Press Release: Travel Trade's "Little Black Book" is Unveiled

London, 24 Feb 09 - The 2009 edition of the British travel trade’s ‘little black book’ – the British Guild of Travel Writers’ Yearbook – has been unveiled at a launch party hosted by the InterContinental London Park Lane and the Netherlands Board of Tourism promoting the 60th anniversary of the Keukenhof Flower Gardens.

The event was celebrated by 250 of the UK’s top travel writers and photographers, travel PRs, tourist boards and tour operators on Monday.

BGTW Chairman Melissa Shales said that 2009 looked set to be a challenging year ahead and that the strong relationship between the travel trade and the BGTW’s specialist writers and photographers was today more valuable than ever: “There is virtually nowhere in the world that has not been covered by one of our members, virtually no publication – in print, on the airwaves or online, in the UK and, increasingly, abroad as well – in which our work is not represented on a regular basis,” she said.

Over the years, the BGTW Yearbook has become one of the most valuable tools in the British travel trade notably for anyone working in the public relations or journalism worlds. So what does it offer?

It’s not what you know but who you know – and it’s who you know who knows what… The Yearbook contains detailed biographies and contact information for all Guild members, around 270 of the UK’s top travel journalists, and a comprehensive directory of over 2,700 specialist PR companies, publications, broadcast media, tourist offices (both in the UK and worldwide), tour and transport operators and other useful companies and organisations operating in the UK travel & tourism industry. All self-respecting travel PRs and editors should have a copy on their desk.

The 2009 Yearbook (published Feb 2009) comes 'bundled' with a year's concurrent access (to Feb 2010) to the website which includes the Contact Book, a constantly updated and fully searchable version of the whole Yearbook, an Events Calendar for planning and viewing travel industry events, members' news and a host of other useful information.

The BGTW database, available online at bgtw.org, is updated throughout the year. If you have a change of address or contact names and numbers that you wish to be updated, please send the details of these to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

"It has earned the right to be called a 'Yearbook', since it would takea year to read it. This book has no rival when it comes to content and extent!"
Howard Salinger, Editor, TravMedia.com

“The PR’s definitive guide to the UK Media and freelance contributors, an easy to use on- and offline source of reference”
Alison Cryer, Managing Director, Representation Plus; Chairman, The Tourism Society

"The BGTW Year Book is one of the most useful 'little black books' in travel and will save you hours of time over the course of the year by giving you the means to contact most of the key people in this wide-ranging industry of ours."
Sue Ockwell, Managing Director of Travel PR and Spokesperson for the Association of Independent Tour Operators

"It's a must-have reference. The online version is fast and accurate, and the hard copy version is simply laid out and easy to use. It's an altogether essential tool."
David Prest, Co-producer, BBC Radio 4 Traveller’s Tree

“Over the years, it has grown into my most reliable source of information. For contacts and sources and specialists, it can't be equalled.”
John Carter, former BBC TV Holiday presenter

How to get Access

The cost of the Yearbook and access to the Guild website (renewable with each yearbook edition) is £95 plus postage & packing and VAT (chargeable on web access and the p&p).

You may order online at www.bgtw.org through a secure server at WorldPay using a credit/debit card (Mastercard, Visa, Visa Electron, Delta, Switch, JCB, Solo) or, if you prefer, be invoiced for payment by cheque. Contact the secretariat at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

With thanks to our launch sponsors:

The InterContinental London Park Lane.
Located in Mayfair, London’s plush playground, the hotel occupies one of the capital’s most prestigious locations – Number One Park Lane.
In 2006 the hotel underwent a stunning £76 million transformation and now offers 60 elegant designer suites, including four signature suites, the highly-reputed Spa InterContinental, the innovative Cookbook Cafe, exclusive Club InterContinental and award-winning restaurant Theo Randall at The InterContinental.

Keukenhof, Holland
For 60 years now, Keukenhof has been among the most beautiful places in the world, where spring bursts out in all of its colourful majesty. Here you can find inspiration and relaxation in a magnificent park environment. In addition to the millions of blooming flower bulbs and fantastic flower shows, Keukenhof has the largest sculpture garden in the Netherlands and is the most photographed spot in the world. Come visit Keukenhof and help celebrate its colourful 60th anniversary! Find out more by visiting its website at: www.keukenhof.nl

For further information, please contact:

Sarah Monaghan
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
tel: 07905-916610

Secretariat
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Tel: 01747-820455