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2020-2021 SATW FOUNDATION
LOWELL THOMAS TRAVEL JOURNALISM COMPETITION

Judging was overseen by the University of Missouri School of Journalism with Emeritus Prof. John Fennell, Prof. Jennifer Rowe and administrative assistant Kim Townlain coordinating 27 judges this year. There were 1,278 entries. 

From the menu at right, you can access more information about the 2020-21 winners. The List of Awards shows all winners by category; the numbers in parentheses with each category denote the number of entries. The Winners Gallery provides the judges’ comments and links to winning entries in each category. 

For competition information, contact the Foundation administrator, Victoria Larson, victoria@satwf.com.

The 2020-2021 Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition Awards Presentation Video

Watch the video that was first shown at the 2021 SATW Annual Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 

Winning Stories Covered the Moments and Moods of the Year

Winners “proved their mettle by producing original, useful and often moving stories that covered the moments and moods of the past year,” the judges said of the works, which covered spring of 2020 to spring of 2021. “Travel journalists were nimble and resourceful and showed in numerous ways the enduring value of their work.”

Katherine LaGrave, digital features editor for Afar Media, was honored as the Lowell Thomas Travel Journalist of the Year. Judges praised her storytelling and reporting as well as her focus on what readers needed to know to navigate today’s travel challenges.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer earned the Gold award for newspaper travel coverage. Judges cited editor Susan Glaser’s “laser focus on readers” who sought closer-to-home destinations in the wake of the pandemic.

Matt Crossman took Gold in a new category this year, the Robert Haru Fisher award for Travel Health and Safety Coverage. Crossman’s story, ostensibly about bull riding on an aircraft carrier in the Gulf of Mexico, was really about filling the need for community and connection in a time of isolation.

A team of reporters from the Miami Herald earned the Gold in the Travel News/Investigative Reporting category for its examination of “COVID Cruises.” Judges praised this “excellent investigation on a breaking news story” that focused on accountability and provided actionable information for readers.

Gold in Travel magazines went to Travel + Leisure, Jacqueline Gifford, editor-in-chief. Judges cited “service-centric stories that anticipated what readers would want.”

The Gold for Special Packages and Series went to The New York Times for “A Year Without Travel,” which “employed strong writing, graphics, videos and first person-accounts to illustrate the far-reaching impact of the pandemic,” judges said. The New York Times earned eight awards, with five of them Gold.

BBC Travel tallied nine awards, including a Gold for Amanda Ruggeri’s “In Guatemala, the Maya World Untouched for Centuries” in Special-Purpose Travel. Judges cited her “storytelling and courage.”

Amanda Williams took Gold for her work on “A Dangerous Business Travel Blog,” a mix of trip tips and business advice, and CNTraveler earned the top award for Travel Journalism Websites.

Travel Journalism Shows its Mettle in 2021 Lowell Thomas Awards
Winners of SATW Foundation Competition Excel at Helping Readers Reckon with the Pandemic

October 5, 2021 – A digital journalist, a regional newspaper and a reporter’s improbable tale of bull riding on an aircraft carrier were among the winners of top awards in the 37th Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition in a year for which there was no road map.

The 1,278 entries in the annual contest, overseen by the Society of American Travel Writers Foundation, were noteworthy for their style, scope and service to readers who struggled to make sense of a travelscape turned upside down by the pandemic. The University of Missouri School of Journalism oversaw the judging, which involved 27 judges this year.

Winners “proved their mettle by producing original, useful and often moving stories that covered the moments and moods of the past year,” the judges said of the works, which covered spring of 2020 to spring of 2021. “Travel journalists were nimble and resourceful and showed in numerous ways the enduring value of their work.”

The awards were announced Monday, Oct. 4, at the SATW Convention in Milwaukee. The honor is considered the premier professional recognition for travel journalists and communicators. The Foundation is giving 104 awards in 27 categories and $22,550 in prize money this year.

Katherine LaGrave, digital features editor for AFAR Media, was honored as the Lowell Thomas Travel Journalist of the Year. Judges praised her storytelling and reporting as well as her focus on what readers needed to know to navigate today’s travel challenges.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer earned the Gold award for newspaper travel coverage. Judges cited editor Susan Glaser’s “laser focus on readers” who sought closer-to-home destinations in the wake of the pandemic.

Matt Crossman took Gold in a new category this year, the Robert Haru Fisher award for Travel Health and Safety Coverage. Crossman’s story, ostensibly about bull riding on an aircraft carrier in the Gulf of Mexico, was really about filling the need for community and connection in a time of isolation. The Fisher award was made possible by a significant bequest from the late Bob Fisher, a past president of SATW and the first president of the SATW Foundation.

