The World Youth Student and Educational Travel Confederation (WYSE) has announced the 2019 Global Youth Travel Awards (GYTAs) winners.
On the final evening of 11 October, delegates attending the close of the World Youth and Student Travel Conference in Lisbon dressed to impress to celebrate not only what had been a successful week but also to honour the winners of the 2019 Global Youth Travel Awards.
This year, a record-breaking number of submissions for the nominated categories and votes for the consumer-voted awards were received. In particular, the Extraordinary Experience award had seen a sharp increase in submissions. This supports what is known about millennial and Gen Z travellers; that a mutually-rewarding experience, both to the individual and the host country, is high on the list of priorities for today’s youth.
The Best Sustainable Organisation category also received a large volume of high calibre entries; perhaps not surprising either in the age of Greta Thunberg and the global push towards minimalising the impact that we, as travellers, have upon the environment.
The submissions for the ten nominated categories had been carefully evaluated by a panel of judges, leading to three finalists being selected for each category. Three finalists had also been determined for the four consumer-voted categories.
The 2019 GYTA Winners & Finalists are:
Nominated categories:
Best Education Abroad Provider
- EDU Africa – WINNER
- Envoys
- Rustic Pathways
Best Marketing Campaign
- Rustic Pathways – WINNER
- African Impact
- Contiki
Best Social Responsibility Initiative
Best Social Space in a Hostel
Best Sustainable Organisation
Best Travel Safety Initiative
Best Travel Technology Product
- Trip Loop – WINNER
- bitemojo
- CoursePricer
Best Work Experience Provider
Consumer-voted categories:
Best Airline for Youth Travellers
Best Youth Travel Agent
- STA Travel – WINNER
- Booking.com
- StudentUniverse
Best Youth Tour Operator
Best Youth Travel Accommodation
- Generator – WINNER
- a&o Hostels
- Selina
