Oaxaca, Mexico - 17 September 2009

The votes for the 2009 Ecotourism Spotlight Award offered by Planeta.com have been counted, and the winner is Ecotourism Laos;

Other nominees for this year's award included Quito Visitors' Bureau, Responsible Tourism Guide to the Mekong and Failte Ireland.

The award was developed to create incentives for communication, opportunities for conversation and a reward for participation among government leaders working toward ecotourism and responsible travel. "While this is a competition, we encourage collaboration," said Planeta.com Director Ron Mader. "Learning from these leaders makes sense. All of these nominees are winners."

Thaviphet Oula, Deputy Director of the Lao National Tourism Administration’s Department of Planning and Cooperation said "We are very happy to have the honor of being awarded the 2009 Planeta Ecotourism Spotlight Award because of the recognition this award brings to our efforts to promote Lao PDR as a top ecotourism destination in Asia." Thanks to Planeta.com for establishing the Ecotourism Spotlight Award and a special thanks to everyone that supported Ecotourism Laos and the other great sites nominated this year."

2009 SNAPSHOT

Competition was strongest this year as many government sites have spent considerable time and resources improving their coverage of ecotourism and responsible travel.

Best practices include Failte Ireland's Ecotourism Handbook distribution to all 16,000 Irish tourism businesses and Quito's documentation of eco activities include eco bike rides. Web 2.0 is showcased on the Mekong guide. Ecotourism Laos has been revising its site and shows how any good website must be regularly updated to maintain its effectiveness.

ABOUT THE AWARD

Government websites that educate visitors about ecotourism and responsible travel options are eligible to win Planeta.com's annual Ecotourism Spotlight Award. The winner is announced in celebration of World Tourism Day (September 27) as way of spotlighting best practice in responsible travel and ecotourism.