A team of reporters from the Miami Herald earned the Gold in the Travel News/Investigative Reporting category for its examination of “COVID Cruises.” Judges praised this “excellent investigation on a breaking news story” that focused on accountability and provided actionable information for
readers.

Gold in Travel magazines went to Travel + Leisure, Jacqueline Gifford, editor-in-chief. Judges cited “service-centric stories that anticipated what readers would want.”

The Gold for Special Packages and Series went to The New York Times for “A Year Without Travel,” which “employed strong writing, graphics, videos and first person-accounts to illustrate the far-reaching impact of the pandemic,” judges said. The New York Times was honored with a total of eight awards, including five golds in a variety of categories.

BBC Travel tallied nine awards, including a Gold for Amanda Ruggeri’s “In Guatemala, the Maya World Untouched for Centuries” in Special-Purpose Travel. Judges cited her “storytelling and courage.”

Amanda Williams took Gold for her work on “A Dangerous Business Travel Blog,” a mix of trip tips and business advice, and CNTraveler earned the top award for Travel Journalism Websites.

Tonya Fitzpatrick, Ian Fitzpatrick and Edward Cole won Gold in Podcasts and Guides, one of two audio categories, for their “Escape From India During COVID-19,” the chilling story of American journalist Anietra Hamper’s fishing trip gone terribly wrong. In the other audio category, Annita Thomas took Gold for “Travel Bags With Annita Explores the Rice Culture of the Southern Low Country” on WDUN AM 550 and FM 102.9 in Gainesville, GA.

The awards are named for Lowell Thomas, acclaimed broadcast journalist, prolific author and world explorer during five decades in travel journalism.

The sustainability of the annual competition is made possible by a generous contribution from Gold Supporter Carnival Corp., the world’s largest cruise company with a portfolio of brands. Its contribution helps make the prizes possible and supports the future of quality travel media.

End

Awards For Works Published in 2020-2021

FULL LIST OF AWARDS

Category 101:  Grand Award — Lowell Thomas Travel Journalist of the Year (28)
Gold: Katherine LaGrave, digital features editor, Afar, New York City
Silver: Alex Pulaski, freelance writer, West Linn, OR
Bronze: Margie Goldsmith, freelance writer, New York City
Honorable Mention: Sarah Khan, freelance writer, Sharon, MA
 
Category 102:  Robert Haru Fisher Award for Travel Health/Safety Coverage (57)
Gold: Matt Crossman, “I Flew to Texas to Watch Bull Riding on an Aircraft Carrier During COVID,” Experience, expmag.com
Silver: Salma Abdelnour Gilman, “Is It Safe to Travel This Summer?” EverydayHealth.com
Bronze: Jenna Scatena, “Turkey’s Unique Hand-Sanitising Method,” BBC Travel
 
Category 103:  Newspaper Travel Coverage (5)
Gold: The Plain Dealer (Cleveland), Susan Glaser, Travel Editor
Silver: The New York Times, Amy Virshup, Travel Editor
Bronze: The Boston Globe, Chris Morris, Travel Editor
Honorable Mention: StarTribune (Minneapolis), Kerri Westenberg, Travel Editor
 
Category 104:  Magazines (12)
104A — Travel Magazines
Gold: Travel + Leisure, Jacqueline Gifford, Editor-in-Chief
Silver: Condé Nast Traveler, Jesse Ashlock, U.S. Editor, and Divia Thani, Global Editorial Director
Bronze: Afar, Julia Cosgrove, Editor-in-Chief
Honorable Mention: Southbound, Kevin Benefield, Editor-in-Chief
 
104B — Travel Coverage in General Magazines
Gold: Outside, Christopher Keyes, Editor
Silver: Midwest Living, Kylee Krizmanic, Editor-in-Chief; Hannah Agran, Executive Editor; Timothy Meinch, Travel Editor
Bronze: National Parks, Rona Marech, Editor-in-Chief
Honorable Mention: Yankee, Mel Allen, Editor
 
Category 105:  U.S./Canada Travel (122)
Gold: Sebastian Modak, “I Traveled to 52 Places. Then I Discovered N.Y. on My Bike,” The New York Times                 
Silver: Chris Colin, “Can the Outdoors Save Guys From Themselves?” Outside
Bronze: Pico Iyer, “The Wonders Close to Home,” Westways
Honorable Mention: Jennifer Wilson, “Philly Special,” Travel + Leisure
 
