I am honored to announce that our site, RealFoodTraveler.com received a Silver award for “Best Travel Website” from the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) at their Western Chapter annual meeting in June, 2024. This is the fourth time RFT has received a Best Travel Website nod from the venerable organization since the site’s founding. This is the first time the award has been given since I purchased the site in 2018.

Save this special announcement to Pinterest so you can see all the ways to interact with and benefit from RealFoodTraveler.com.

About the award:

The Society of American Travel Writers is a membership-based organization whose goal is “inspiring travel through responsible journalism.” You can learn more about the organization here.

RealFoodTraveler.com is a digital, culinary travel website providing information and inspiration for people to travel the world with an emphasis on encouraging them to experience local cuisine when they do. That includes places to dine; authentic recipes iconic to the region; the traditions and ingredients behind favorite dishes; places ingredients are sources; and the people behind the local culinary scene. Our belief is that, to really know a destination, you have to also know it’s foodie culture. Along the way, we provide helpful tips and direction for where to stay, things to do and where to go.

RealFoodTraveler.com takes you around the world to experience travel and local cuisine. Photo courtesy of Canva.com.

For this particular category, the judging was based on the following criteria for the panel of independent judges:

“While overall visual appeal, usefulness and navigational ease will be considered, writing excellence is key.”

While I must admit that I am proud of where I’ve taken RealFoodTraveler.com since purchasing the site (redesigning it, adding a stronger social media presence, starting a lively podcast and including my “Editor’s Picks” articles), I am also happy for, and appreciative of, my team of wonderful writers and photographers who contribute their culinary travel experiences to the site. And experiences they are because RealFoodTraveler.com doesn’t just report food and travel news; we bring personal explorations, insight, inspiration and been-there-done-that tips. It’s all to encourage our readers and podcast listeners to get out there and see how big, and yet how small, our globe is. Read more about what we’re about in this recent interview.

Thank you to my team of writers, the travel partners we’ve worked with, the destinations we’ve traveled to, our advertisers, podcast guests and behind-the-scenes team including our IT pros and podcast hosts who keep everything running. We are what we are because of all of you! And, of course, the greatest site in the world would be nothing without the people who read it. So, thank YOU, all of you Real Food Travelers!

Every destination puts their own spin on their local food. RealFoodTraveler.com takes readers there, exploring the destinations and their foodie scene. Photo courtesy of Canva.com.

Here are some of the ways you can connect with Real Food Traveler:

Learn more about how RealFoodTraveler.com got its start on our About page.

Subscribe to the site for free so that you never miss a new article or podcast, here. You’ll receive a really useful gift for doing so.

Listen in to our podcast conversations with culinary travel guests here and wherever you enjoy streaming podcasts including Spotify, iTunes, PocketCasts and many others.

Join the discussion every Wednesday when Real Food Traveler hosts the very popular #FoodTravelChat with a new topic every week. The chat lives on X but is also available on Facebook, Instagram and Threads.

Get social with us on Facebook, X, Instagram, Threads and Pinterest. There’s something new just about every day!

Thank you for reading and listening – and for traveling with us!

-Courtney Drake-McDonough, Publisher and Managing Editor of RealFoodTraveler.com