or Wine Tourism.


Submission guidelines...

* article no more than 1,000 words on your perfect experience with Wine or Culinary tourism 

* detail how to spend a perfect day, evening, weekend, or week focusing on one of the following: wineries, tastings and tours, culinary explorations including culinary schools, foodie tours, B7Bs well known for their food or pairings, and food movements in particular cities. Or share a day of exploring the best restaurants, food carts, wine bars that a particular location has to offer.

* the travel story must be not only unique, engaging, and exciting to the reader and but also well-crafted and well edited.

* send the completed article and photographs to this email  

The four best entries as chosen by the 52 Perfect Days editors, will wine one of these prizes


- a trip to Calistoga in Napa Valley Wine Country


- a trip to Valle de Guadalupe in Baja Wine Country


- a WordPress website by ZDDesign


- a BottleWise Rollup wine travel case


Interested?


Then read the full submission guidelines and get writing.


Deadline for submissions is November 31, 2012

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The CTC Culinary Journalism Award...

Travel bloggers who write about food might want to check out the CTC Culinary Journalism Award.

Created by the Canadian Tourism Commission and Food Day Canada ®, this award is open to all journalists who have published an article in the US that best describes the relationship between Canadas primary products and the culinary experience available in Canada.

Two categories will be acknowledged:

* Best written work in any medium and
* Best photo essay, video or app.

The criteria are as follows:

- Must have been published in the US or in the case of online content demonstrate that more than 60% of the audience is US based.

- Must have been published between January 1, 2011 and December 31, 2011

- Includes print, online, broadcast and culinary app

- Subject matter can be pan-Canadian or regional; specific food items or a full menu but must clearly demonstrate the origin of fresh Canadian products and the journey to the table with an emphasis on the culinary experiences that could be enjoyed by visitors to Canada.

-Must be published in English, between 250 and 1500 words; or 5 to 40 images or 2 to 30-minute video

-Each of two winners will receive a cheque of $1000.

-Each winner provides complete rights to the CTC and Food Day Canada to use and re-publish except where the media outlet prevents such use.

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Still time to enter the Mynatour Ecotourism Travel Writing contest...

There is still time to enter the Mynatour Ecotourism travel writing contest.

All you need to do is...

"... is write a short blog story capturing the most memorable ecotravel moment of your last adventure.

There are no limits, your story can be about anything. All we need is your side of the story and 5 photographs that best capture it. Remember to include what you did to make it more eco friendly... what you think should be done. Be inspiring, be creative, be yourself and most of all, have fun! "

For more information head over to Mynatour's travel writing contest page.

Deadline: 23 October 2011

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Wanderlust and Lipstick Travel Writing Contest...

Wanderlust and Lipstick are seeking entries for their fourth annual travel writing contest.

Amateur and professional female travel writers are encouraged to enter this travel writing contest which features a grand prize of an Unlimited-Luxury® 7-day stay for two at Secrets Huatulco Resort & Spa in Conejos Bay, Mexico.

The contest runs October 1, 2011 through December 31, 2011, and the winning writers will be announced in mid- February.

Entries may be submitted under one of the following categories: Adventure, Food & Drink, Off the Beaten Path or Spiritual.

Click on submission guidelines for more details about the travel writing contest and how to enter.

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Win a spot on a photo walk around New York City...

Western Digital is hosting a NYC Photo Walk with WD Creative Master and Canon Explorer of Light, Bruce Dorn, on Wednesday, October 26, the day before PhotoPlus Expo opens.

Keen photographers interested in being chosen to participate in this photo walk need to submit one of their photographs plus a brief, 100 word description on why they want to participate.

Eight lucky winners will spend three hours exploring NYC with renowned photographer Bruce Dorn, during which time they will get one-on-one photographic guidance.

Each of the eight winners will also receive a Lowepro bag, Lexar memory card and WD My Passport drive.

Plus, one of the participants will receive a Grand Prize package consisting of a WD TV media player, WD Livewire Powerline AV network Kit, WD My Book Live Personal Cloud storage drive, and a Lowepro roller bag.

All entries must be received no later than 11:59 p.m. on October 10 (Pacific Time).

Enter at www.wdphotowalk.com

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Travel Writing Contest for North American writers...

The city of Richmond is British Columbia's fourth-largest city, a fact that not many people outside of British Columbia know. After all, the face of B.C. is Vancouver.

But Tourism Richmond is hoping to change that by way of a travel writing contest.

Open to all North American travel writers who have visited the area.

There are two $1000 prizes - one for the best Richmond food story and one for the best Richmond destination piece.

All entries must have been published in print or online media publications (ie magazines, newspapers, websites, and blogs) between April 1, 2011 to March 31, 2012.

All contest entries must also be submitted to Tourism Richmond by June 1, 2012.

