(New York, NY – September 18, 2018) Family Travel Forum (FTF) and its travel industry partners congratulate the winners of the 2018 FTF Teen Travel Writing Scholarship. Completing its 12th year, 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 May 1 and July 9, 2018, over 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 12th annual scholarship possible.
“We are honored to be one of the sponsors of the 12th annual FTF Teen Travel Writing Scholarship,” said Daniel Durazo, director of marketing and communications for Allianz Global Assistance USA. “Providing students with an opportunity to learn through travel creates greater opportunities for them to succeed in life and have a better understanding of global cultures and ideas. Allianz Global Assistance is dedicated to protecting and helping travelers wherever they may go.”
“We’re also happy to be able to help students explore their world and we’re thrilled to support both the FTF Teen Travel Writing Scholarship and our very own ScholarTrips program,” Durazo adds.
FTF Senior Editor Fran Falkin said “Year after year we are impressed by the student’s eloquence, their vivid descriptions of nature, appreciation of cultural diversity and thoughtful observations about human interactions. We are also extremely appreciative of our sponsors for their sustaining support. It is very gratifying to acknowledge this impressive work and know we’ve encouraged more than 55,000 teens over the years to share their travels.”
Preliminary rounds of judging were done by FTF interns and staff. Winners were selected from the top 1% by a team of professional educators from the Journalism Education Association (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 2018 Family Travel Forum Teen Travel Writing Scholarship and thank all bloggers for submitting such great work.
2018 FTF TEEN TRAVEL WRITING SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS:
Winners receive a cash stipend plus a GoPro Travel Bag:
1st Place – $1,000
“Breathtaking Burials: Bogus or Believable?,” by Irene Yi, Central High School, Grand Rapids, MI
2nd Place – $500
“A Leopard’s Way,” by Kathryn Ribbens,” Cole Valley Christian Schools, Meridian, ID
3rd Place – $250
“Reflections on Omaha Beach,” by Ian Hubbard, Hampton Bays High School, Hampton Bays, NY
2018 FTF TEEN TRAVEL WRITING SCHOLARSHIP HONORABLE MENTIONS:
Honorees receive a Certificate of Commendation and a subscription to Lonely Planet Magazine:
“Go Play In The Snow!,” by Zoie Buske, Harmony School of Advancement, Houston, TX
“International Mafia,” by Ali Cohen, Chandler Preparatory Academy, Chandler, AZ
“California Dreams,” by Daman Cusick, Bowling Green High School, Bowling Green, KY
“Savor(y) Switzerland,” by Elizabeth Goldin, Highland Park High School, Highland Park, IL
“Da Vinci Day,” by Lesharyn Jackson, West Career & Technical Academy, Las Vegas, NV
“My Guatemala,” by Ruby Johnston, Santa Cruz High School, Santa Cruz, CA
“A Picture Into the Past,” by Jola Laguda, Quincy High School, Quincy, MA
“An Unexpected Village Dance Party,” by Joshua Leong, McLean High School, McLean, VA
“Peace Train,” by Brooke Mickle, Westlake High School, Austin, TX
“Home Is Where You Park It,” by Olivia Morrison, Morrison Home School, Bedford, NH
“The Philippines: Living in a Childhood That Was Never Mine,” by Alana Ordonez, Harker Heights High School, Harker Heights, TX
“A Winding Road,” by Giselle Pfaeffle, Patrick Henry High School, Roanoke, VA
“Mississippian Ripples,” by Brenna Salverson, Dunlap High School, Dunlap, IL
“Creature of the Coast,” by Mia Shipp, Vandebilt Catholic High School, Houma, LA
“At Home, Three Thousand Miles Away,” by Madeline Short, Goffstown High School, Goffstown, NH
“The Moment I Was Aware of A Cruel World,” by Grace Smart, Los Osos High School, Rancho Cucamonga, CA
“The Treasures Concealed by Mesas of Arizona,” by Hope Stevenson, Carl Sandberg High School, Orland Park, IL
“Get Lost: How A GPS Error Led Me to the Beauty of Alexandria, VA,” by Riley Sutherland, Liberty North High School, Liberty, MO
“The Feast,” by Birukti Tsige, Malden High School, Malden, MA
“Santiago’s Tears Of Joy,” by Hunton Warren, St. Mary’s School, Raleigh, NC
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 Idiot’s 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
Operating in 34 countries, Allianz Global Assistance is a leading insurance and assistance company that provides insurance to 35 million U.S. customers annually. The company is best known for its Allianz Travel Insurance plans, which protect travelers from unexpected trip cancellations or losses while traveling. Plans are available in annual or per trip coverage. The company’s partners include leading travel agencies, airlines and other travel suppliers. Allianz Global Assistance also supports student travel by providing merit scholarships through their ScholarTrips essay contest. Since 2017, ScholarTrips has given over $175,000 in scholarships to hundreds of students who have realized their dream of international travel.
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
Thanks to our 2018 Scholarship Sponsors!
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Dear Reader: This page may contain affiliate links which may earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. Our independent journalism is not influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative unless it is clearly marked as sponsored content. As travel products change, please be sure to reconfirm all details and stay up to date with current events to ensure a safe and successful trip.
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You could win a trip for a family of 4 to San Antonio, by joining us on Twitter June 20, 8pm ET, for a group chat on planning family vactions sponsored by TravelingMom.com and The Complete Idiots Guide to the Best Family Destinations. Just follow the hastag #TMOM when you get to twitter and you'll be all set to post your thoughts.
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We chose San Antonio as a partner in this Twitter Party and book promotion because it's really one of the Best Family Destinations in North America!
