ITAA Announces Irish Travel Industry Awards Finalists Shortlist

The shortlist for the Irish Travel Industry Awards in association with MSC Cruises has been announced today (15 January 2024). The winners will be announced and presented with their awards at a ceremony in the historic Round Room of the Mansion House, Dublin on Thursday 25^th January. Over 500 travel professionals will attend and the MC for the night will be Eoghan Corry. The Irish Travel Industry Awards, now in their 12th iteration, are an initiative of the Irish Travel Agents Association (ITAA), in association with MSC Cruises, and supported by Travel Centres and Worldchoice. The annual event is designed to showcase excellence within the industry and the difficult job of judging the Member Award Winners falls to an independent judging panel – Fiona Foster, Richard Cullen and Tom Shanahan. Speaking about the awards, Angela Walsh, President of the ITAA, said: “Each year the Irish Travel Industry Awards offer us the opportunity to celebrate excellence among travel professionals and providers in Ireland and offer suppliers and ITAA members the opportunity to boost their profile and reputation within the industry. Congratulations to each of our very deserving member finalists. To be shortlisted for an award is, in itself, a wonderful achievement, and I wish them the best of luck on awards night.” “We are also delighted to have MSC Cruises as this year’s headline sponsor and are looking forward to working with them on what will be the biggest and best Travel Industry Awards night yet.” The event is organised on behalf of the ITAA by Business Exhibitions. Award categories are sponsored by MSC, Shannon Airport, Emirates, Riviera Travel, Hertz, Cork Airport, Princess Cruises, the Spanish Tourist Office, McCarthy Insurance Group, Hurtigruten, Iberostar, ITTN, Mediahuis and Royal Caribbean. For more information on the awards event please see www.irishtravelindustryawards.com

Irish Travel Industry Awards 2024 ITAA Member Finalists are:

ITAA TRAVEL AGENCY OF THE YEAR – UNDER 10 EMPLOYEES – SPONSORED BY SHANNON AIRPORT

• • Magic Vacations

• • Platinum Travel

• Stein Travel

ITAA TRAVEL AGENCY OF THE YEAR – OVER 10 EMPLOYEES – SPONSORED BY SHANNON AIRPORT

• • Best4Travel

• • Click&Go

• Tour America

BEST ONLINE MARKETING – SPONSORED BY EMIRATES

• • Best4Travel

• • Click&Go

• Uwalk/Navan Travel

BEST OFFLINE MARKETING SPONSORED BY EMIRATES

• • Click&Go

• • Magic Vacations

• Tour America

BEST SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE SPONSORED BY EMIRATES

• • Best4Travel

• • Frosch

• Travel Department

CONTRIBUTION TO THE TRAVEL INDUSTRY AWARD SPONSORED BY CORK AIRPORT

ROBBIE SMART ON THE ROAD HERO AWARD SPONSORED BY ITTN

Irish Travel Industry Awards 2024 Supplier shortlist by category is as follows:

