Why the Travel Industry Pays Attention to IDEA Awards Winners
Skift’s audience is an invaluable product. Skift consumers encompass the decision-makers at hotels, airlines, online travel agencies (OTAs), tourism boards, tech companies, and travel marketing agencies throughout the world, and Skift is the tool these industry professionals use to better prepare for the future of travel.
Skift is designed to provide the insights that help these leaders understand emerging trends and industry activity and make informed business decisions. In other words, Skift’s audience are the travel professionals who are actively evaluating who they want to partner with, invest in, hire from, and learn from, and the IDEA Awards place you directly in front of them. Not to mention the AI recognition.
According to 5W Trade Press AI Index 2026, “Skift is the trade press AI moat in travel. Any travel brand not regularly cited in Skift is invisible to AI for B2B travel queries.”
An IDEA Awards win puts you on Skift’s website, social coverage, newsletters, and in front of the Skift Global Forum audience in a direct and authentic way that opens up new avenues for essential conversations.
The Industry is Watching
Skift gathers the most original thought leaders in the industry to review IDEA Awards submitters’ projects.
Our submissions are evaluated by people who understand the complexity of what it takes to affect change in travel and who know the difference between pithy promises and genuine innovation.
When Skift IDEA Awards judges signal which work the industry needs to pay attention to, it sends a clear message to the market, one that is easily translatable to the customers, partners, and contemporaries who matter most to your business. It tells the market that you have a fresh way of thinking that the industry needs to take notice of. Skift IDEA Awards help inform the industry what kind of company you are and make them inclined to follow what you do next.
“This industry has survived unprecedented challenges, and during this time, it’s crucial we continue to learn from each other and innovate together,” said Stuart Blake, VP of Revenue at Perk. “The awards themselves highlight those who are doing best. And so ultimately, we think that the Skift IDEA Awards have a really big impact on innovation and just pushing the industry forward.”
Skift Global Forum: Where Recognition Becomes Momentum
For many IDEA Awards winners, the most essential recognition is having a place at one of the biggest events in travel.
Skift Global Forum brings together the senior decision-makers across every major travel sector. In 2025, Skift Global Forum saw attendees from 590 companies and 40 different countries, 76% of whom were director level or above on their teams.
IDEA Awards winners gain visibility at Skift Global Forum by putting them in the room with leaders taking action for all three days, including receptions.
Since Skift Global Forum’s inception in 2014, we’ve witnessed several partnerships take place and countless connections forged. Skift Global Forum gives IDEA Awards winners the momentum they need to amplify and build their work.
This Is Your Moment — Don’t Wait
We’re not sure how, but it’s already almost July 1st! This is the deadline to submit to the Skift IDEA Awards. If you’ve been hesitating, wondering whether your work is award-worthy, consider this: the companies that win aren’t always the largest or the most polished but the ones that had a fresh idea and made a real case for why it mattered.
The travel industry pays attention to IDEA Awards winners, and right now, that attention is available to you.
The Skift IDEA Awards recognize innovation, design, experience, and achievement across the global travel industry. Learn more and submit at live.skift.com/skift-idea-awards.
