Voting for the National Travel Industry Awards (NTIA) 2026 opened at noon AEST on 15 June, with the Australian Travel Industry Association (ATIA) confirming more than 2,000 peer nominations, a record for the event.
Anyone employed within the Australian travel industry can cast a vote, with one caveat: you cannot vote for your own organisation. Voting closes at 11:45pm AEST on 17 July.
Thirteen categories are open to the industry vote this year, spanning tour operators, wholesalers, airlines, ocean and river cruise operators, tourism offices, accommodation groups and travel support services.
Winners will be announced at the NTIA Gala Dinner on Saturday 10 October 2026, capping a weekend of events that opens with the Beyond Borders Summit on Friday 9 October.
What has changed
ATIA has refreshed the process for 2026. Rather than simply tallying the number of votes received, voters will now rate each nominee on their trade support and product offering.
The shift is designed to reward conduct rather than scale, and to stop the result tilting toward larger businesses in a purely popularity-based count.
“2026 is shaping up to be a huge year for NTIA, with another record-breaking year for nominations. Our updated rating system for votes keeps the awards comprehensive and avoids any potential slant towards larger businesses from a purely popularity-based vote. You’ve got until 17 July to get your votes in, so make sure you have your say,” says ATIA CEO Dean Long.
Which categories are open
The voted categories cover Most Outstanding Tour Operator (Specialised and Global), Most Outstanding Wholesaler (Product/Service and Destination/Experience), Most Popular Tourism Office, Most Popular Accommodation Group/Chain, and Most Popular Airline (Online and Offline).
Also open are Most Popular Ocean Cruise Operator, Most Popular River Cruise Operator, Most Popular Car Rental Operator, Most Popular Reservations/Groups Team and Most Outstanding Travel Support Service.
NTIA 2026 carries a refined list of 36 categories in total, following the refreshed categories unveiled when nominations opened, with the full nominee list available on the ATIA website.
Voting is open at the ATIA website until 11:45pm AEST on 17 July.
KARRYON UNPACKS: Topping 2,000 nominations signals an industry in confident form, and the move to a rating system rather than a raw vote count puts service quality, not size, at the centre of the result. For smaller operators who win or lose on trade support, that change quietly levels the playing field.
