Image: Renato Ganieri
Enter the National Geographic Traveller (UK) Photography Competition 2025
The National Geographic Traveller (UK) Photography Competition is once again open for entries — and we’re after your most spectacular shots from the past year. To be in with a chance of having your work published in the magazine, submit your images in up to six categories, from people and places to food and wildlife. Judged by industry-leading photographers and editors, the competition is your opportunity to be noticed and win a great prize.
THE CATEGORIES
People
More often than not, it’s the people you encounter that make a trip — but it can be difficult capturing the character of someone you’ve only just met. Have you managed it?
City life
Labyrinthine souks, striking architecture, edgy street art — life in cities takes on many forms. Finding your subject amid the hubbub is the key to urban photography.
Landscape
Shooting a landscape might seem easy, but few can really draw out the defining features. Can you identify intriguing contrasts, or show a level of detail that others can’t see?
Wildlife
Wildlife is one of the great wonders of travel. Spotting creatures in their natural habitat can be about luck — capturing them with your camera is not.
Food
Whether it’s a local farmer bringing in the harvest or chefs hard at work in a street kitchen, this category celebrates every stage of the culinary journey from field to fork.
Portfolio
The portfolio category demands more than a single stunning photograph — up to 10 images should combine to tell a multifaceted yet cohesive story of a destination, whether it fits into one of the other categories or encompasses them all.
THE PRIZE
The Grand Prize winner will receive a luxury three-night escape to a UK hotel of their choice, courtesy of Small Luxury Hotels of the World (SLH). With over 600 hotels in 90 destinations, including 36 in the UK, SLH offers boutique stays with a strong sense of place, from chic city-centre hotels to rustic fishermen’s huts. The prize also includes the SLH Book, a limited-edition coffeetable book featuring the brand’s beautifully curated portfolio. Packed with inspiring travel stories, it utilises paper from responsibly managed forests, vegetable-based bio inks and fabrics made from upcycled ocean plastics.
During their stay, the winner will have the opportunity to sign up to the SLH Club, a complimentary loyalty programme designed to reward guests for every night they spend at a SLH property. Members can enjoy a range of perks, including bespoke travel tips, flexible check-ins and check-outs and access to Club Rate savings.
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Terms & conditions
By participating in any promotion, entrants are deemed to have accepted these rules and the specific directions/terms and conditions applicable to the relevant promotion, as well as any terms and conditions pertaining to a relevant third party.
The Promoter
The Promoter is APL Media Limited, Highgate Studios, 53-79 Highgate Road, London NW5 1TL.
The Prizes
There will be one overall grand prize winner, and 5 category winners.
The winners' images will be published in National Geographic Traveller (UK) magazine.
Grand Prize
The Grand Prize winner, from the six categories, will receive a luxury three-night stay to a UK hotel of their choice from the Small Luxury Hotels of the World (SLH) portfolio. The prize includes the SLH Book, a limited-edition coffee-table book featuring the brand’s beautifully curated portfolio.
The prize includes a three-night stay in a standard double room accommodation only based on two people sharing.
It is always subject to availability; (i.e. at the hotel’s discretion, and availability may differ from what shows online. If a booking is requested during the hotel’s peak period, or their annual complimentary room night allocation has already been confirmed, they are entitled to deny confirmation).
The complimentary room night(s) can only be used with new bookings and therefore cannot be used in conjunction with an existing booking at an SLH Hotel.
General online availability and hotel availability for claiming complimentary room night(s) may differ; the availability of the latter will prevail.
A maximum of three (3) room nights can be requested per hotel, per stay, (applies only to complimentary room night offers for three nights or more). Room nights can be split across two hotels on different dates, and this may be required during peak periods. Prizes may not be combined to create prizes of longer duration.
A minimum of three (3) weeks’ notice must be given.
The complimentary room night(s) are valid for 12 months from the date of the event.
All reservation requests must be made in writing only to the UK office for the attention of Katrin Holtkott here.
Complimentary room night(s) are non-flexible and once confirmed by SLH, no alterations or cancellations can be made. In case of alteration or cancellation, you will forfeit the room night(s).
Benefits associated with SLH’s loyalty programme, SLH Club, cannot be redeemed in conjunction with this offer.
Guests who choose to utilise their room night(s) at an all-inclusive SLH hotel will incur an additional charge, which will vary depending on the property selected.
No monetary value can be given in exchange for a complimentary night(s).
The complimentary night(s) cannot be transferred.
The prize excludes: travel insurance; travel between the prize winner’s home and their selected hotel; personal spending money; tips; or any food, drink or activities not mentioned in the prize description. Any additional taxes, costs and expenses incurred during the trip will be the responsibility of the prize winner.
There’s no cash prize; no alternative will be offered.
The promoter shall not be liable in any way for any failure, liability or breach by any third party in connection with this competition accepts no responsibility for any loss, property damage or personal injury suffered by the winner relating to this competition, except in the case of death or personal injury caused by the promoter’s negligence or fraudulent misrepresentation and, so far as permitted by law, the promoter and its associated companies and agents exclude responsibility and all liabilities arising for reasons beyond its control, including any act or default of any third-party supplier.
Entries
To enter the Photography Competition, entrants must submit their photographs using the entry form available here.
Only online entries will be accepted.
The competition closes at 23.59 GMT on 28 February 2025. All entries must be received before this time. Entrants may enter each category once, making for a total of six entries.
Entrants may submit a photograph in one of the following categories: Food around the world, Landscapes, People, Portfolio, City life, and Wildlife.
