Key Notes
- The 12th annual Travvy Awards took place on November 5 at the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center.
- Jackie Friedman and Alex Sharpe received Hall of Fame honors, while Vicki Freed received the Champion of Women in Travel Award.
- Travel advisors selected supplier and destination winners, with a complete category list absent from the initial ceremony report.
The 2026 Travvy Awards brought the travel industry to Fort Lauderdale on November 5, with special honors for Nexion Travel Group President Jackie Friedman, Signature Travel Network CEO Alex Sharpe and Royal Caribbean executive Vicki Freed.
The 12th annual ceremony took place at the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center. Organized by Northstar Travel Group’s TravelPulse and AGENTatHOME, the awards recognize airlines, cruise lines, hotels, destinations, tour operators and other suppliers through votes cast by travel advisors.
Three Leaders Receive Special Recognition
The organizers’ gala report confirmed two Hall of Fame recipients and a separate award recognizing women’s leadership in travel:
- Jackie Friedman: the Nexion Travel Group president received a Hall of Fame Award.
- Alex Sharpe: the Signature Travel Network CEO also received a Hall of Fame Award.
- Vicki Freed: the senior vice president at Royal Caribbean, part of Royal Caribbean Group, received the Champion of Women in Travel Award.
Globus family of brands presented the Hall of Fame honors, while Global Travel Collection presented the award to Freed. These individual honors sit alongside the wider supplier and destination categories.
How the Travvy Awards Are Chosen
TravelPulse and AGENTatHOME’s editorial teams developed the 2026 ballot, with travel advisors making the final selections. Voting opened in June, and the organizers said this year’s changes included new categories and a greater focus on brands.
The awards program is therefore a professional travel-advisor vote. That distinction matters when comparing the Travvys with a consumer poll or a ranking based on inspection scores: each measures a different kind of experience.
What the Results Mean for Travelers
For someone choosing a holiday, an award can help identify a brand or destination worth considering. The specific category is more useful than an award logo alone: recognition for an overall brand does not describe every hotel, ship, cabin or itinerary it sells.
Our coverage of the 2025 resort winners shows how the results can be narrowed to one type of trip. This year’s awards should be read in the same way, alongside the actual property, travel dates, fare inclusions and recent guest feedback.
The initial ceremony report names the special honorees but does not provide a complete category-by-category winners list. The organizers say winners will receive further coverage in AGENTatHOME and TravelPulse. Sponsors named in the gala announcement should not be treated as category winners unless a result explicitly identifies them.
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