Category 106:  Foreign Travel (68)
Gold: Todd Pitock, “A Nation of Saunas and Startups,” Readers Digest International
Silver: Kevin West, “Venice,” Travel + Leisure
Bronze: Masha Nordbye, “In Search of Terra Incognita,” Russian Life magazine, RussianLife.com
Honorable Mention: Karen Schwartz, “I’m a U.S. Citizen. Where in the World Can I Go?” The New York Times
 
Category 107:  Photo Illustration of Travel (41)
Gold: Richard Frishman, “Hidden in Plain Sight: The Ghosts of Segregation,” The New York Times
Silver: Jared Soares, “Historical Interpreters Share Their Sides of the Story,” National Geographic Traveler
Bronze: Pete McBride, “The Last Quiet Places,” Smithsonian Magazine
Honorable Mention: Stuart Palley, “Wildfires Have Ravaged Napa Valley. Will California’s Wine Industry Survive?” National Geographic Traveler
 
Category 108:  Special Packages/Series (24)
Gold: “A Year Without Travel,” Ceylan Yeginsu, Stephen Hiltner, Tariro Mzezewa, Lisa Foderaro and Peter Kujawinski, The New York Times
Silver: “Black Travel: The Movement,” multiple authors, Travel + Leisure
Bronze: “Stranded at Sea,” Taylor Dolven and Emily Michot, Miami Herald                                                                                         
Honorable Mention: “Untold America,” Eliot Stein, Alba Jaramillo, Anne Banas and Laura Llewellyn, BBC Travel
 
Category 109:  Cruise Travel (52)
Gold: Jennifer Bain, “Explore Greenland Aboard an Expedition Cruise,” GettingOnTravel.com
Silver: Susan Portnoy, “Experience the Great Bear Rainforest on a Magical Small Ship Cruise,” The Insatiable Traveler
Bronze: Dennis Heinze, “Adventure Alaska,” AAA Midwest Traveler
Honorable Mention: Fran Golden, “The Messy Booming Business of Recycling Cruise Ships,” Bloomberg Pursuits
 
Category 110:  Adventure Travel (54)
Gold: Alec Scott, “Lost Horizons,” Travel Stories of Wonder and Change, an Anthology
Silver: Louise Farr, “The Accident on the Pacific Crest Trail,” Alta Journal
Bronze: Mark Jenkins, “My Crazy Bid to See a Solar Eclipse at 20,000 Feet,” Outside
 
Category 111:  Travel News/Investigative Reporting (47)
Gold: “COVID Cruises,” Taylor Dolven, Sarah Blaskey, Nicholas Nehamas, Alex Harris and Forrest Milburn, Miami Herald
Silver: “Inside the Nightmare Voyage of the Diamond Princess,” Doug Bock Clark, GQ
Bronze: “Travel Insurance: Is It Worth It?” Elaine Glusac, The New York Times               
Honorable Mention: “As Lunar New Year Approaches, Many Asians Worry About Future Journeys,” Qin Xie, National Geographic Traveler          
 
Category 112:  Service-Oriented Consumer Work (65)
Gold: Jessica Wynne Lockhart, “Essential Guide to Responsible & Ethical Travel,” Verge Magazine
Silver: Christopher Keyes and multiple authors, “27 Epic Trips to Start Planning Now,” Outside
Bronze: Ali Wunderman, “Costa Rica Has Reopened to Travelers. Here’s What It’s Like to Visit,” Lonely Planet
Honorable Mention: Logan Ward, “Smartest Places to Retire,” Southern Living
 
Category 113:  Environmental and Sustainable Tourism (74)
Gold: Oliver Smith, “Sudden Solitude on One of the World’s Busiest Mountains,” OutsideOnline.com
Silver: Sandy Lang, “A Walk With the Woods,” TheMaineMag.com
Bronze: Jeff MacGregor, “It Is Here. And It Is Hungry,” Smithsonian Magazine
Honorable Mention: Elizabeth Miller, “The Losing Coast,” The Statesider
 
Category 114:  Cultural Tourism (92)
Gold: Saki Knafo, “Exploring Bahia’s Afro-Brazilian Roots,” Condé Nast Traveler
Silver: Alexis Marie Adams, “Italy’s Timeless Trails,” National Geographic Traveler
Bronze: Christopher P. Baker, “Cuba and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance,” Australian Road Rider
 