Photographic entries must be under 10MB and .jpg format. All submissions must be the entrant’s own work, and they must own the copyright to any photographs entered.
Photographs must have been taken within two years of the date of entry and may not previously have won an award in any National Geographic photography contest. Only minor burning, dodging and/or colour correction is acceptable, as is cropping.
Where a person is the main focus of the image, entrants must ensure they have either a model release form or the permission of the subject to enter their image into this competition. This applies only where the person featured is the main focus of the image, and not to street photography. The promoter reserves the right to request this and disqualify any entrants who can’t show proof of permission, if requested.
The winner will be notified by email within 90 days of the competition closing. The winner will be contacted using the email address provided at the time of entry. Once notified, the winner must reply within 10 days. If the selected winner is unreachable, ineligible, disqualified or fails to reply within 10 days of notification being sent by the promoter, the promoter reserves the right to choose a new winner.
The judging process
The head judge is Becky Redman, art director of National Geographic Traveller (UK).
All entries will be moderated by the art director, who’ll compile a shortlist of top entries in each category.
The National Geographic Traveller (UK) team will send the shortlist of entries to each independent judge. The independent judges will in turn select their three top entries for each of the six categories. The art director will then collate the judges’ votes to determine the winners.
There will be one winner from each of the six categories. Five category winners will be selected as runners-up. One category winner will be selected as the grand prize winner and will receive the grand prize. The grand prize winner may be selected from any category.
Winners will be notified by email by 03 June 2025. Decisions of the judges are final and binding.
The promoter’s decision in this competition is final and legally binding and no correspondence will be entered into.
Entrants
Entrants must reside in the UK or Ireland and be aged 18 or over.
Employees and agents of APL Media Limited (APL) or any company connected with the production or distribution of a promotion or any of their associated companies are not eligible to take part in the applicable promotion, nor are their relatives or members of their families or households.
Entrants can enter the competition only as specified in these terms and conditions.
The winner may be required to provide the promoter with proof of identity before receipt of any prize. The form of proof of identity required will be at the sole discretion of the promoter. Failure to produce sufficient evidence as to identity may result in disqualification.
No entries from agents, third parties, organised groups or entries automatically generated by computer will be accepted. No incomplete, illegible or corrupted entries will be accepted. Failure to comply with any of these terms and conditions (including instructions) will disqualify any entrant from taking part in the competition and the entry will be invalid. The promoter retains sole discretion to refuse entrants the right to enter if it feels that these terms and conditions aren’t being complied with or for any valid and justifiable reason.
The promoter reserves the right to disqualify any entrant and/or winner and/or amend these terms and conditions at any time in its absolute discretion.
Competition
No purchase is necessary for entry in the competition.
Any entry made giving another person’s (or a false) name or other dishonest information will be disqualified.
Copyright, publicity and personal data
Publicity may be given to the shortlisted and winning entries. By entering this Prize Promotion, each of the entrants agree to the use of their name and entry without compensation, for the Promoter’s promotional and marketing purposes.
Entrants also agree to allow National Geographic Partners and National Geographic Traveller (UK) to publish their photos in the magazine, on National Geographic websites worldwide and on the National Geographic Traveller (UK) social media channels. The winning entries may also be used by National Geographic Traveller (UK) and the competition sponsors in marketing material relating to the competition for up to two years. Winners must co-operate fully for publicity purposes if so required. Entrants must own the copyright to any photographs entered. Entrants will retain copyright to the photographs.
All personal data submitted by an entrant in connection with this competition is submitted voluntarily. All personal data collected from entrants will be used by the promoter for the purpose of administering the competition, and by entering this competition, entrants consent to the promoter using this information to contact them in respect of the prize.
Entrants may consent to receiving National Geographic Traveller (UK) email newsletters containing the latest travel features, events, competitions and offers by ticking the relevant box on the entry form.
If, at a later stage, an entrant wishes to withdraw their consent to receive such materials, please select the ‘unsubscribe’ link, which can be found on the National Geographic Traveller (UK) newsletters. Further information about how the information gathered will be held is available from the promoter’s privacy policy.
Entrants may also consent to receiving direct marketing communications from National Geographic partners and/or the prize providers by ticking the relevant boxes on the entry form. If entrants consent to such marketing, their information will be processed in accordance with the privacy policies specified with the relevant tick box on the entry form.
Entrants are under no obligation to consent to emails or direct marketing material and this in no way affects entrants’ eligibility to still enter the competition.
By entering into this competition, entrants consent to their personal data being passed outside the EU for the purposes of processing and storing on the promoter’s servers for the purpose of administering the competition.
Miscellaneous
An entrant indemnifies the promoter, its agents, employees, representatives, associates, affiliates, parent and subsidiary companies against any and all claim, losses, costs, damages, liability and expenses arising out of the entrant’s breach of any of these terms and conditions.
By entering this competition each entrant expressly releases the promoter, its affiliates, agents, employees and directors from any claim, action or demand arising out of or in connection with the competition or their prize, if any.
The promoter reserves the right to modify these rules, suspend or discontinue the competition at any time, including without limitation where it’s deemed necessary to do so due to circumstances beyond its reasonable control or if it can’t be guaranteed that the competition can be carried out correctly for technical or legal reasons or if the promoter suspects that any person has been manipulating the administration of the competition or has acted unethically in any other way.
The determination and decision of the publishers and the promoter on all matters shall be final and no correspondence will be entered into.
The laws of England and Wales govern these terms and conditions.