After the NTIA award winners gratefully accepted their honours at this year’s Gala Dinner held at Crown Melbourne on Saturday here is how they responded.
A double win for Club Med
Club Med took home two awards, winning Most Popular Accommodation Group for the third consecutive year and Most Outstanding Sales Executive – Wholesaler, recognising Giovanny Palacio, Business Development Manager for New South Wales.
The two wins are a significant recognition from the Australian travel industry, with the Most Popular Accommodation Group award voted for by Travel Agents across Australia. Club Med extends its sincere thanks to its Travel Agent partners for their continued support, trust and advocacy, which has helped the brand secure the award for three consecutive years, as well as recognising the excellence in its sales team.
“To be recognised by our Travel Agent partners as Most Popular Accommodation Group for three years running is an incredible achievement, and we are deeply grateful for the trust and support that has earned us this recognition,” Michelle Davies, General Manager for Club Med Pacific and New ESAP Markets said. “To take home a second award this year, Most Outstanding Sales Executive recognising Giovanny Palacio is a wonderful reflection of the strength of our people and the relationships we have built across the travel industry.
“Our Travel Agent partnerships are at the heart of Club Med’s success, so to see this recognised alongside our continued support from the trade is particularly meaningful. It is a testament to the dedication of our team and the trust our partners place in us to deliver memorable experiences for their clients.
“These awards come at an exciting time for Club Med, as we continue to evolve the brand and invest in our resort portfolio and development pipeline, bringing new destinations and experiences to our guests, including the highly anticipated openings of Borneo, Koh Samui and Manado in Indonesia. We’re incredibly proud of what our teams and trade partners have achieved together, and we look forward to continuing to give our partners even more reasons to recommend Club Med to their clients.”
FCM’s four top honours
Flight Centre Travel Group took home four awards on Saturday night at the NTIAs; Most Outstanding Branded Travel Agency Group for Flight Centre, Most Outstanding Travel Agency Network and Most Outstanding Mobile Agency Network for Envoyage, and Most Outstanding Global Travel Management Company for FCM.
“It’s incredibly humbling to reflect on the achievements of the group this year at the NTIAs and to be recognised across corporate and leisure,” FCTG global leisure CEO & managing director Australia James Kavanagh said. “It is a real testament to the hard work, dedication and passion of the individuals and teams behind the recognition. I couldn’t be prouder to lead a business full of people who care deeply about their work, whether it’s helping businesses travel seamlessly, or helping our customers create lasting travel memories.”
“The last two quarters of FY26 were really challenging, as it was for the whole travel industry, and I’m proud of everyone in our brand for their resilience and determination during the back half of that year,” Flight Centre global managing director Andrew Stark said.
“I want to thank our teams for being bold and brave this year, including everyone from product to risk, customer care, marketing, finance, operations and of course our travel experts consultants.
“I also want to thank our customers for continuing to choose us and trust us with their holidays.”
Envoyage doubles down
Envoyage Group won both of the awards it was eligible for: Most Outstanding Mobile Advisor Network and Most Outstanding Travel Agency Network.
Astrid Richardson, global general manager Envoyage Group, said it was a proud moment.
“Our team bring so much care and energy into supporting our travel entrepreneurs, and it’s wonderful to see that passion recognised with this award.”
Global head of brand and marketing Allie Sparr added: “This is a massive achievement and proof that we live our values of endurance, entrepreneurialism and engagement every day to support our members. Myself and the team have worked hard to build a brand with a clear purpose and vision that stands out in our industry, and I’m thrilled to see it recognised.”
FCM Travel’s Global gong
Meanwhile, FCM Travel took home the award for the NTIA’s Most Outstanding Global Travel Company.
“Winning Most Outstanding Global Travel Company amongst so many industry leaders means a lot to all of us at FCM,” general manager ANZ of FCM Travel, Renos Rologas, said.
“It’s been a big year for the team. We’ve been heads down building things we genuinely believe will change how business travel feels for our customers, like Sam, our AI assistant that helps travellers and travel managers get answers and get moving, faster.
“The corporate travel market is crowded, and everyone competes on a different strength, be it scale, capability, digital experience or innovation. However, it’s important to us that our customers never compromise on any of those strengths.
“That’s why we chose to build Sam ourselves instead, because we wanted to understand and shape the technology behind every trip we manage, not just plug something in. Sam is now the
first AI core built into a travel management system globally, running across more than 90 countries, and giving us complete control over how it serves our customers.
“None of that happens without a team of people doing brilliant work behind the scenes, with the goal of ensuring FCM sets the pace in this industry. This recognition tells us we’re heading in the right direction, and it’s a real motivator to keep going.
“Thank you to our customers for trusting us with something as important as their travel programs, and to our people, who never stop looking for a better way to do things.”
Adventure World treads lightly
Adventure World took out of the NTIA Sustainability Award – Supplier.
“On behalf of all the Adventure World team we are deeply honoured and humbled to receive this incredible recognition,” managing director Neil Rodgers said. “Thank you to our travellers and partners for supporting us on this journey. We’re more inspired than ever to keep treading lightly and exploring responsibly…”
Back-to-back for Cruiseco
Cruiseco Pty. Ltd was the winner of the NTIA for Most Outstanding Wholesaler – Product / Service.
“Congratulations to all the team at Cruiseco for everything they do,” Helloworld Cruise group general manager Steve Brady said. “It’s so pleasing to see their hard work acknowledged two years in a row at the NTIA’s. A big thank you to our agent customers for trusting us to deliver for you, year in year out.
“A special thanks also to our cruise line partners, we love working with you to mutually grow the cruise industry in Australia. Time to lift the bar again for the year ahead!”
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