Category 115:  Personal Comment (158)
Gold: Caroline Van Hemert, “What the Caribou Taught Me About Being Together, and Apart,” The New York Times
Silver: Erin Byrne, “Our Ravaged Lady,” Travelers’ Tales
Bronze: Aatish Taseer, “The Writer and the World,” Travel + Leisure
Honorable Mention: Tyrone Beason, “A Black Reporter’s Road Trip to the Inauguration — and a Search for America’s Soul,” Los Angeles Times        
 
Category 116:  Special-Purpose Travel (70)
Gold: Amanda Ruggeri, “In Guatemala, the Maya World Untouched for Centuries,” BBC Travel
Silver: Tony Perrottet, “The Way of the Shogun,” Smithsonian Magazine
Bronze: Cory Lee Woodard, “Traveling While Using a Wheelchair,” Expedia Viewfinder
Honorable Mention: Richard Grant, “The Lost History of Yellowstone,” Smithsonian Magazine
 
Category 117:  Short Work on Travel (43)
Gold: Leigh Ann Henion, “Athens’s Tree of the People,” Garden & Gun
Silver: Sebastian Modak, “Postcard From New York, or, Searching for Home in Any Old Bar,” Punch
Bronze: Stephanie Elizondo Griest, “Power Moves,” Travel + Leisure
Honorable Mention: Sallie Lewis, “Robert Smithson’s Iconic ‘Spiral Jetty’ Celebrates 50th Anniversary,” Architectural Digest
 
Category 118:  Culinary-Related Travel (93)
Gold: Franz Lidz, “Pie Is a Constant — In Naples, the Formula Calls for Pizza,” Smithsonian Magazine
Silver: Michael W. Twitty, “How Rice Shaped the American South,” BBC Travel
Bronze: Betsy Andrews, “The World’s Best Spud Recipes Come From This Potato Paradise,” Food & Wine
Honorable Mention: Rachel Ng, “Singapore’s Iconic, But Endangered, Street Food Now Has UNESCO Status,” National Geographic Traveler
 
Category 119:  Travel Book (21)
Gold: George Steinmetz and Andrew Revkin, “The Human Planet: Earth at the Dawn of the Anthropocene,” Abrams Books
Silver: Carl Hoffman, “Liar’s Circus,” HarperCollins/Custom House
Bronze: Conor Knighton, “Leave Only Footprints: My Acadia-to-Zion Journey Through Every National Park,” Crown
Honorable Mention: Loren Ghiglione, Alyssa Karas and Dan Tham, “Genus Americanus: Hitting the Road in Search of America’s Identity,” The University of Georgia Press
 
Category 120:  Guidebook (13)
Gold: Deborah D. Douglas, “Moon U.S. Civil Rights Trail,” Avalon Travel
Silver: Joe Yogerst, “100 Parks, 5,000 Ideas,” National Geographic Books
Bronze:  Joe Yogerst, “100 Drives, 5,000 Ideas,” National Geographic Books
Honorable Mention: Rick Steves, Sarah Murdoch and Alfio Di Mauro, “Rick Steves Sicily,” Avalon Travel
 
Category 121:  Travel Journalism Websites (16)
Gold:     CNTraveler.com, Condé Nast Traveler, Jesse Ashlock, U.S. Editor; Stephanie Wu and Corina Quinn, digital directors
Silver: Frommers.com, Frommer Media, Jason Cochran, Editor-in-Chief; Pauline Frommer, co-president; Zac Thompson, Associate Editor
Bronze: BBC.com/Travel, BBC Travel, Anne Banas, Editor
Honorable Mention: WanderWithWonder.com, Wander With Wonder, Susan Lanier-Graham, Publisher/Editor-in-Chief
 
Category 122: Travel Audio (64)
122A: Travel Audio — Radio
Gold: Annita Thomas, “Travel Bags With Annita Explores the Rice Culture of the Southern Low Country,” WDUN AM 550 and FM 102.9, Gainesville, GA
Silver: Robert J. Carey Jr., Mary W. Carey and Rudy Maxa, “RMWorldTravel,” Dec. 12, 2020, show, RMWorldTravel Connection on 470+ network stations
Bronze: Rick Steves, Tim Tattan and Kasmira Hall, “Travel With Rick Steves: Bulgarian Festivals; Paul Theroux’s Travels; Checking In,” Rick Steves Europe on radio stations nationwide
 
