* UPDATE * Find the winning entry here.
The longlist is here!
This year, in Bradt Guides’ 50th year of encouraging adventurous travel, head judge Hilary Bradt has read every single entry. She comments:
Each year I say to myself ‘This must be the best bunch of entries ever’ but this year, our 50th anniversary, the theme Taking the Risk (not coincidentally the title of my memoir published later this year) has inspired some terrific writing. Reducing them to this long list of 13 was not easy, but what stands out is the variety of topics. Stories ranged from extreme adventures in northern latitudes to a short, but disastrous walk to work; from a celebration of the carnival in Cologne to a reflection on the plight of San Francisco’s homeless; and from hitchhiking in the Kalahari desert to risking tantrums on a kids’ sightseeing trip round Europe. Sometimes it was others taking the risk – like a brave woman in Saudi Arabia or the pilgrims’ painful progress in Tibet. What stands out in all of them is vivid, uncomplicated writing. Sometimes, in the entries that didn’t make it, the narrative thread is lost among the adjectives and similes.
The four judges have a tough task ahead choosing the winner and runners up. One thing’s for sure: we will enjoy the process immensely.
The entries remain strictly anonymous until the judging is complete, so only the titles of the pieces will be given at this stage. A final judging session will take place at the end of the month, and the four finalists will be announced on 1st March. All four will be invited to the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards in London on 20th March, where the winner will be unveiled.
The Longlist
The Golden City
A Silent Embrace
In Too Deep
Risks, reservoirs and rewards
Sun, Sea and Sanitiser
A Walk to Work
Spindrift and Fear
Let the Nubbel Take the Blame
Lost and Found
Showing Them Europe
A Pilgrimage in Tibet
Niqabs in the Saudi Dust
Stranded in the Kalahari
The Prize
The winner will receive a five nights’ all-inclusive stay at Calabash Cove Resort & Spa on the island of St Lucia, in a Sunset Oceanview Junior Suite. They will also receives a paid commission to write about their trip for Traveller magazine.
Prizes courtesy of St Lucia Tourism Authority and Calabash Cove Resort & Spa.