(New York, NY – October 4, 2016) Family Travel Forum (FTF) and its travel industry partners are pleased to announce the winners of the 2016 FTF Teen Travel Writing Scholarship. For 10 years, this annual merit scholarship has been hosted by the award-winning vacation guide publisher to promote teen literacy and reward teens’ best travel blogs with cash prizes for college or future travels.
Between June 1 and July 13, 2016, nearly 2,000 students in US, Canada, American-International schools or home-schools applied to blog about a travel experience, whether near or far, that had a meaningful impact.
The generous sponsorship of Allianz Global Assistance USA, ScholarTrips, Travel Media Showcase, TMS Family Travel, Society of American Travel Writers (SATW), CityPASS and Lonely Planet made the 10th annual scholarship possible.
“We are thrilled to have been a part of the tenth annual FTF Teen Travel Writing Scholarship,” said Daniel Durazo, director of communications for Allianz Global Assistance USA. “Providing students with an opportunity to learn through travel sets them up for greater success in life and a better understanding of different cultures and ideas. Allianz Global Assistance prides ourselves on this belief, which is why we have continued to support our ScholarTrips program.”
“We cannot thank our sponsors enough for helping to sustain this scholarship,” said FTF Senior Editor Fran Falkin, “which has inspired more than 50,000 young writers to share their travels. We know they’ve connected with students around the world, because both Cambridge University Press and Bildungshaus Schulbuchverlage GmbH have selected these travel blogs as source material for their English language textbooks.”
Three preliminary rounds of judging were done by FTF interns, members of the Journalism Education Association (JEA) and FTF editors who selected Quarter-Finalist, Semi-Finalist and Finalist blogs comprising 25% of the essays submitted.
Winners were selected from the top 1% by a team of professional educators from the JEA, writers from SATW, and representatives from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Tourism Cares, the charitable arm of the travel and tourism industry. Finalist essays were judged on creativity and eloquence; a sense of place; emotional impact; vocabulary and style; and grammar, punctuation and spelling.
We congratulate the winners of the 2016 Family Travel Forum Teen Travel Writing Scholarship and thank all bloggers for submitting such great work.
2016 FTF Teen Travel Writing Scholarship Winners:
Winners receive a cash stipend plus a GoPro Travel Bag:
1st Place – $1,000
“Setting Foot in a Nation of Faith and Resilience,” by Arnold Icaro, Pflugerville, Texas
2nd Place – $500
“On Painting Impasto,” by Samantha Kiss, Chesapeake, Virginia
3rd Place – $250
“A Rose in the Desert – Serenity in Damascus,” by Bakr Marouf, Annandale, Virginia
2016 FTF Teen Travel Writing Scholarship Honorable Mention:
Honorees receive a Certificate of Commendation and a subscription to Lonely Planet Magazine:
“A Grand Design,” by Allison DeBoer, Auburn, Washington
“A Stroll in Berlin,” by Noa Donvan, Washington, DC
“A Thousand Ones,” by Isabel Campbell, Burlington, Kentucky
“Breathtaking Moments: Finding Freedom in Our Vast Planet,” by Kate Shaffer, Ringoes, New Jersey
“China’s Treasure,” Nina Mayers, Richmond, Texas
“Death on the Bridge of Life,” by Jolyna Chiangong, Southfield, Michigan
“Hope in the Midst of Despair,” by Sophia Ebel, Urbana, Illinois
“Joy Amidst Devastation,” by Sarah George, Indianapolis, Indiana
“My Soul for Santa Maria: Life Lessons Learned from a Volcano,” by Hannah Bahls, Port Townsend, Washington
“Navigating the Dark in the City of Light,” by Giuliana Nicolucci-Altman, Chicago, Illinois
“Of Heat and Humanity,” by Allyson Xie, San Diego, California
“Pilatus: The Dragon’s Mountain,” by Mary-Bryant Charles, Greenville, South Carolina
“Rediscovering My Roots,” by Alejandro Jacobo, Pembroke Pines, Florida
“Seoul-Searching,” by Angelica Kim, Vancouver, BC, Canada
“Storming Castles and Hunting Dwarves in Poland,” by Bryson Jones, Gilbert, Arizona
“Sunrise Serenade – Hiking Navajo Peak, Washington,” by Adam Tucker, Mercer Island, Washington
“The Blossoming of Compassion,” by Alexandra Johnson, Raleigh, North Carolina
“The Universal Language: Ice Cream Cones and Crayola Crayons,” by Haley Eblin, Grosse Ile, Michigan
“Too Close for Comfort,” by Alexander Samland, Torokbalint, Pest, Hungary
“Where Humans and Wildlife Collide,” by Justin Velasco, Maple Valley, Washington
About Family Travel Forum
Family Travel Forum has been the trusted vacation planning resource for global travel with kids and grandkids since 1996. FTF’s expert and community content has been seen on Disney’s Family.com and other sites, in “America’s Most Popular Family Vacations,” “The Complete Idiots Guide to the Best Family Destinations,” “Amazing Places to Take Your Kids in North America” and by millions of traveling families. In addition to co-hosting the annual TMS Family Travel Summit and conferences, FTF ventures include the “The Family Vacationist” blog and e-alert; and Family Travel Consulting to the trade in partnership with Taking the Kids.
About Allianz Global Assistance
Allianz Global Assistance is a leading specialty insurance and assistance company with operations in 34 countries. In the United States, Allianz Global Assistance insures 16 million customers and is best known for its travel insurance plans. Additionally, Allianz Global Assistance supports the education of young travelers by providing them the opportunity to travel the world through their ScholarTrips essay contest. This merit scholarship will be accepting submissions from October 10 to November 10, 2016. Six Grand Prize winners will receive a $2,500 scholarship.
