World’s travel innovators celebrate at VIP reception in Madeira

Tourism royalty from across the globe convened in Funchal, Madeira for the World Travel Awards Grand Final Gala Ceremony 2024 to recognise the travel organisations pushing the boundaries of excellence and innovation.

Destination winners include Maldives, voted World’s Leading Destination. The medieval Portuguese city of Braga took home the title of ‘World’s Leading Emerging Tourism Destination’. Saint Lucia was named ‘World’s Leading Honeymoon Destination’, while Tanzania claimed ‘World's Leading Safari Destination’. Jamaica was recognised as ‘World's Leading Cruise Destination’. With its timeless elegance and world-class facilities, Cannes was named ‘World's Leading Festival & Event Destination’. The pristine reefs of the Philippines were acknowledged with the award for ‘World's Leading Dive Destination’.

Jumeirah Al Naseem, Dubai was crowned ‘World’s Leading Hotel’, with Forte Village, Sardinia honoured as ‘World’s Leading Resort’.

In the newcomer categories, Waldorf Astoria Doha West Bay saw off a tough field to collect ‘World's Leading New Hotel’, with Anantara Mina Al Arab Ras Al Khaimah Resort winning ‘World’s Leading New Resort’. Seville’s Casa Palacio Don Ramón was voted ‘World’s Leading New Boutique Hotel’.

The strength of Arabian aviation was highlighted with major wins for Qatar Airways (‘World's Leading Airline’ and ‘World's Leading Airline - Business Class’); Etihad Airways (‘World's Leading Airline - Economy Class’, ‘World's Leading Airline - Customer Experience’ and ‘World’s Leading Airline Lounge - First Class); and Emirates (‘World's Leading Airline - First Class’ and ‘World’s Leading Airline Brand’).

Meanwhile, AirAsia picked up double honours, winning ‘World's Leading Low-Cost Airline’ and ‘World’s Leading Low-Cost Airline Cabin Crew’. TAP Air Portugal claimed ‘World’s Leading Airline to Africa’ and ‘World’s Leading Airline to South America’. interCaribbean Airways also took to the podium, collecting ‘World’s Leading Regional Airline’.

Graham Cooke, Founder, World Travel Awards, says: “It has been a privilege to welcome our winners from every corner of the globe to celebrate in enchanting Madeira. The incredible evening will live long in everyone’s memory. Our winners represent the pinnacle of tourism excellence, and I congratulate each of them for raising the benchmark of the global tourism economy.”

Madeira itself was recognised as ‘‘World's Leading Island Destination’. With its sub-tropical climate and unique eco-system, the Atlantic archipelago is the perfect year-round destination.

Eduardo Jesus, Regional Secretary for Economy, Tourism, and Culture and President of Madeira Promotion Bureau, comments: “The award for ‘World's Leading Island Destination, which Madeira has received consecutively since 2015, is a recognition of the efforts made by the entire sector to strengthen its international positioning as a unique, year-round destination for everyone.”

He adds: “It is an honour and a great satisfaction to receive this award at a gala held in Funchal, attended by many local guests and representatives from entities and institutions that work tirelessly throughout the year to achieve such prestigious recognition from the World Travel Awards.”

Other winners include Madrid (‘World’s Leading Meetings & Conference Destination’); Kaizen Hoteles (‘World’s Leading Independent Hotel Group’); Booking.com (‘World’s Leading Online Travel Agency’); and Satguru (‘World’s Leading Leisure Travel Agency’).

Find more information and a full list of winners on the official WTA website.

Notes to Editors

About World Travel Awards

WTA was established in 1993 to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all sectors of the tourism industry.

Today, the WTA brand is recognised globally as the ultimate hallmark of quality, with winners setting the benchmark to which all others aspire.

Each year, WTA covers the globe with a series of regional gala ceremonies staged to recognise and celebrate individual and collective success within each key geographical region.

WTA gala ceremonies are widely regarded as the best networking opportunities in the travel industry, attended by government and industry leaders, luminaries and international print and broadcast media.

For more information about WTA visit worldtravelawards.com.

About the Madeira Archipelago

Considered the Best Island Destination in the World (World Travel Awards), Madeira is a small Portuguese paradise located amid the immensity of the Atlantic Ocean. Of volcanic origin, its privileged location provides a mild climate and sea with pleasant temperatures all year round, in addition to impressive sceneries of mountains, valleys and cliffs, all covered by the exuberant Laurissilva vegetation, named Natural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. The archipelago is formed by a set of islands, the main and only inhabited being Madeira and Porto Santo. There are excellent options for spas, historic monuments and great hotels and restaurants, where you can sample delicious cuisine and award-winning Madeiran wines.

For more information, go to visitmadeira.com / @visitmadeira