All entries will be reviewed by an independent qualified panel with the winner in each category being announced in November 2012.

For more information check out Tourism Richmond's travel writing contest page.

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Enter Lonely Planet's Great Journeys Contest...

Ever dream of taking a trip on the famous Trans-Siberian Railway from Moscow to Beijing via Mongolia?

Then Lonely Planet might just be able to issue you the required boarding pass.

They have teamed up with Railbookers to sponsor a Great Journeys contest with the winner (and their guest) will score not only a trip trip onboard the Trans-Siberian Railway from Moscow to Beijing via Mongolia, but also 2 nights hotel accommodation in Moscow, 1 night's hotel accommodation in Beijing and a budget of $5,000 (USD) towards flights.

To enter, visit the contest lonelyplanet.com/greatjourneys and vote for your favorite 'great' journey.

The contest ends on October 7th at 11:59pm GMT.

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Travelllll.com and Expedia Want to Host Two Travel Bloggers at World Travel Market...

Newly launched travel blogging and media news site Travelllll.com has teamed up with Expedia to host two travel bloggers at this year's World Travel Market being held in London between 7th and 10th November, providing not only press access to the entire event but also four star accommodation and, if you live in Europe free flights to London.

For more details on how to enter, head over to the Travelllll.com WTM contest page

A word of advice though - make yourself some coffee before you head there because once you arrive at Travelllll.com you'll going to find it hard to leave. It might have only launched last week, but already it's providing plenty of interesting and thought provoking content.

Good luck and happy reading!

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Family travel writing competition for UK writers....

UK family travel site, Have a Lovely Time, is celebrating their new look with a single theme travel writing competition open for all UK residents over the age of 18.

Here's the what it's all about...

With a title of Beautiful Britain, our family travel writing competition aims to celebrate all that’s great about family adventures in our stunning land. That might include breathtaking adventures in the Lakes, laughing til your sides ache at a family-friendly Edinburgh festival, savouring the splendour of the West Wales coastline, a Devon cream tea or a knees up at a holiday park…or of course plenty more.

Wherever you love to find quality family time in Britain – we want to hear about it.

We’re looking for entries about family holidays, breaks, days out or adventures.

For more information, including submission guidelines and prizes, head over to the Beautiful Britain Travel Writing Competition webpage.

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ACTIVE TRAVEL ASIA launches travel writing contest...

Adventure tour operator ACTIVETRAVEL ASIA, based in Indochina, has launched a travel writing contest 2011 for travelers from across the world.

Enter by emailing to event@activetravel.asia a 350 - 100 word article about the writer's best holiday experience in Indochina (Vietnam, Laos & Cambodia).

All eligible enters will be posted on Active Travel Asia's facebook page (www.facebook.com/Active.Travel) and 2 travel news sites Activetravel Magazines (www.activetravelmagazines.com/) & Vietnam Adventure News (news.activetravelvietnam.com/).

The winner is the entry that has the amount of LIKE ranked highest on facebook page plus on 2 travel news sites.

The winner will receive a trip for 2 persons costing from $700-->$1000 depend on their selections of out door activities including Trekking, Cycling, Motorcycling, Kayaking in wide areas of Indochina.

For more information, head over to the ATA Writing Competition 2011 webpage.

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Win a Photographic Assignment to South Africa with National Geographic and WorldNomads.com...

Ever dream of becoming a National Geographic photographer? If so, check out this latest WorldNomads.com scholarship opportunity.

Teaming up with National Geographic Channel, WorldNomads.com have created Travel Photography Scholarship 2011 - South Africa which will allow one lucky (and talented person) to join a 8 day Gap Adventure tour in South Africa between January 18-25, 2012. While on the trip, they will

....will work alongside Jason Edwards photographing wildlife and landscapes in Kruger National Park at various times of the day and night. You will also work through a specific shot list as part of your assignment.

... will gain invaluable mentoring and hands-on experience in everything from shot set up, technique and composition through to insights into his many years of diverse experience as an award winning photographer.

...and on their return, will work with Jason Edwards through the editorial process to shortlist your top photographs and colour balance to achieve professional looking shots for submission to National Geographic Channel for publication.

Details and deadlines:

Who can apply: This global opportunity is open all keen amateur/pro-amateur photographers over the age of 18 who have a lust for travel and a strong desire to start a career in Travel Photography. They must also have a good level of fitness.

How to apply: Involves taking a series of photographs that tell a story. Full instructions can be found on the WorldNomads.com travel photography scholarship 2011 page

Deadline: 2pm November 8, 2011 (Australian Eastern Daylight Time)


(photo credit: @Liz Lewis 2010)

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A Misadventure Travel Writing Contest...

Book publishers Bantam Dell are running a travel writing contest in conjunction with the release of author Rachel Friedman travel memoir The Good Girl’s Guide to Getting Lost.

