North American Travel Journalists Association Announces 2015 Award Winners for Excellence in Travel Writing, Photography, Promotion

    PASADENA, CA, February 10, 2016 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The North American Travel Journalists Association (NATJA) has announced the winners of its 2015 NATJA Awards Competition. Awards were given to publications, travel writers, and photographers whose work was published in print, electronic and online media from October 2014 through September 2015. Additionally, awards were given to the top convention and visitors bureaus, PR agencies or destination marketing organizations. The competition, now in its 24th year, honors the "best of the best" in travel journalism.

Submissions for the awards competition grew by more than 20% from last year. This year's entries reflected an array of truly excellent journalistic and creative work. "Finalists and winners will be gratified to know that their work was judged by seasoned journalists, photographers and PR professionals with literally hundreds of years of experience. NATJA wishes to express its deep gratitude to all its judges for hours of work in reviewing this year's entries," stated NATJA CEO Helen Hernandez. This year's journalism entries were reviewed by a remarkable panel of judges, including celebrity photographer, teacher and author Elizabeth Messina, whose body of work has appeared in major publications.

This year's Grand Prize winners were selected for their superior execution of narrative and photography. Private Clubs magazine inspires its readership through its illustrious photography and appealing stories; Arkansas Department of Parks & Tourism for their creative and well-executed marketing strategy; Gary Arndt for his breath-taking photography; Andrew McCarthy for his engaging story-telling; and Mindy Poder for her informative and outstanding stories.

Additionally, one first place (Gold) winner is chosen in each of the categories along with 2nd (Silver), 3rd place (Bronze) and Finalists. Winners will be recognized at the 2016 NATJA Conference & Marketplace which will be held April 4th - 8th, hosted by the Oxnard Convention & Visitors Bureau in Oxnard, California with Amtrak serving as a major sponsor.

A complete list of the winners and finalists is available on the NATJA website at www.natja.org.

The mission of NATJA is to foster high quality journalism by supporting the professional development of its members, providing exceptional benefits and valuable resources, honoring the excellence of journalism throughout the world, and promoting travel and leisure activities to the public at large.

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