122B:  Travel Audio – Podcasts and Guides
Gold: Tonya Fitzpatrick, Ian Fitzpatrick and Edward Cole, “Escape From India During COVID-19,” World Footprints
Silver: Liz Beatty and Lia Grainger, “The Hasids of Williamsburg, Brooklyn and Outremont, Montreal — Where Trend Meets Tradition,” North Americana Podcast
Bronze: Nathan Thornburgh, Alexa van Sickle, Tafi Mukunyadzi, Cengiz Yar and Emily Marinoff, “The Trip: Iraq,” Roads & Kingdoms
Honorable Mention: Kellee Edwards, “Let’s Go Together —Visiting With Respect: Learning About Native Cultures in Alaska and Hawaii,” Travel + Leisure
 
Category 123:  Video on Travel (22)
Gold: Scott Sporleder and Caz Tanner, “Faka’apa’apa,” Matador Network
Silver: Amanda Ruggeri and Monica Wise, “Guatemala’s Lost World,” BBC World News, BBC Reel and BBC Travel
Bronze: Seth Doane, Sari Aviv, George Pozderec, Rand Morrison and Henry Bautista, “CBS Sunday Morning: Not So Plain,” CBS News/CBS Sunday Morning
Honorable Mention: Amy Traverso, “Weekends With Yankee: Portsmouth, NH/Vida Cantina, David Vargas, Chef/Owner,” Yankee Publishing
 
Category 124:  Travel Blogs (24)
Gold: Amanda Williams, A Dangerous Business Travel Blog, Dangerous-Business.com
Silver: Irene S. Levine and Hilary Nangle, GettingOnTravel, GettingOnTravel.com
Bronze: Lina Stock and David Stock, Divergent Travelers Adventure Travel Blog, DivergentTravelers.com
Honorable Mention: Janet Steinberg, Travel Blog, TheTravelAuthority.com/Travel-Blog
 
Category 125:  Multimedia Single Work (13)
Gold: “The Plan to Protect Indigenous Elders Living Under the Northern Lights,” Peter Kujawinski, Pat Kane and Danny DeBelius, The New York Times
Silver: “New York’s Last Great Jazz Parlour,” Julyssa Lopez, Eddie Shore, Anne Banas, Alba Jaramillo and Laura Llewellyn, BBC Travel
Bronze: “The Forgotten Story of the US’ Black Cowboys,” Heide Brandes, Will Francome, Eliot Stein, Alba Jaramillo and Anne Banas, BBC Travel
Honorable Mention: “Is This the New Main Street, USA?” Eliot Stein, Erin Clare Brown, Anne Banas, Alba Jaramillo and Laura Llewellyn, BBC Travel

See All the Results, Judging Comments and Winning Entries.

The SATW Foundation is proud to present the Winners Gallery, showcasing all the winning entries. At the gallery, click on any category to see the winners by place with comments by the judges. For each award, there are icons to click and see the winning work, either online or in a PDF. In a few cases, such as the magazine and book categories, links are not available.

BetterBNC, the online awards platform the Foundation uses for the contest, provides the Winners Gallery. From the page with the list of categories, you can click the SATW Foundation logo at the top of page to return to the SATW Foundation homepage website or click on your back arrow in the top left hand side of your screen to return to this screen.

We are happy to salute all our winners and showcase their entries. We hope you enjoy seeing their work.

The Prizes

This year, the SATW Foundation is giving 104 awards in 27 categories and $22,550 in prize money to journalists in recognition of outstanding travel journalism.

The Grand Award earns the Gold winner $1,500, the Silver winner $750 and the Bronze place $500.

In individual categories, first-place Gold carries a $500 prize, Silver $250 and Bronze $150. The categories for Best Newspaper Travel Coverage, Best Magazines and Best Travel Journalism Websites are not given monetary awards.

In the 2020-21 contest, the Foundation introduced a new category, the Robert Haru Fisher Award for Travel Health and Safety Coverage. The Fisher award was made possible by a significant bequest from the late Bob Fisher, a past president of SATW and the first president of the SATW Foundation.

The sustainability of the annual competition is made possible by a generous contribution from Gold Supporter Carnival Corp., the world’s largest cruise company with a portfolio of brands. Its contribution helps make the prizes possible and supports the future of quality travel media.

The sustainability of the annual SATW Foundation Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition is supported by a generous contribution from Gold Supporter CARNIVAL CORP., the world’s largest cruise company.
The Society of American Travel Writers Foundation was begun in 1981 by a group of SATW writers, editors and public relations professionals who were concerned about the future of travel journalism.
SATW (the Society of American Travel Writers) is the pre-eminent professional association of travel journalists and communicators. Learn more about this premier networking organization by visiting its website, www.satw.org.
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