Hot off the press! Norman the Nomad got his hands on an exclusive this morning and is giving us the scoop of the century: My Destination has relaunched! Norm tries his hand at a little journalism and gives us the low-down on the brand spanking new site’s features, even managing to get an exclusive quote from the site’s co-founder, Neil Waller. Read on and let us know what you think…
 

Share and Enjoy

My Destination Relaunched!

THE AWARDS THAT ARE TAKING THE WORLD BY STORM

So, what exactly are the #TAFTAs?

Thanks for asking. The #TAFTAs are our way of giving a little bit of credit back to those folks who really inspire us to get out there and see the big wide world for ourselves. They’re the ones who’ve really got in going on in the travel department – the most informative, enthusiastic, hilarious and sometimes darn right stubborn adventurers, who get right into the nitty-gritty of their nomadic exploits and won’t rest until they’ve got a darn good story to tell.

In essence, the #TAFTAs are our virtual version of a slap on the back for a job well done. We can’t promise you’ll be rubbing shoulders with Clooney when you get one, or that you’ll be greeted by a fanfare every time you walk into a room, but heck, who doesn’t like free stuff once in a while?

But what does #TAFTA stand for?

#TAFTA itself stands for ‘The Award For Travel Awesomeness’. The long version is only usually used when we have fancy guests though. Like Her Majesty, The Queen. Or Michael Palin.

Okay, I’m catching on…how do they work exactly?

Once a week, the My D collective (sort of like The Avengers with slightly less spandex) will get their heads together and choose one person from the shortlist to receive a specially tailored #TAFTA. We’ll then dedicate a blog post to the winner, highlighting just a few of their greatest adventures (no easy feat, mind). In addition, they’ll also receive their very own #TAFTA certificate to display on their parlour wall for all to see!

Alright, that sounds kind of nifty…but how does someone make the shortlist?

Every week, we’ll come up with a new category that will be broadcast via Twitter (hence the hashtag), Facebook and some of the other social media pies we’ve got our fingers in. We’ll then take on board your nominations for that category and compile a shortlist of the most popular suggestions. It’s not all me, me, me here, which is exactly why we need YOUR input to realise the #TAFTA dream. Plus, Norm’s getting super excited about wearing a tux and we don’t want to let him down.

The surest way of getting your nominations seen is to use the #TAFTA hashtag or message us directly via @MyDestination, but we’ll always be on the lookout for any potential contenders.

I’d like to nominate myself. Give me one of those award things.

We’re not just going to hand these out willy-nilly you know! They are a little bit special, even if we do say so ourselves.

In any case, the purpose of the #TAFTAs is to get a real idea about what makes the travel community themselves sit up and listen, hence why we’re asking the enthusiasts among you to take part in this event by nominating the bloggers you think are the absolute best. However, if you really do think you qualify, then please let us know. We’d hate to overlook a top notch nomad just because they didn’t toot their own trumpet a little bit louder.

Fair enough, but here comes the third degree – What’s in it for you?

Zilch. Nada. Zero. Absolutely nothing. Unless, of course, you count the satisfaction we get from reading a bunch of pretty flipping excellent travel stories and passing it off as ‘work’.

Well by golly, you sure convinced me! When does this #TAFTA thing happen then?

A new #TAFTA category will be announced every Thursday morning (going by Big Ben time), and will first be broadcast alongside the blog post about the previous category’s winner (in case you want a head start!). We’ll then be shouting about it via the various aforementioned social media sites, so everyone will know what’s what by the time they’ve had their breakfasts. The rest is pretty much up to you!

Guess I’ll see you there! Here’s to the #TAFTAs – Long may they reign!

The very first category in the #TAFTA timeline is going to be celebrating a local London blogger. Don’t forget to use the #TAFTA tag and tweet @MyDestination to make sure your nominations for the best London bloggers are seen!

This event is rated E for Everyone, so please jump right in!

Share and Enjoy

Introducing the #TAFTAs