How to Win Awards: The Essentials Travel Brands Need to Know

Aren’t they just pay-to-play, self-congratulating, money-spinning ego trips?

Well, maybe that’s true for some awards – we know there are some where glitz and glam (and the entry fee) totally overshadow the substance and relevance of the process.

Publication awards, organised by leading travel magazines and online platforms, usually highlight excellence in travel. Industry awards, on the other hand, recognise outstanding achievements and innovation within the travel and tourism sector, celebrating the best practices and contributions that drive the industry forward.

At Lemongrass, we have extensive experience not just entering our clients for awards but also being on the other side of the award on judging panels as well. Mirjam, our CEO & Founder, has been on various judging panels (most recently The Purpose Awards), which gives us unique insight into what makes a good entry and helps us discern which awards hold true merit. This expertise allows us to navigate the awards landscape effectively, ensuring that our efforts and your investments are directed towards opportunities that are genuinely worthwhile.

To us, an accolade only counts if it’s of value, and it’s easy to see through those phoney, one-time awards.

But winning a top-tier, relevant award is game-changing. A meaningful award can get you recognised by potential guests, showcase exceptional work, boost team morale, and even allow you to level up your pricing. It’s great PR.

A meaningful award is one that speaks to who you are as a brand and how your customers see you. It doesn’t always have to be The Oscars and The Grammys of the travel world. It could be an award for your social or environmental impact.

• Research thoroughly: Do these awards really align with your brand's values?
• Broaden your scope: Seek recognition for your best achievements, regardless of the theme.
• Follow submission guidelines: Don’t overstep word counts, attachments, or categories.
• Study past winners: Look for common themes, standout features, and innovative approaches.

It doesn’t have to be travel-centric. You could be an amazing employer, or a carbon-conscious organisation, or a community builder. Seek recognition for your best achievements, regardless of the theme. Take the Junior Design Awards for example: they celebrate excellence and innovation in children's design and lifestyle products and brands. Whilst not a travel-centric award, our family travel focused client Martinhal is a great fit and has won on several occasions for their excellent family offering.

Carefully read the eligibility requirements, the judging criteria – and pay very close attention to the submission guidelines. Don’t overstep word counts, attachments or categories you’re entering for, but do only enter relevant categories to stand a better chance of winning. Enter more than one category if it is relevant and budgets allow and be aware that some categories have less competition than others, so it can be worthwhile being savvy about which you enter.

For hotels - for some travel awards, certain journalists need to have stayed at your property to make you eligible. For example, we knew Lanserhof Sylt was worthy of being included in the Tatler Spa Guide for 2023. Knowing we needed to pitch to Delilah Khomo early on to get her to visit as soon as possible after it opened, we invited her to the resort. Lanserhof was listed within the guide and won the Super Charging Sojourn category from this visit. This is similar for the World’s 50 Best Awards - each member of the academy has seven votes, and at the point of voting, they are required to list the seven best hotels they have stayed in over the past 18 months in order of preference.

Having a solid grasp of your brand’s identity and where you fit among your competition is crucial. Involve the people who were close to the project or campaign – the ones who understand the challenges faced and how they were overcome. Present the award entry in a clear, simple way.

• Use simple language and big picture ideas: Aim for clarity first.
• Be kind to the reviewer: Make it easy to understand what you did, why you did it, and how you did it. Explain who you are as a brand, don’t just expect the judges to know what you stand for, or even where you are geographically. Start with basic scene-setting. Explain the goals, the challenges faced, and how you overcame them.
• Use the Get Who To By model:
  • Get an audience
  • Who face a problem
  • To do something
  • By telling them the proposition or using a strategy
    • As a very simple example, you could say something like: “We wanted to GET young families WHO are travelling with children TO see our destination as their top choice – BY showcasing our family suites, daycare and kids clubs, as well as our child-first amenities”.

Did you know that Michelin star restaurants can lose their stars? They’re assessed every year, and if the quality dips below the stringent standards set by the Michelin Guide then the award is taken away.

While nobody can take past awards away from your travel brand, it can become obvious that things haven’t stayed great if you aren’t consistent. A swathe of accolades from 5 years ago means nothing if customer reviews and testimonials from this year don’t match up.

Soon after opening in 2020, we secured some relevant publication awards for our client FORESTIS, including National Geographic Traveller Big Sleep Awards and Tatler Spa Guide 2021. Since then, we continue to pitch FORESTIS for relevant awards known for their exceptional quality, to ensure we keep the brand relevant through awards. We recently won them the Escapist award category within the Experientialists Awards by OutThere Magazine, resulting in a display advertising package - and great continued brand presence within their target market.

If you’re great – award-winningly great – then work to stay there. Keep up the good work. Keep innovating. Don’t get complacent. Enter more relevant awards.

Come awards time, especially for awards for specific campaigns, it can be easy to get caught up in PR metrics like press clippings or visitor numbers, but these so-called vanity metrics aren't the true measure of success. What really counts and impresses awards panels are the real-world changes brought about by creative and impactful work. Increased visitor satisfaction, policy changes, and positive, measurable actions on issues like ESG, DEI, and employee satisfaction make a significant difference.

For example, we secured a listing for the Slovenian Tourism Board's Green Scheme (which includes over 250 hotels, attractions, and restaurants) within the Wanderlust Green List by showcasing their extensive sustainability measures, rather than relying solely on hard metrics or ROI.

Don't be put off if your clipping numbers or other vanity metrics are missing. If you have a great idea and show different, creative campaigns, you have a strong chance of winning. This is the kind of innovative thinking that catches a judging panel's attention and ultimately secures the award.

Judges love to see a low-budget, creative campaign that knocks the socks off a massive one. It’s the classic underdog story that resonates with everyone. Always be transparent about the budget you worked with, because it showcases your creative thinking and the genuine results achieved – a sign that success wasn’t simply bought.

Take this Leipzig Tourismus und Marketing GmbH campaign, for example. It stood out for its creativity and effective use of a limited budget. The campaign didn't rely on hefty financial resources but rather on innovative ideas and smart execution to create a significant impact. This is a perfect illustration of how powerful creativity can be when resources are limited.

Think outside the box with your projects and campaigns. How can you make real changes to guest inclusivity and accessibility? How can you take meaningful steps towards greening the industry? It's not about having a huge budget; it's about the creative angle and the genuine desire to make the world better.

Some awards happen at the same time every year, some don’t. New awards pop up all the time, and it's important to know if it’s a valid one or not. You or your PR team need to keep track of the awards calendar for each year, finding opportunities that are a good fit for work you’ve done or are currently engaged with.

For the Condé Nast Traveller Gold List, this is the ‘best of the best’ so doesn’t necessarily need to be ‘new’ (like the Hot List) but editors at Condé Nast Traveller need to have reviewed or visited in order for your property to be in the running to be included. Keep that in mind and check your eligibility in the research phase.

Awards cost money and some can take a lot of work. It's important to prioritise and make sure you can budget for them financially, and with the time needed to enter. Do remember that awards should be part of an overall PR strategy. Publication round-ups and being included in those “top 10s” are super valuable and shouldn’t be forgotten about. This type of year-round brand exposure is crucial, offering ongoing visibility and credibility, as opposed to a sometimes one-off impact from an award win. Integrating awards with other PR activities ensures a comprehensive approach that maximises brand recognition and influence.