Battle Begins As Voting Opens For Europe’s Number One Island

We’re being urged to get behind the Isle of Wight in a bid to win the title of ‘most desirable island’ in a prestigious travel magazine.

Wanderlust, widely recognised as the one of the most widely read travel magazines in the UK and with a huge global online following, has included the Isle of Wight in the 2024 Wanderlust Reader Travel Awards category of ‘Most desirable island in Europe’.

It is the first time that the Isle of Wight has been nominated in the highly-respected Wanderlust Awards.

Over 100 000 votes are expected to be cast in the competition, which means that every vote for the Isle of Wight is crucial.

Voting in the competition is online and will be open until 18 October.

Those who take the time to enter may also be eligible to win 1 of 8 incredible prizes worth over £70,000, including a 10-day Vietnam tour plus flights for two, an 8-day Yukon Northern Lights Adventure for two and a 4-night holiday for 2 to Puglia, including flights.

Other categories include most desirable cities, regions, countries (Europe & rest of the world), emerging destinations, and top destinations for adventure, culture & heritage, nature & wildlife, gastronomy, and sustainable travel.

The Isle of Wight is up against some stiff competition from 23 destinations in the category of ‘most desirable island in Europe’, including Orkney, Tenerife and Jersey.

Explaining what the win would mean for the Isle of Wight, Visit Isle of Wight Marketing Manager Lou Collins said:

"A win in the Wanderlust Reader Awards would be a fantastic opportunity to continue to raise the profile of the Isle of Wight to readers of one of the most important travel publications in the UK and across the world.

"I really hope that devotees of the Isle of Wight will get behind the Island and help us get to the number one spot in this amazing competition – and who knows, somebody reading this and goes on to vote might even win one of those fabulous prizes!"

To vote for the Isle of Wight in the 2024 Wanderlust Readers competition.