How to Win the World’s Most Influential Travel Awards

Thousands of hotels enter travel awards each year. Only a small number win consistently. As Caroline Bondy reports, the reasons are rarely coincidental

Look closely at the lists that matter, and the same hotels appear again. And again. And often again.

Each year, a small number of global awards attempt to define the hotels, destinations, tour operators, restaurants and spas recognised at the highest level. Editorial lists such as the Condé Nast Traveler Gold List and the Travel + Leisure World’s Best Awards shape international perception among travellers and journalists alike. Industry recognition, including the World Travel Awards and the annual rankings from The World’s 50 Best Hotels, influences travel advisors, partners, and owners. A small number of specialist honours — from the Michelin Guide to leading wellness and design awards — carry similar weight within their fields.

A single win can change how a hotel is seen. Almost immediately, its name begins to travel further. Journalists who might have overlooked it take a second look. Travel advisors mention it more readily, sometimes instinctively. Guests arrive already aware of it, as though it had always been there.

Recognition has a way of settling into a place. It becomes part of how the hotel is described — in articles, in conversations, in word-of-mouth recommendations passed between people who know where to stay. Over time, that recognition hardens into reputation.

Not all of these honours are entered. Some require formal submissions and judging panels. Others — including many of the most influential lists — are editorially selected. They are conferred, not applied for. But the underlying mechanism is the same. Judges and editors respond to evidence, clarity, and narrative. They remember what feels credible and real. Visibility, over time, becomes authority.

Why Awards Matter More Than You Think

The effects of winning an award now reach beyond human judgement and beyond traditional media into the invisible architecture that shapes choice.

AI-driven search tools rely heavily on established signals of authority. Hotels with recognised credentials appear more frequently in suggested itineraries, editorial round-ups, and recommendations surfaced by algorithmic systems. Others, no less deserving, remain largely unseen. Accolades shape visibility long after the ceremony itself.

For hotel owners and operators, these programmes are no longer simply moments of celebration. They are part of the mechanism through which a digital reputation is established — not through proclamation, but through repeated recognition, absorbed gradually into the fabric of the industry itself.

Which Awards Matter Most

Not all awards are created equally. Some influence perception globally; others have little impact beyond the moment they are announced. There’s a clear hierarchy, and the most influential awards tend to share three characteristics.

First, editorial credibility. Recognition from established publications and independent judging panels carries weight. Lists curated by respected editors or voted for by engaged readers are read not only by travellers, but by journalists, advisors and industry insiders.

Second, professional recognition. Awards judged by experienced figures within the travel ecosystem — including advisors, operators, and peers — influence how properties and brands are recommended within the trade, shaping itineraries, partnerships, and commercial relationships.

Third, relevance. The most meaningful awards align with a brand’s identity and clientele. A wellness retreat may derive greater long-term value from leading spa and wellbeing awards than from general travel rankings. A specialist tour operator, destination, or experience provider may benefit more from recognition within its own category, where expertise is more closely scrutinised.

For winning brands across the travel landscape — from hotels, tour operators, cruise lines, destinations, spas, and travel designers — this recognition becomes part of their identity. It influences how they are introduced, how they are recommended, and how they are understood — often for years afterwards.

What Judges Want

As long-time travel awards judge, April Hutchinson, Editorial Director of TTG Media says, “The strongest entries are always the ones that make a judge’s job easy. They don’t rely on adjectives. They show clearly what has been done, what has changed, and why it matters. Judges read a huge volume of submissions, so clarity and credibility are everything.”

Judges are nothing if not consistent. Across most awards, the priority is evidence over claims. It’s easy to say that your brand represents the future of sustainable travel — but is it really? And can you prove it? Quite rightly, judges are sceptical of marketing language. Specific examples, measurable outcomes, and documented achievements carry far more weight than superlatives. If your hotel’s initiatives don’t just sustain local cultures and resources but actively regenerate them, be prepared to back it up. Show. Don’t tell.

Environmental and social responsibility, in particular, has moved from bonus to baseline. Judges increasingly expect to see meaningful commitments, supported by evidence, rather than broad statements of intent. The language of sustainability alone is no longer enough. Innovation and differentiation also matter. Judges read hundreds of submissions, many of which describe competent, well-run operations. The ones that stand out demonstrate original thinking — a clear decision, approach, or initiative that sets the brand apart.

Finally, judges are looking for excellence as it is experienced by guests. Operational improvements only matter if they translate into something tangible: better experiences, stronger feedback, increased satisfaction, or deeper engagement. The strongest submissions make that connection clearly, supported by evidence wherever possible.

Ultimately, though, judges are looking for something simpler: what stays with them. As one awards judge told me after a full day of reviewing dozens of entries, the process ended not with a discussion of scores, but with a question. Everyone was asked to name the submissions they could recall without looking at their notes. The strongest entries weren’t always the longest, or the most polished. They were the ones that had lodged in the mind — because they told a clear story, supported by credible evidence, and felt genuinely distinctive. Those are the entries that win.

Kerry Smith, content director of British Airways’ High Life was one of the judges at last year’s PURE Awards. She explained, “As a PURE Awards judge, you read dozens of submissions. Only a few stay with you. The Happy House was one of them. What made it compelling was its clarity. It showed exactly what had changed: trails built by local residents, new homestays, and income remaining within the community. It wasn’t trying to impress. It was showing what had happened, and why it mattered. That’s why it won.”

