The 2008 Green Spaces Travel awards

Tag : travel cap


I’d say something along the lines of a memorable break and along-lasting halo of acute smugness that destroys the argumentabout green holidays being insufferably worthy or intolerablyexpensive.

So thank you Andreea Petre-Goncalves, who visits Mas Perangel everyyear and who nominated the cottage for our 2008 awards. “Tome, it is the wildest, most unspoilt and most breathtakinglybeautiful place,” she says.

When The Times launched the Green Spaces challenge in April, thiswas the kind of nomination we hoped for: passionate, informativeand challenging.

The awards were deliberately left open-ended to ensure inclusivity,which has ensured diversity and entertainment.

You told us about The Ecolodge in Lincolnshire , with a windmill for power and recycled beer pumps which pumprainwater into the tank for showers. And we heard about the Titanic Spa in Yorkshire , which alongside fluffy towels and treatments has its own boreholefor drinking water as well as provide for the pool and showers.

One of our judges, Anna Shepard, succinctly says: “What Ilike about Titanic is that nobody is shouting about the spa's goodgreen behaviour; it is quietly getting on with it.”

You also got on with it and voted for London parks and caravansites; US trails, Latin wildlife centres and African lodges. Anumber of British landmarks feature, from Golden Cap in Dorset toSolway Firth, where Mick and Pauline Greenwood “sat in a hideand watched a hare run past and heard the wild geese flyoverhead.” Lovely stuff.

I’d love to visit Breakwater Country Park, Anglesey, afterGillian Oakes made an impassioned nomination, citing puffins,falcons and the cliff path around South Stack. While in northWales, I’d call in for a pub lunch at Porthdinllaen, afishing village, and walk the Lleyn peninsula, a headland alreadyknown to another of our judges, Richard Hammond, as “a wildand rugged north coast.”

In our June nominations , Richard and Anna enthuse about more green spaces, in Cornwall andMozambique, while Toby Sawday bangs the drum for the Eden Project– the “stuff of dreams.”

We now think it helpful to start drawing up categories based onyour nominations, which form the basis for the awards to bepresented at the end of the year.

This is what we’ve come up with, and where your nominationsto date would live:

BRITAIN

1 Best place to stay (eg the Ecolodge)

2 Best open space (eg Golden Cap, Breakwater Country Park)

3 Best project (eg Eden Centre)

EUROPE

4 Best place to stay (eg Mas Perangel, France)

5 Best open space (eg Danube delta)

WORLDWIDE

6 Best place to stay (eg Napo Wildlife Centre and Lodge, Ecuador)

7 Best open space (eg Kosi Bay, Mozambique)

We still welcome nominations from all sources, and if othercategories suggest themselves, we will add them at a later date.

Keep your suggestions coming - you have until September 1 tonominate, so report on your quality breaks this summer - and sendus photos.

To reward your enthusiasm, we've teamed up with Railbookers.com to give away a train holiday for two to Venice : all nominators go into a hat and a winner will be picked atrandom.

Green holidays, pah? Not judging from your recommendations so far -there's a world of difference out there.

Nominate your own online at Greenspaces@thetimes.co.uk . The awards have a local bias (to ration those carbon footprints alittle) but extend across the world.

The nominations featured in The Times and Times Online each monthwin a copy of Alastair Sawday's Green Places to Stay . We'll put the places on the longlist to the test towards the endof the year.

THE IMPORTANT BITS

You are invited to nominate a favourite Green Space that you haveencountered on holiday in the UK or abroad.

This could be any place that has impressed you with itsenvironmental and social credentials, such as a hotel or villa, apark, a beach, a city, an area of natural beauty, a restaurant, abar, a method of transport, a tour or holiday.

Your nomination can be anywhere in the world, but we are especiallyinterested to hear about UK destinations.

Your Green Space nomination should practise sound environmentalpolicies, help to care for and preserve local wildlife or givesomething back to the local community. We are also interested tohear about individuals in travel who are making a difference inthese ways.

Tell us, in no more than 250 words, about the place or person whoyou would like to nominate for our Green Spaces Travel Awards, andtell us where you live.

Nominations are open until September 1 - so you've plenty of timeto discover a Green Space this summer. Please do send a photo toback up your nomination - it's always helpful to visualise yourpassion.

If you would like to be entered for the monthly prize draw for acopy of Sawdays Special Places to Stay, please ensure to provideyour full name, address and contact details.

Remember! Email your entries to Greenspaces@thetimes.co.uk

LEGAL BITS

1. Closing date for nominations is midnight September 1, 2008.

2. Unless otherwise stated, the nominations and prize draws areopen to all residents of the UK and ROI aged 18 or over, exceptemployees of Times Newspapers Limited (“TNL”),Railbookers and their associated, affiliated or subsidiarycompanies, and their families, agents, or anyone connected withthis competition, including the third party promotional partners.

