TBCAsia 2016 is on the lookout for thought leaders, trend watchers, travel innovators and other experts in the world of travel to contribute their knowledge as a speaker at the Cinnamon Travel Bloggers Conference in June 2016, happen on the paradise island of Sri Lanka. If you have an inspiring story to share with some of the region’s top travel writers and industry experts, then we’d love to hear from you.

ABOUT CINNAMON TBCASIA 2016 

TBC Asia has been dubbed the event of a lifetime for travel bloggers and industry leaders alike as Cinnamon Hotels in partnership with the Professional Travel Bloggers Association and SriLankan Airlines deliver a one-of-a-kind itinerary combining experience with learning opportunities at every turn. It is also a platform to share ideas and create new ways in which to engage with travellers the world over, enticing them with the best that exotic Asia has to offer. Initiated in 2014, the conference will be coupled with the first ever Cinnamon Travel Blogger Awards in 2016.

WHO WILL ATTEND THE CONFERENCE?

60 of the Top Travel Bloggers from across the region will be in attendance at the conference; 30 of who are also recipients of Cinnamon Travel Blogger Awards. The audience will total 250 that will also include key tourism industry stakeholders in Sri Lanka.

WHAT ARE THE DATES & FORMAT OF THE CONFERENCE?

A pre-conference tour will begin on the 2^nd of June 2016 until 6^th of June. This will be followed by an all-day conference on the 7^th of June, followed by a gala dinner and the Cinnamon Travel Blogger Awards 2016.

The conference is structured to involve two parallel programmes; one for travel bloggers and one for industry leaders.

WHAT’S THE BIG IDEA?

As an industry, we want to encourage more people to travel – and the best way to that is to inspire them. This is why the core theme of the 2016 conference is “Inspiring Stories” – something to keep in mind when developing ideas for your talk.

YOUR ROLE & CONTRIBUTION

Should you be selected as a speaker for TBCAsia 2016, our requirements from you are as follows:

• Send us an email no later than 30^th March 2016 with the topics or ideas you propose to speak on along with any video links of previous talks, if available
• An inspiring 35 to 40 minute presentation on a topic of your expertise in relation to the conference’s main theme of ‘Inspiring Stories’
• Arrive in Sri Lanka no later than 6^th June 2016
• Be present at the speaker briefing to be held on the evening of 6^th June
• You may also be requested to participate in a panel discussion in addition to your own talk

WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU: 

• Return flights from any destination in Europe and Asia that SriLankan Airlines flies to and from
• A 5 day Pre-Conference tour of Sri Lanka, with 4 itineraries that you can choose from
• Full board accommodation, all domestic transport and excursions will on the house.
  Full Board accommodation for 2 nights in Colombo on the day and day prior to the conference
• Airport transfers.

CONTACT US:

Please email us with any further clarifications. You may have or to send us your speaker proposal for consideration –

Mevan Peiris
Assistant Manager,
Events & Social Media – Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts
Email: mevan@cinnamonhotels.com
Mobile: +94 77 815 6746

Dileep Mudadeniya
Head of Brand Marketing – Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts
Email: dileep@cinnamonhotels.com
Mobile: +94 71 534 4744

DOWNLOAD SPEAKER BRIEF

For more details on speaking at TBCAsia, please download our speaker pack here.

HURRY – A FEW SLOTS LEFT!

We have just a handful of hosted slots remaining for the conference so hurry and email us with your details!

We know we’ve taken some time, but that’s because all of you are awesome!

Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts together with SriLankan Airlines are gearing up to organize the Cinnamon Travel Blogger Awards as part of TBCasia 2016.

The Travel Bloggers Conference Asia- more commonly known as TBCasia, was initiated and conceptualized by Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts in collaboration with the Professional Travel Bloggers Association  (PTBA). In 2014, Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts together with Sri Lankan Airlines organized Asia’s first ever Travel Blogger Conference in Colombo Sri Lanka.

The second edition of TBCasia will be executed in June this year, but this time Cinnamon has integrated yet another component, namely Cinnamon Travel Blogger awards to recognize the contribution and role that travel bloggers play in the travel & tourism industry.

In the initial stage there was an overwhelming 700 applications for the awards, received from travel bloggers across the globe. This record number of applications is one of the highest ever documented for a travel blogger awards programme globally.

Preliminary screening was conducted using a series of statistical tools, equations for quantitative scoring and by meticulously analysing each proposal in order to evaluate them qualitatively as well.