How to Write a Submission That Stands Out

Start early. The strongest entries are rarely pulled together in a hurry. They take shape over months — sometimes without anyone quite realising it. A guest comment saved at the right moment. A piece of coverage that captures something essential. A photograph that shows the place at its best. By the time the deadline arrives, the material is already there. It simply needs assembling.

Tell a story. Judges read hundreds of entries, many of which sound competent and broadly the same. Few are genuinely well written, so commission a journalist. Ideally, choose one who has visited your hotel, destination or spa on a press trip and understands it first-hand. At the risk of stating the obvious, journalists do this for a living. They know how to shape a narrative, establish credibility, and make a reader care. It may sound like an indulgence, but it can be a decisive advantage. In a blur of entries written by ChatGPT and Claude, one written by an actual human — and a skilled storyteller — will stand out immediately, and be remembered.

Be specific. General claims are easy to dismiss. Evidence is not. Numbers help — guest satisfaction scores, repeat booking rates, staff retention, measurable improvements. These details give weight to what might otherwise sound like assertion. External recognition strengthens credibility. Guest feedback, independent reviews, previous coverage — these signals show that excellence has been noticed beyond the organisation itself. They reassure judges that the submission reflects reality, not simply ambition.

Presentation matters. Before a single word is read, impressions are already forming. Clear structure, thoughtful photography, and careful presentation signal seriousness and care. Submissions that feel considered are more likely to be considered in return.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Don’t copy last year’s submission. Judges often remember repeat entrants. Even if you won, this year’s entry should reflect genuine progress — not recycled language. Recognition tends to follow momentum. Judges are looking for evidence of change, improvement, or evolution, not consistency alone.
• Don’t ignore the criteria. Read the judging criteria carefully and address each element directly. Strong submissions are engineered around what judges are being asked to assess. Those that sidestep the criteria, however well written, suggest a lack of attention to detail — not a quality that inspires confidence.
• Don’t confuse activity with achievement. Many submissions describe initiatives without showing what changed as a result. Launching a programme is one thing; demonstrating its impact is another. Judges look for outcomes: measurable improvements, shifts in guest satisfaction, operational gains, or meaningful progress against stated objectives.
• Don’t overwhelm the judges with information. More material does not make a stronger case. Judges read quickly and comparatively. Submissions that attempt to include everything often dilute their strongest points. The most persuasive entries are selective, focusing on a small number of meaningful achievements presented clearly.
• Don’t forget the “so what?” test. Strong submissions explain not just what was done, but why it mattered. Judges are looking for significance: what changed as a result, what improved, and what difference it made. This is where many otherwise impressive entries fall short. They describe assets, initiatives, or investments, but stop short of explaining their impact. Passing the “so what?” test is often what separates shortlisted entries from winners.
• Don’t call something innovative unless it truly is. Many entries claim innovation without explaining what makes an approach genuinely new. Judges are experienced. They recognise the difference between thoughtful progress and language that simply reframes established practice.
• Don’t lose the narrative (see commissioning a journalist, above). Facts and figures matter, but without structure they rarely land. Judges respond to clarity — a sense of what changed, and why it mattered. The submissions that stay with them are those that tell a coherent story.
• False modesty doesn’t help. If something has been done well, present it clearly and support it with evidence. Judges are looking for confidence grounded in fact, not understatement.
• Don’t enter everything. Focus on the awards that align with your strengths and audience. A smaller number of well-chosen entries, properly prepared, is far more effective than a scattergun approach.

Winning is only the beginning.

And once you have won your award? Tell the story properly. Editors, advisors, and guests care less about the trophy itself than what it says about the experience. Tell the right people, properly. Editors and journalists don’t need another announcement — they need to understand why it matters, and why it matters now.

Make the win visible in the places where decisions happen. Update your website, booking pages and listings. Awards don’t just celebrate success. They help secure the next booking.

Share it internally, too. Awards reflect the work of many people. Celebrating them reinforces the standards that made the win possible.

And don’t stop there. Awards have a short memory. Reputation comes not from winning once, but from winning again and again and again.

And once you have won your award? Tell the story properly. Editors, advisors, and guests care less about the trophy itself than what it says about the experience. Tell the right people, properly. Editors and journalists don’t need another announcement — they need to understand why it matters, and why it matters now.

Make the win visible in the places where decisions happen. Update your website, booking pages and listings. Awards don’t just celebrate success. They help secure the next booking.

Share it internally, too. Awards reflect the work of many people. Celebrating them reinforces the standards that made the win possible.

And don’t stop there. Awards have a short memory. Reputation comes not from winning once, but from winning again and again and again.

The Awards You Can’t Enter

The bad news is that some of the most influential awards, however, cannot be entered at all. They are editorially selected — compiled quietly, behind closed doors, by people who have seen everything. There is no form to fill in. No deadline to meet. The only way in is to be visible for the right reasons. Hotels that appear consistently in thoughtful editorial coverage, that host journalists well, and that give people something worth writing about tend to surface naturally. You cannot submit your way onto these lists. You earn your way there.

In the end, awards are not decided by forms or submissions alone. They are decided by memory. Judges and editors don’t reward the hotels that shout the loudest. They remember the ones that gave them something worth remembering.

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