EXCELLENCE IN AIR TRAVEL SPONSORED BY RIVIERA TRAVEL

AIRLINE OF THE YEAR – IRELAND TO EUROPE

• • Aer Lingus

• • KLM

• • Lufthansa

• • Ryanair

• SAS

AIRLINE OF THE YEAR – IRELAND TO NORTH AMERICA

• • Aer Lingus

• • Air Canada

• • American Airlines

• • United Airlines

• Virgin Atlantic

AIRLINE OF THE YEAR – BEST LONG HAUL AIRLINE

• • British Airways

• • Emirates

• • Etihad Airways

• • Qatar Airways

• Turkish Airlines

AIRLINE OF THE YEAR – BEST BUSINESS CLASS

• • Aer Lingus

• • Emirates 

• • Etihad Airways

• • Qatar Airways

• United Airlines

TOUR OPERATORS AWARDS SPONSORED BY HERTZ

BEST EUROPEAN TOUR OPERATOR OF THE YEAR

• • Abbey Travel

• • Breakaway

• • KelAir Campotel

• • Sunway

• TUI

BEST SKI TOUR OPERATOR OF THE YEAR

• • Club Med

• • Crystal Ski

• • Topflight

• Travel Solutions

BEST IRISH OWNED TOUR OPERATOR

• • Classic Resorts

• • Discover Travel

• • Sunway

• • Topflight

• Travel Focus

BEST LONG HAUL TOUR OPERATOR

• • American Holidays

• • Classic Resorts

• • Discover Travel

• • Sunway

• Travel Focus

EXCELLENCE IN CRUISE & FERRY

MAINSTREAM CRUISE LINE OF THE YEAR

• • Marella Cruises

• • MSC Cruises

• • Norwegian Cruise Line

• Royal Caribbean International

PREMIUM CRUISE LINE OF THE YEAR

• • Azamara Cruises

• • Celebrity Cruises

• • Cunard Cruises

• Princess Cruises

ULTRA-LUXURY CRUISE LINE OF THE YEAR

• • Explora Journeys

• • Oceania Cruises

• • Seabourn Cruises

• • Silversea 

• Regent Seven Seas Cruises

RIVER CRUISE LINE OF THE YEAR

• • AMA Waterways

• • APT Travel Marvel

• • Riviera Travel

• Uniworld Boutique River Cruises

EXPEDITION / ADVENTURE CRUISE LINE OF THE YEAR

• • Hurtigruten

• • Seabourn Cruises

• Silversea 

FERRY COMPANY OF THE YEAR

• • Brittany Ferries

• • Irish Ferries

• • P&O Ferries

• Stena Line

INDUSTRY SERVICE PROVIDERS SPONSORED BY PRINCESS CRUISES

TECHNOLOGY PROVIDER OF THE YEAR

• • Amadeus

• • Dolphin Dynamics

• • INS

• • Proactive Labs

• Travelport

CAR HIRE PROVIDER OF THE YEAR

• • Alamo Car Hire

• • Avis

• • Flexible Autos

• • Hertz

• Sixt Car Hire

TRAVEL INSURANCE PROVIDER OF THE YEAR

• • Accident & General

• Blue Insurance

TOURIST BOARD OF THE YEAR

• • Malta Tourism Authority

• • New York Tourist Board

• • Portuguese Tourist Board

• • Spanish Tourist Board

• Visit USA

ACCOMMODATION PROVIDER OF THE YEAR

• • Arrow Tours

• • Bedsonline/Hotelbeds

• • Bookabed

• • Expedia

• Stuba

EXCELLENCE IN TRADE RELATIONS SPONSORED BY THE SPANISH TOURISM OFFICE

AIRLINE TRADE TEAM OF THE YEAR

• • Aer Lingus

• • APG

• • ASM

• • Emirates

• United Airlines

TRAVEL TRADE TEAM OF THE YEAR

• • Blue Insurance

• • Bookabed

• • Sunway

• • Travel Focus

• TUI

CRUISE TRADE TEAM OF THE YEAR

• • Celebrity Cruises

• • MSC Cruises

• • Norwegian Cruise Line

• • Princess Cruises

• Royal Caribbean

BEST TRADE BOOKING PLATFORM

• • Bedsonline

• • Bookabed

• • Expedia

• • Sunway

• TUI

DESTINATIONS CATEGORY – SPONSORED BY MCCARTHY INSURANCE GROUP

BEST WORLDWIDE CITY DESTINATION

• • Krakow

• • Las Vegas

• • Lisbon

• • New York

• Venice

BEST SUMMER DESTINATION

• • Algarve

• • Greece

• • Orlando

• • Portugal

• Spain

BEST WINTER DESTINATION

• • Dubai

• • Gran Canaria

• • Lanzarote

• • Orlando

• Tenerife

BEST SKI DESTINATION

• • Andorra

• • Austria

• • Bulgaria

• • France

• Italy

BEST WORLDWIDE THEME PARK

• • Disneyland Paris

• • PortAventura World

• • Universal Orlando Resort

• Walt Disney World Resort