About TTW Travel Industry Partners
Travel Media Showcase and TMS Family Travel, divisions of J. Vero & Associates, are designed to bring together leading print and broadcast travel media with tourism representatives from around the world to showcase new regions for media to cover, and connect destinations with qualified leads. The Society of American Travel Writers, a tax-exempt, professional association established in 1955, includes journalists, editors, photographers, filmmakers, bloggers, and communications professionals who specialize in the travel industry.
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Contact: Fran Falkin
Email: FTFstaff @familytravelforum.com
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Grt place to visit.. This place is located after entering the Ranthambore National Park.. However, to visit this place u can evn get your own vehicle…
John, glad you liked the story. This park is in Ohio where the weather can be unpredictable! It’s warmest between late April and November, but even April has the risk of some snow. If you’re camping with kids, the safest bet is June to August, because it’s warmer and there’s little rain. Enjoy your trip.
Hey Maggie, I really appreciate your innovative traveling ideas. You have covered so many adventurous places. Waiting for some new destinations. Please keep posting.
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It’s truly magical being there. I love the art this country offers. Their wall arts and crafts are just lovely.
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You always share to the world with something new and different destinations. Thank you so much for sharing.
The history of Cuhahoga valley national park seems interesting and must be a new experience when we observe scenes of National park from their scenic campgrounds.
which season do you think is the best time to visit this national park?
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Wow, what a nice article. Makes you feel like you should pack up and go immediately. It seems Linblad runs a good operation and trips are kid friendly. Is there a list of particular dates that are family friendly or are there kid activities year round on board the boats. Any other advice on travling with kids to Ecuador and Galapagos would be really welcome.
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Hello Michael, glad to hear your family is interested in a dude ranch holiday.
Since your kids are older and, hopefully, everyone in the family rides, you have lots of options. The Dude Ranchers Association is a really helpful resource in sorting through the many types of ranch vacations. For example, you can go here: https://duderanch.org/by-activity-amenity and search for ‘Advanced Rides’ and “Cattle Drives’ and that would get you some real working ranches that would have more of the lifestyle you seem to be looking for. One of our authors recommends the Hideout in Shell, Wyoming for this type of trip.
Looking for a real ranch experience with horseback riding (lots of it) and time in the open air with my son (15) and daughter (12) and my wife (49). I am 62. We live in NJ, my children have been sheltered but I grew up in a small coal mining town in Pennsylvania. I want my children to see another side of life.
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Of course, you can do travel freely and easily through these two countries yourself, but I enjoyed having the trip curated for me, including well-chosen local guides, comfortable transportation on call and some superb private tours, such as a Khmer cooking class or historic walking tour of Saigon, with flexibility in the itinerary for our group of five to follow their own paths, such as making an emotional detour to the moving Genocide Museum housed in the old S-21 jail in Phnom Penh.
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For Richard re: dual citizenship US-Nicaragua… can I use the same to travel back to Nicaragua with the same Power of Attorney (Specific to Minors) since wife is staying back in Nicaragua to keep eyes on the house.
Hi Richard, In our travel experience, this type of document should work well for your travels, but if your wife is available, it can’t hurt to download the sample forms we have online and also have her fill out and notarize one for your trip with your child. The agency responsible in your case will be the carrier — we assume an airline — and if they can make a note in your travel record that they have approved the Nicaraguan documents you should be fine on both departing and entering.
Safe Travels!
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As a signal parent, your life, world, actions are based on your childs well fair. Not your happiness or anything that has to do with you.
It should list where they are going, the dates that they are allowed to go and grant your permission for that trip. You want to include your address and phone number and probably the contact info for the adult traveling as well.
The grand archways and the paintings of Lord Krishna and his cows are a visual treat. Wander through areas opened for tourists and you shall witness the impressive aura and architecture of the Royal state of Rajasthan.
Thanks for Sharing
Hello guys my wife and I have dual citizenship US-Nicaragua, I’m planning to travel to the US with our son also dual citizenship for 3 weeks, with a Power of Attorney (Specific to Minors) from Nicaragua, can I use the same to travel back to Nicaragua with the same Power of Attorney (Specific to Minors) since wife is staying back in Nicaragua to keep eyes on the house.
Congratulations to the winners! A question to all the professional travelers here, how are you planning the route ant the places to see while visiting a new country? As for me I just google the most touristic and popular places. It works mostly, but there were a few times when I realized that I have seen only some the places this country or city is famous for, and that’s sad. On my last trip to Armenia, I decided to take a tour and it was quite productive. It’s much more informative when somebody is telling you history and some interesting facts. If someone wants to save their time – make sure to ask them to help if you’ll ever be there.
Curitiba é uma lugar lindo, além de ser considerada uma das melhores cidades para se morar em Brasil.
Realmente a muito o que conhecer por lá, como também diversas outras belezas do nosso brasil.
Principalmente as praias do Brasil que são muito procurada por inúmeros turistas internacionais e nacionais.
As Praias do Litoral Paulista, divididos entre Praias do Litoral Norte e Litoral Sul.
As mais conhecidas são as Praias de Ubatuba com mais de 100 belas praias no litoral norte paulista.
Já no litoral sul, a região mais procurada são as Praias de Guarujá, a região conta com 23 praias de pura beleza e preservação ambiental.
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Was an honour and pleasure to host you both in the Maori Whakata/Welcome to Wanaka. Welcome back anytime to this wonderful part of the world.
Kia Kaha/Stay strong
[http://www.wanahaka.co.nz]