For the second year running, the London office of the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA) has won the TTG Award for the UK's Tourist Board of the Year. This award is regarded as the most prestigious award in the UK travel industry and the highlight of the industry's calendar. It is held each year at London's renowned Lyceum Theatre by Travel Trade Gazette (TTG), the UK's leading trade weekly and the oldest travel industry publication in the world. No tourist board has won this award on consecutive years in recent history.

A robust judging process in two stages first saw 2,000 travel agents name their favourite tourism authority in order to decide on the shortlist. The authorities shortlisted then completed a thorough submission document, outlining their achievements and performance in the last 12 months, which was then judged by a panel of industry experts and leading agents. Malta won this prestigious award against fellow finalists Australia, Abu Dhabi, Mauritius, Ras Al Khaimah, South Africa, Tenerife, California and Barbados.

According to Travel Trade Gazette: "The Malta Tourism Authority impressed the judges with its diverse and unique marketing ideas, while demonstrating its strong relationship with multiple tour operators. It is also 'trail-blazing' in a number of areas such as LGBTI, and its growth figures were extremely impressive."

TTG's group editor Pippa Jacks said: "The TTG Travel Awards have earned a reputation for being the toughest awards to win in travel, so any company who takes home a trophy this year can be sure they really are the best-in-class."

MTA CEO Paul Bugeja, commenting on the success, said: "Winning this award once is already a great achievement in itself; winning it twice in a row, against such tough and formidable worldwide competition, is unprecedented, especially considering the limited resources that such a small island as ours can afford. This award is considered to be the ultimate accolade in the UK travel industry and is a wonderful testament to all the dedication and hard work of the MTA team in London, backed up by the excellent support provided from MTA's head office and the Tourism Ministry". He thanked all those involved in winning the highly prestigious award.

Tourism Minister Konrad Mizzi expressed pride in the fact that Malta is being represented in the best way possible by means of its offices abroad. He congratulated the Malta Tourism Authority and encouraged its workers to continue its excellent work.