Finalists for the 2026 IWTTF Awards announced

Women in Travel CIC announces the finalists for the IWTTF Awards 2026. The winners will be announced on 16 September in Utrecht – the first time the awards have been held outside London. The International Women in Travel and Tourism Forum (IWTTF) Awards 2026 shine a spotlight on individuals and organisations within the travel, tourism and hospitality sectors that excel in the areas of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).

The winners will be announced on 16 September during an awards ceremony in Union House in Utrecht. The awards ceremony forms part of the wider IWTTF Forum, which continues the following day at Dotslash.

IWTTF is an initiative of Alessandra LoTufo Alonso, founder and managing director of the social enterprise Women in Travel CIC. The annual forum and its associated community have developed into a platform for forward-thinking ideas and substantive discussion on diversity and inclusion within the travel industry and beyond.

The programme consists of panel discussions, interviews, in-depth sessions, group sessions and plenty of opportunities to network. Various finalists and winners will also have the chance to share real-life examples on stage. This will enable visitors to take concrete ideas and initiatives back to their own organisations.

This year marks the fourth edition of the IWTTF Awards. In six categories, both individuals and organisations are recognised for their commitment, achievements and progress in the field of diversity and inclusion.

The finalists are:

Individual categories

Woman Leader for Impact and Inclusion – Corporate

• Natalie Lyall-Grant, Head of Positive Impact, Jacada Travel
• Stroma Cole, Professor of Tourism and Human Rights, University of Westminster, and Co-Director, Equality in Tourism
• Shannon Guihan, Chief Sustainability Officer, The Travel Corporation
• Gaëlle Bristiel, Senior Vice-President of Engineering and Head of AI Delivery, Amadeus

Woman Leader for Impact and Inclusion – Entrepreneur

• Emily Goldfischer, Founder, Hertelier
• Lucky Karki Chhetri, Co-founder, 3 Sisters Adventure Trekking
• Shailza Sood Dasgupta, Co-founder, Homestays in India

Women in Tech and AI

• Danica Smith, Founder and CEO, MorningStar GX
• Klaudija Janzelj, General Manager, Tourplan Europe
• Veerle Witte, Founder and CEO, Travel Diaries

Ally for Social Impact and Community

• Victoria Martinelli, Director of People and Culture, Lemongrass Marketing
• Fiona Jeffery OBE, Founder & President, Just a Drop
• Kerrie Bartholomew, Account Director, Clear Marketing International
  

Organisational categories

DEI Courage and Resilience

• TUI Care Foundation
• The Muslim Women’s Travel Group
• Lampedusa Shipping Company

Inclusive Workplace

• Trip.com
• Intrepid Travel
• a&o Hostels

Inclusive Business Practice

• Community Homestay Network
• The Muslim Women’s Travel Group
• Wild Paths
  

During the judging process, the jury members also decided to present an additional Special Contribution Award. The recipient of this award will be announced during the awards ceremony.

The jury for the IWTTF Awards comprises prominent figures from the travel industry, including Debbie O’Neill, Managing Director of Jules Verne Ltd; Andrew Hunt, CEO and Co-Founder of Holiday Architects; Carol Dray, Director and Portfolio NED at R&W Consultancy; Lina Kiubere, Learning and Development Specialist at Interrail; Elle Pinkard, Founder and CEO of Destination Rainbow; Carla Francisco, Head of People at Conscious Group; Sara Monnik, Head of People at Sawadee Travel; and Hafsa Gaher, CEO of Halal Travel Network.

Gwendoline Cazenave, CEO of Eurostar, will deliver the keynote speech during the awards ceremony. Frank Radstake, director of the ANVR, will host both the Awards and the Forum.

Alessandra LoTufo Alonso, Founder and Managing Director of Women in Travel CIC and IWTTF:

“This is the fourth year we have organised the IWTTF Awards, and we have further refined the categories. This allows us to better reflect changes in the business world. For example, this year we have added AI to our Women in Tech Award. At the same time, we want to highlight that, despite the challenges DEI has faced in recent years, a great deal of excellent work is still being done – by people and organisations who do not always publicise this themselves.”.

The IWTTF Awards highlight the fact that the strategic importance of diversity and inclusion within our sector is growing. More and more organisations are realising that inclusion is not an isolated issue, but an essential part of success in a sector that revolves entirely around people.

We are also absolutely delighted to be holding the event in continental Europe for the first time this year. We are also seeing many more nominees from various European countries, alongside candidates from Ecuador, southern Africa, India and Nepal, amongst others. This demonstrates how the reach and significance of the IWTTF Awards continue to grow.

We look forward to announcing the winners on 16 September. We would also like to thank our sponsors for their support in making this event possible.”

Following the IWTTF Awards, the event will take place on 17 September IWTTF Forum full of knowledge-sharing, discussion and inspiration. Under the central theme Inclusion Drives Growth One of the key questions is what inclusive leadership and genuine partnership will look like in 2026. The discussion will also cover the positive impact the travel industry can make and how companies can capitalise on the strong growth in the number of women travelling alone.

The sponsors of IWTTF 2026 are: Intrepid Travel, BCD Travel, Interrail, DiamondAir International, Conscious Hotels, Eurostar, Dotslash Utrecht EN Union House.

The last few tickets are still available for a few more days via Women in Travel CIC.