100 applications were selected through this screening procedure and handed over to an independent judging panel for the final selection. An online judging portal was also created for the judges and the panel consisted of Mario Hardy – the Chief Executive Officer PATA; Jens Thraenhart – the Founder of Digital Innovation Asia (DIA); Jan Tissera – President – TravelClick International; Sally Davey – Founder Tripbod.com; Debbie Hindle – Managing Director – Four Communications and Dileep Mudadeniya – Head of Brand Marketing – Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts who played a moderator role in the judging process.

Once this was completed, 30 bloggers have now been selected and they will be hosted in Sri Lanka by Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts for TBCasia 2016!

“We were simply overwhelmed by the surge of applications that came in for the Cinnamon Travel Blogger Awards and the amazing quality of travel blogging that was evident across all participants. We conceptualized this event as a second phase to the very successful TBCasia held in 2014, to attract the best bloggers to our destination and thereby showcase the best of Sri Lanka to a global audience.” said Dileep Mudadeniya, Head of Brand Marketing, Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts.

“The PTBA is thrilled to be partnering with Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts to reward the best travel bloggers and travel blogging content out there with the Cinnamon Travel Blogger awards. Over the last few years, it’s been wonderful to see travel blogging transition from being a niche hobby to a professional career, and providing the industry and bloggers with education on how to work better together. Travel bloggers today are seen as trusted influencers by their readers, who often number in the hundreds of thousands. It’s about time that they were recognized with their own award!” said Laurence Norah, President of the Professional Travel Bloggers Association (PTBA).

Apart from the 30 nominations, Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts will select a further 30 more bloggers to be hosted as a part of TBCasia 2016 and the Pre-Conference Tour. Apply now to be a tour participant at http://www.tbcasia.com/tour-participant-apply.php

The 30 nominated bloggers have been listed below. See you in Sri Lanka!

Following the extremely successful First Ever Travel Bloggers Conference in Asia by Cinnamon, the next phase announced at ITB, Berlin!

Last year Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts successfully organised the First Ever Travel Bloggers Conference in Asia – TBCasia 2014, in association with the Professional Travel Bloggers Association (PTBA).

In November 2014, 50 Top Travel Bloggers from around the world were flown in courtesy of the National Carrier – SriLankan Airlines and hosted at Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts for a three day tour. Thereafter the Conference which was organized for the benefit of the entire Sri Lankan Travel & Hospitality Industry featuring Global experts in Travel, Digital Media and Tourism as speakers, was held at Cinnamon Lakeside Colombo.

“With the enormous response and exposure for Cinnamon and Sri Lanka that is still flowing through Social Media and popular Travel Blogs, it was an obvious decision to have another installment of TBCasia. However we wanted to see how we can elevate this edition to maximize on the novel concept. Hence, we plan on hosting more travel bloggers at TBCasia 2016 and in addition we will also be pioneering the most comprehensive Travel Blogger Awards to recognize the contribution that bloggers make to creating awareness on travel and destinations” commented Dileep Mudadeniya – Head of Brand Marketing for Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts.

Dileep together with the President of the PTBA Craig Martin officially announced TBCasia 2016 and Cinnamon Travel Blogger Awards which is to be held in Sri Lanka in April 2016 at ITB Berlin – the leading Travel Fair underway currently in Germany.

The PTBA commended last year’s conference stating that; “It was an absolute success and the feed-back we have got from the bloggers as well as industry experts has been overwhelming. We cannot wait for TBCasia 2016 which we are sure will be even bigger and better than the last. The introduction of the Cinnamon Travel Blogger Awards is also a landmark step towards recognizing the importance of Travel Bloggers and their contribution to the industry”.

I will be brief. It is 2AM and only 4 hours away of our wake up call. And, just in case you haven’t been here before, I am NOT a morning person so it won’t be easy to wake up. At all.

Anyway, here is my particular chronicle of these two first days at TBCAsia – the first Travel Bloggers Conference in Asia! – which is being held in Sri Lanka at the moment. Lucky me, I got to come 2 weeks in advance and explore a bit of the West and South coasts as well as the central part of the island on my own. But finally yesterday that changed, and since then, I am moving around with other 50 international travel bloggers. FUN!

Based in Habarana, we have been exploring the area for the last day and a half. Have a look at my highlights of the North Central Province.

Witnessing ‘The Gathering’ at Kaudulla National Park, where wild elephants socialize daily metres away from your safari jeep.

Going all the way to the top of Sigiriya Rock Fortress. Well worth climbing more than one thousand steps!

Enjoying sunset at Polonnaruwa, the royal ancient city of Polonnaru District, among picture perfect landscapes and Unesco’s World Heritage monuments. 

Enjoying sunset at Polonnaruwa, the royal ancient city of Polonnaru District, among picture perfect landscapes and Unesco’s World Heritage monuments.