Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Best Travel Website of 2012 to be Named by Web Marketing Association in 16th Annual WebAward Competition

HARTFORD, Conn., April 18, 2012 -- The Web Marketing Association announces the call for entries for its 16th annual international WebAward Competition for Web site development at www.webaward.org. The WebAwards is the standards-defining competition that sets benchmarks for 96 industries, including travel, airline and hotel & lodging websites, based on the seven criteria of a successful web site. The deadline for the best travel web sites to enter to be judged is May 31, 2012.

Websites are judged on seven criteria including design, innovation, content, technology, interactivity, copy writing and ease of use. Each WebAward entry in the Travel category is judged against other travel entries and then against an overall standard of excellence.

"The travel industry is very competitive when it comes to Web development and companies can benefit from the independent evaluation of their online efforts," said William Rice, President of the Web Marketing Association. "Travel web sites have been doing great in terms of creating dynamic portals to keep up with the shift in the industry that removed agents as the source of travel information. Judges have looked highly upon travel web site's use of design, copywriting and interactivity."

All travel entrants benefit from receiving valuable feedback in terms of their specific criteria scores compared against the average scores for their industry. They also may receive specific comments from the WebAward's professional judging panel on their Web site development efforts.

Winners of a WebAward in the travel categories will also receive:
  • Handsome statue or certificate of achievement
  • Increased visibility for their company
  • Marketing opportunity to promote the company website to the media
  • Links to your site from the highly ranked WebAward site to help SEO
  • Admiration of peers, friends and co-workers
Each year, the Web Marketing Association names the Best of Industry for the various travel categories based on the score they receive from the WebAward judges.
Recent winners of the Best Travel Website include:
  • 2011 – Civic Resource Group for Wyoming Travel and Tourism Web Portal and Online Management System
  • 2010 - TravelChannel.com & Razorfish for The New TravelChannel.com
  • 2009 - VisitSweden for VisitSweden
  • 2008 - Teehan+Lax Inc for AirMiles Make Like Miles
  • 2007 - Arnold Worldwide for Hungry Suitcase
  • 2006 - Hospitality eBusiness Strategies for RIU Cancun Portal
  • 2005 - Yellowstone Journal Corporation for YellowstonePark.com
  • 2004 - Quicksilver Associates for Seabourn Cruise Line
  • 2003 - Apollo Interactive for Excalibur Las Vegas Resort Hotel & Casino
  • 2002 - Arnold Worldwide for Alaska
Recent winners of the Best Airline Website include:
  • 2011 – Carlson Marketing for JetBlue – "TrueBlue Be True"
  • 2010 - Lufthansa in partnership with Amadeus for Lufthansa Website
  • 2009 - Blast Advanced Media for nature Air – Eco Friendly Costa Rica Airline
  • 2008 - Atmosphere BBDO for Emirates.com
  • 2007 - Cramer-Krasselt for AirTran Raceway
  • 2006 - TM Interactive for American Airlines
  • 2005 - TM Interactive for American Airlines
  • 2004 - Cramer-Krasselt for AirTran Airways – E-Annual 2003
  • 2003 – Agence Braque for Jetsgo
  • 2002 – Air Jamaica for Air Jamaica
Recent winners of the Best Hotel & Lodging Website include:
  • 2011 – Sabre Hospitality Solutions for The Shores Resort & Spa
  • 2010 – TRAVELCLICK for Harbour Grand Kowloon Hotel
  • 2009 – TravelCLICK for the Albert Hotel
  • 2008 - E-site Marketing for Hotel Terra Jackson Hole
  • 2007 - Cendyn for Stonewall Resort
  • 2006 - T3 (The Think Tank) for ExperienceMarriott.com
  • 2005 - Open World, LTD for WARWICK International Hotels
  • 2004 - Interactive Sites for The New York Palace web site
  • 2003 - Open World Limited for Le Meridien Hotels & Resorts
  • 2002 - FreeRun Technologies for Simpson House Inn
The 2012 WebAwards are sponsored by the following leading organizations: BGT Partners, PR Newswire, Burst Media, MycroBurst, EContent Magazine, ExactTarget, ad:tech conferences, Internet World UK, SES Conferences, Webmaster Radio, and Website Magazine. The Web Marketing Association thanks these companies for their commitment to the entire online marketing community.