3. A person may nominate more than once but each nomination must bedifferent. Entrants may nominate a favourite Green Space from anylocation in the world. Entrants may not nominate any organisationin which they have a financial or family interest. The Green Spacenominee should practise sound environmental policies, help to carefor and preserve local wildlife or give something back to the localcommunity or may be an individual in travel who is making adifference by embracing these principles. Nominations should bemade using no more than 250 words detailing the place or person theentrant wishes to nominate. By nominating, entrants agree to allowthe free use of their names, material/comments submitted andgeneral locations in connection with the awards. TNL reserves theright to publish all or parts of an entrant’s comments attheir sole discretion.

4. TNL reserves the right to reject any nomination in its solediscretion. By submitting a nomination entrants agree that TNL mayedit and publish nominations in its sole discretion. Publicationdoes not mean a nomination has been shortlisted.

5. Nominations will be judged by TNL’s panel of experts. Eachmonth independent judges Anna Shepard, Toby Sawday and RichardHammond will select their favourites based on the nominationcriteria. The final winner(s) will be selected by the independentjudges plus Kathleen Wyatt, Travel Editor, The Times, Steve Keenan,Online Travel Editor and Kate Quill, Assistant Travel Editor, TheTimes. The final shortlist and all awards will be at TNL’sdiscretion, following consultation with all judges and nocorrespondence will be entered into regarding the awards.

6. The winner of the prize draw is responsible for ensuring theyare able to accept the prize as set out and in accordance withthese terms and conditions, in the event they are unable to do sothen the TNL reserves the right to redraw the prize.

7. Entry is free but entrants should be aware that they may besubject to local call charges depending on their own individualarrangements for Internet access.

8. An eligible entrant must be an individual and must submit anomination in the form provided by TNL under this promotionincluding their name, address and e-mail address.

9. By entering, all eligible entrants agree to abide by each andall these terms and conditions. TNL reserves the right, with orwithout cause, to exclude entrants and withhold prizes forviolating any of these terms and conditions. TNL reserves the rightto amend these terms and conditions. Any amendments will bepublished on the Website.

10. There are monthly prizes and one overall prize. The monthlyprizes will be awarded to any entrant whose nomination is featuredin the Times and/or the Timesonline. The overall winner will bedrawn at random from all valid nominations received by the closingdate. The overall prize winner will be notified by email withintwenty eight (28) days from the draw date. All reasonableendeavours will be made to contact the winner during this time. Ifa winner cannot be contacted or is not available, TNL reserves theright to re-draw another winner from the correct entries which werereceived before the closing date.

11. Monthly Prize: Each month entrants whose nomination for theGreen Spaces awards is featured in the Times or Timesonline willwin a copy of Alastair Sawday’s Green Places to Stay.Entrants will only be eligible to win one copy of the book.

12. Overall Prize: The overall prize is a 5 night trip for twoadults to Venice by train, travelling via Zurich and Turin with aone night stop in each city. The prize includes return LeisureSelect (First Class) Eurostar travel and onward First Class returntrain travel for two people with 3 nights 4* accommodation inVenice and 1 night in Zurich on the outward journey and 1 night inTurin on the return, for two people sharing a double or twin room(winner’s choice), including breakfast. The prize must betaken between January – March 2009 (except during VeniceCarnival 13- 24 February 2009) and cannot be used for staysincluding Bank Holidays and Trade Show dates. Once notified thewinner must contact Railbookers to book their trip within 30 days.The winner's travel and hotel accommodation is subject toavailability.

The winner is responsible for all costs and expenses not set out inthese terms and conditions and for ensuring they and their guesthave all necessary documents including valid passports, visas(where applicable) and travel insurance.

13. There is no cash or other alternative to the prize stated andthe prize is not transferable and no part or parts of the prize maybe substituted for other benefits, items or additions.

14. The winner may be required to submit valid identificationbefore receiving their prize.

15. The judge's decision is final and binding on the entrants. Nocorrespondence will be entered into.

16. TNL will not be liable for technical, hardware, or softwarefailures of any kind or lost or unavailable network connectionswhich may limit or prohibit an eligible entrant's ability toparticipate in the competition. Other than death or personal injuryarising from the acts or omissions of TNL, or their employees, TNLwill not be liable for any loss or damage arising out of the winneror their guest’s enjoyment of the prize

17. By entering, any subsequent prize winners agree to allow thefree use of their names, photographs and general locations forpublicity and news purposes during this and future promotions byTNL or any associated or subsidiary company of News InternationalLimited.

18. Uses of personal data received by TNL in the course of thepromotion are subject to the privacy policy found on the Website.Winners' names may be published on the Website.

19. Completion and submission of a registration slip or e-mail willbe deemed acceptance of these terms and conditions.

20. TNL reserves the right at any time to cancel, modify orsupersede the competition (including altering prizes) if, in theirsole discretion, a competition is not capable for being conductedas specified. TNL reserves the right to substitute a prize of equalvalue in the event that circumstances beyond their control makethis unavoidable.

21. The promoter of this prize draw is Times Newspapers Limited(address below)

22. For a list of winners, please send a stamped envelope to TimesNewspapers Limited Competitions Department, 1 Virginia Street,London E98 1RL, stating for which competition you would likewinners’ details.

23. Terms and Conditions printed in The Times/The Sunday Timesnewspaper or on Times Online form a part of these terms andconditions.