MFT Tip #1 – If you're going to a warm destination (like San Antonio) in the summer, make sure the kids can keep themselves hydrated. Personal water bottles come in all shapes and sizes, and many have cute shoulder straps or pouches so even your toddlers can carry their own.
We look forward to hearing your vacation planning tips — to San Antonio or anywhere else…
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I agree 100% with everything in this article! I have had some experience with planning trips to Europe with my own family and compiled a website full of helpful advice. I particularily love your point #6 about packing lightly – each trip we do to Europe (generally about 3 weeks long) is done only with carry-on luggage. (You only need to try and lug giant suitcases full of things your don't need onto trains once!) It's amazing how little you actually need, and your last point is true too – don't expect to do too much. Sitting in an Italian park with gelato is pretty nice…
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That's a great creativity and fun living place for children. I think Henri Landwirth has done a real great job for children knowing the ancient time and with that enjoying the world village of fairy tales and lot more.
This is awesome, the place suits for the vacations with family. It gives more attachment and warmness with the introduction of new culture. I would love to go there with my family.
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Upon arrival on the cruise things were ok. Actually it was more than ok. It was something I never experienced before. It was a mixture of different emotions. When I arrived, we had to go through a metal detector for obvious reasons. I thought I was in the clear, but every time I walked through, it would beep and I would be told to go back. I was sent back at least 10 times until the people behind me started to get mad. After about the 12th time, I finally realized what prevented me from going through. It was my belt. I had to take it off, and I thought it would be no big deal, but the minute I took it off, my pants began to drop. I quickly grabbed it, but then the officers gave me back all of my items that were metal, and without thinking I let go my pants and grabbed for the items, and the expected happened. My pants dropped. Luckily I had on long boxer shorts, but what was on the boxer shorts were even more embarrassing. My boxers had Sponge bob on it. What made it worse was that the little girl behind me saw it and shouted in excitement "Sponge Bob" and ran up to me and hugged my boxers. An outburst of laughter changed the angry crowds mood. Boy, was that embarrassing. After the embarrassing moment, it relieved some tension that I had about not going on the cruise. Even I had to admit that it was pretty funny. Eventually we settled in, got comfortable and cruised right along to Mexico.
Now since I live in Florida, I thought Florida was Hot, I was wrong. The instant I stepped off the boat into the sun, I felt as if the sun it self was cooking my face. The only way to describe or even come close to explain how hot it was is to tell you how I felt. The sun was so bright that my eyes squinted so hard that eventually after the trip I got wrinkles on my forehead from squinting so hard. I never felt a heat wave so strong as to where it made me regret ever stepping off the boat. Try standing a hot sun all day with your head hurting, eyes, and forehead. Any shade that I found was heaven for me; cause walking around in the sun was hell. The sun seriously cooked my face in to look a certain way. When I came back to Florida, everyone said that I looked older and angry. I laughed because I knew exactly why it looked the way it did.
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Nice piece of information! May I reference part of this on my blog if I post a back link to this web page? Thanks.
Glad you found Bethany's story on traveling in Rome helpful. You are welcome to quote from it on your blog, but we ask that you please give your readers the link back to the full story so they can get all the details. Then, please email us through the Contact Us form below so we can see your blog!
thanks Kyle
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You're absolutely right, but for most families, these special occasion restaurants are a once in a lifetime occasion.
And foodie NY families also take advantage of the city's 2 annual Restaurant Weeks. They're usually for a month (I know it's called Week!) in Feb-Mar and in summer of 2011, it's from July 11-24. All lunches charge $24.07 and all dinners cost $35, and in the past, these 2 amazing restaurants and many others of their calibre have participated in Restaurant Week.
So, that's certainly a good time to get the kids dressed up and show them an amazing foodie night on the town. Check out : http://www.nycgo.com/restaurantweek for details. And bon appetit!
Per se and La Bernadin are two of the best restaurants in NYC, possibly the world. But dinner for 2 will cost several hundred dollars at each one. They're not within reach of most families.
Please note this 2011 update to hours and admission prices from The Eric Carle Museum:
Hours
10 am–4 pm Tuesday through Friday
10 am–5 pm Saturday
12 –5 pm Sundays
Closed on Mondays * and Independence Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas, and New Year's Day
* Open Mondays during July and August and MA school vacation weeks.
Admission Prices
Adult admission $9
Youth (under 18), Student, Teacher and Senior Admission $6
Family Admission (2 adults and 2 youth) $22.50
You are too funny! I actually wrote 6 guidebooks about Greece for the Frommer series, so yes, I know it pretty well. Changing fast though! Thanks for your comments. Kyle
Are there any East African cruises which combine with a Tanzania safari – http://www.ziarasafaris.com — or is the horn of Africa deemed to dangerous to pass through en-route for cruise ships?
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How does this impact the amount of national parks slated to be shut down?
http://globaltransportation.com – Has anyone heard about a company called Global Transportation? Their website is at http://www.globaltransportation.us – We are looking to do a church trip in Vegas and never heard of this company out of Colorado or specifically Denver.
We have 40 people that want to go on this trip and it looks like they have a tour that we would love to go on…
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Americans are in love with Yellowstone this year! Available space at in-the-park lodges is at a premium and hard to find. A great alternative is Far and Away's 2 nite basecamp (you won't believe the luxury) on a remote shore of Yellowstone Lake. If you want a park experience unlike any other (without the crowds) and one that still has good space availability – it's the ticket.
Thanks for all the great budget friendly tips. My wife and I love taking a bike ride or our dogs for a walk on the Monon Trail. Stop in at BRICS (Broad Ripple Ice Cream Shop) for a tasty treat! Also, we lived here for quite some time before we discovered Holiday Park – they have a great playground for kids.
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