About the WebAwards
The Web Marketing Association was founded in 1997 to help define the standard of excellence for online marketing. Our internationally known award programs, such as WebAward Competition for Website Development, Internet Advertising Competition and the new MobileWebAwards, recognize the people and organizations responsible for developing the most effective online marketing programs on the Internet today. Entrants benefit from assessment of their marketing efforts by a professional judging panel and the marketing opportunities presented by being recognized as an award-winning web developer.

SOURCE Web Marketing Association

Introducing the Cosmos Guides to Greece - Don't Even Think About Leaving for Your Holiday Without Reading!

LONDON, April 18, 2012 -- The team at Cosmos Holidays are creating a series of articles on their blog exploring - in detail - the fantastic experiences available in Greece. As one of Cosmos' most popular destinations, Greece boasts all the ingredients for a perfect escape to the sun. And, with bargains galore on the Cosmos website, there has never been a better time to explore this ancient paradise. The Cosmos Guide to Greece is the perfect starting point for planning your dream holiday.

The first article in the series lifts the lid on the delightful culinary experiences holidays to Greece can offer. They've waded through their knowledge of Greek gastronomy to bring their followers their top tips, whether visitors are dining out or sourcing local produce to cook for themselves. Suggestions include lamb baked in a clay pot at The Blue Grotto in Gaios, Paxos, which is built in the style of the local caves, and the Chania Municipal Market in Crete, loved by self-catering visitors and tourists who want to experience living like a local.

Cosmos also have ideas for more adventurous epicureans, including the family-friendly organic farm and winery, Ikarian Winery in Piyi Evdilos. The winery offers wine tasting and cooking classes to pass on some of their family's 500 years of experience creating food and wine in this region.

After readers have had their fill of top Greek meals, from veal in lemon sauce to sea urchin soup, they can turn their attention to the second article in the series. This one explores both the nightlife and opportunities for daytime for indulgence on offer in Greece. The country has enough going on to satisfy everyone, whether you want to dance 'til dawn or while away the hours being pampered to perfection.

The Cosmos Guide to Greece recommends the laser show at Club 69 in Malia on Crete, the southernmost Greek island, and the volcanic soil of Santorini for some unique spa treatments. Lovers of watersports are advised to check out Ios, while those looking for a unique Mediterranean clubbing experience should stop off in Zante. Those looking for truly 5 star luxury should head to Kefalonia for some of the most sophisticated spas in Greece. All these fantastic options may just make you want to check the Greece Holidays offers by Cosmos and book your holidays for the years to come.

The articles provide details on the location of these unmissable experiences in relation to local airports and transport links, making it easy for holidaymakers to plan their trips. Cosmos also invites their followers to comment on their recommendations and provide tips of their own, so get over to the Cosmos Holiday Blog and get involved in the debate! The next article introduces prospective travellers to the best Swimming and Sightseeing on offer in Greece, exploring its crystal waters, ancient ruins and everything between. It's an absolute must-read before planning your dream vacation.

For further press information please contact Barbara Kurau on +44(0)20-8466-8199 or bkurau@cosmos.co.uk or Helen McNaught on +44(0)20-8695-4069 hmcnaught@cosmos.co.uk , or visit http://www.cosmos.co.uk.

SOURCE Cosmos Holidays

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Celebrate HostelBookers' 8th Birthday. Win a Trip to 8 Cities of Your Choice!

LONDON, April 11, 2012 -- HostelBookers , the budget accommodation specialist, is 8 years old. To celebrate, one lucky customer will win a trip for two to 8 cities of their choice, plus GBP2,000 spending money.

The prize is 8 x 3-night stays in hostels and cheap hotels in any 8 cities in which HostelBookers has availability. The winner can choose to book consecutive nights away, or alternatively, plan a number of weekend breaks. To enter, participants need to answer a simple question about HostelBookers' Awards for Excellence 2012 and submit their email address to be in with a chance of winning.

The competition will run from 11th April 2012 to 8th of May 2012. The lucky winner will be drawn at random by the judges on the 9th May 2011. Accommodation stays must be booked by the 31st of December 2012 and must be completed no later than 31st May 2013.