They are calling for entries of 500 words or less that describe your most memorable travel mishap.

The bigger the misadventure the better - double points if there’s a language barrier. Triple points if your life flashed before your eyes

Submit them to rachelfriedmanwriter@gmail.com with your contact information no later than May 6th, 2011, and by June 1st Rachel will choose one lucky winner to receive a year’s worth of travel reading* (not limited to travelogues, but fiction and nonfiction set in foreign destinations) with the option to choose 10 books from a list of up to 20, including:

One Fodor’s title of a destination of the winner’s choice
You Shall Know Our Velocity by Dave Eggers
The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman
Into the Wild by John Krakauer
In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson
Istanbul by Orham Pamuk
Blind Descent by James M. Tabor
Mad Dogs and an Englishwoman by Polly Evans
A Year in Provence by Peter Mayle
Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen
A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz

One entry per person, valid in the 50 United States and District of Columbia. Void where prohibited.

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Apply now for the Fall 2011 Glimpse Correspondents Program

The application round for the Fall 2011 Glimpse Correspondents Program has officially opened.

It's a great opportunity for students, volunteers, teachers, and travelers planning on being abroad this year to get their stories and photography published at high-profile publications--and get paid for it.

The Glimpse Correspondents Program is powered by Matador, and supported in part by the National Geographic Society. Selected writers and photographers will get a $600 stipend and one onone editorial training and support in creating a portfolio of published work.

Anyone over 18 is eligible, and writers and photographers of all skill and experience levels are encouraged to apply. The criteria
for selecting Correspondents not only include candidates' talents in writing or photography, but also their vision for engaging
communities and finding unique stories while abroad, as well as their commitment to developing these stories into polished
long-form narratives over the course of the program.

To learn more, visit the Correspondents Program page
.

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Air New Zealand's Royal London Giveaway...

Air New Zealand, my favorite airline for long distance travel, is holding the Royal Treatment Sweepstakes with the winner receiving...

Roundtrip economy airfare for two to London on Air New Zealand
Accommodations for five nights at the Westminster Bridge (see details below)
Admission to:
Westminster Abbey
Buckingham Palace (open 23rd July to 3rd October 2011)
The Tower of London
Kensington Palace
Hampton Court Palace
A hamper of food delivered to their hotel from Fortnum and Mason (the Queen's grocer!)
Afternoon tea at The Orangery at Kensington Palace

The only thing they can't give you is an invitation to the Royal Wedding.

The sweepstakes runs from March 5 - 11 April 2011 and is open to residents of the United States.

Enter at http://airnzspecials.com/RoyalLondon/index.html

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Traveler's Tales have announces the 2011 Sola Awards Winners for Best Travel Writing...

Traveler's Tales have announced the 2011 Solas Awards winners:

Grand Prize for Best Travel Story of the Year

Gold ($1,000)
The Memory Bird by Carolyn Kraus

Silver ($750)
Masha by Marcia DeSanctis

Bronze ($500)
Beneath the Rim by Michael Shapiro

Travel writers also had the chance to enter and win in over 20 different travel writing categories. To find out who won what in which category, head over to the 2011 Solas Awards winners page.

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The 2010 NATJA Awards for Great Travel Writing...

February must be award season for travel writers.

Not only have the finalists for the Weblog Award for best travel blog been announced but so have the winners of this year's NATJA awards.

The NATJA awards honor the 'best of the best' with gold, silver, and bronze awards in 61 categories ranging from best independent blog to special focus travel articles (internet)such as these two published in Perceptive Travel - Two Wheels, Two Drinks: Biking Through America’s Heartland and Once Upon a Time in Vienna

Discover who won what for yourself at the NATJA 2010 awards webpage.

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Quark Expedition Travel Writing Contest: Blog Your Way to the North Pole...

There's still time to enter Quark Expedition's Blog Your Way to the North Pole travel writing contest.

All you have to do is...

"..post a short essay (200 to 400 words) on this website. Tell us why you qualify to be Quark's Official Blogger to the North Pole. The 400 words must also include a short story about a unique trip or travel experience you've taken, as well as your photo. Then, reach out to your social networks to get the most votes."

An amazing prize is on offer - a trip for 2 to the North Pole aboard the world's most sophisticated and powerful nuclear-powered icebreaker. Airfare from the winner's nearest international gateway, as well a charter flight from Helsinki, Finland, to Murmansk, Russia, is also included.

However, the contest closes on 15 February 2011, so there's not much time left to post an award winning entry and also get the thousands of votes need to be in the running.

Alternatively, you could just cast your vote and help someone else win. That's what I'm going to do.

Here's my pick...travel writer and photographer Lola Akinmade who took part in the Write to Travel 'interview with a travel writer' series back in 2008.

Lola entered the contest a few months ago and is currently in the top 5 most popular posts.



Let's help get her to Number One...

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