David Smith, COO at HostelBookers, states: "This is another great opportunity for customers to enjoy free hostels and cheap hotels in 8 cities of their choice plus travel money. We are so proud of how far we have come in the last 8 years and our aim to be the number one budget accommodation provider in the world is soon going to be reached."

For more information about how to enter the competition and full terms and conditions please click here .

HostelBookers is the leading budget accommodation website in the travel industry not to apply a service charge and is, on average, 8.7% cheaper than its nearest competitor. It features over 20,000 hostels, cheap hotels and budget properties on its website in over 3,500 destinations across the world. Follow us on Twitter @PRHostelbookers.

SOURCE  HostelBookers

TripAdvisor Introduces Travel Advice from "Friend of a Friend"

The World's Largest Travel Site Expands Facebook Integration to Provide Dramatically More Personalized Travel Insight


NEWTON, Mass., April 11, 2012 -- TripAdvisor®, the world's largest travel site*, today launched its "Friend of a Friend" feature that highlights trusted reviews and opinions from friends of Facebook friends. Representing the next step in making travel planning more social for the TripAdvisor global community, travelers are now ten times more likely to see personalized travel advice on TripAdvisor.




"Travel advice from friends is incredibly useful, but your inner circle may not have all the answers on a particular hotel or destination you are researching," says Adam Medros, vice president of global product for TripAdvisor. "The Friend of a Friend feature increases the probability of an even greater personalized TripAdvisor experience by highlighting opinions from a larger network of travelers that know the people you trust."

Friendly Advice – And More of It
Every day, Facebook-connected people write one out of four reviews submitted on TripAdvisor. Each of these travelers has an average of 190 people in their friend network[1]. With access to friends of friends, the average network can soar to tens of thousands, making social travel planning exponentially more useful.

How It Works
When researching a hotel, restaurant, or attraction, people will see their friends' reviews first, followed by reviews of their friends' friends. They can use the TripAdvisor private message service to ask anyone in this network for further advice. As always, reviews from the greater TripAdvisor community will also be displayed below friends' reviews so travelers can continue to benefit from the wisdom of the crowds.

Travelers can adjust their privacy settings within their Account Settings on Facebook to limit what their Facebook friends can see on TripAdvisor. Travelers who do not want access to their friends' travel advice, or don't want their friends to see their own reviews, can opt out.

The "Friend of a Friend" feature is now available on TripAdvisor sites worldwide with the exception of China and Egypt. To experience Friend of a Friend, please log in to Facebook via www.tripadvisor.com.

About TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor® is the world's largest travel site, enabling travelers to plan and have the perfect trip. TripAdvisor offers trusted advice from real travelers and a wide variety of travel choices and planning features with seamless links to booking tools. TripAdvisor-branded sites make up the largest travel community in the world, with more than 50 million unique monthly visitors*, and over 60 million reviews and opinions. The sites operate in 30 countries worldwide, including China under daodao.com. TripAdvisor also includes TripAdvisor for Business, a dedicated division that provides the tourism industry access to TripAdvisor's millions of monthly visitors.

TripAdvisor, Inc. (NASDAQ: TRIP) manages and operates websites under 19 other travel media brands, and together the sites attract more than 69 million unique monthly visitors**. TripAdvisor's travel media brands include www.airfarewatchdog.com, www.bookingbuddy.com, www.cruisecritic.com, www.everytrail.com, www.familyvacationcritic.com, www.flipkey.com, www.holidaylettings.co.uk, www.holidaywatchdog.com, www.independenttraveler.com, www.onetime.com, www.seatguru.com, www.sniqueaway.com, www.smartertravel.com, www.tingo.com, www.travel-library.com, www.travelpod.com, www.virtualtourist.com, www.whereivebeen.com, and www.kuxun.cn.

*Source: comScore Media Metrix for TripAdvisor Sites, Worldwide, January 2012

**Source: comScore Media Metrix for TripAdvisor Inc. and its subsidiaries, Worldwide, January 2012

©2012 TripAdvisor, Inc. All rights reserved.

Facebook® is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc.


SOURCE TripAdvisor