The Tribune

THE Domestic Tourist and the Bahama Out Islands Promotion Board (BOIPB) are teaming up to empower budding Bahamian travel writers with a new writing internship opportunity.

Ten writers from across the country will be selected to write for the BOIPB blog, which exclusively promotes the Family Islands, along with dozens of member hotels and travel service providers. The BOIPB launched the “Island Time” blog earlier this year, with Noelle Nicolls of The Domestic Tourist at the helm as managing editor.

“We want to find the young, talented writers, all across our islands that are looking for an opportunity to develop their talent, build their portfolios and gain exposure on an international travel platform. We want to build a network of writers who can help tell stories, create content and promote the Out Islands. The BOIPB blog provides first hand, insider perspectives on the experiences that define a Bahamas vacation,” said Ms Nicolls.

Ten writers will be selected to participate in the 12-month internship. Each writer will have an opportunity to be published on MyOutIslands.com with a byline. The website is seen by hundreds of thousands of visitors ever year. The top writers will have an opportunity to win various awards such as island-hopping press trips, scholarships for online travel writing courses and to attend international blogging conferences.

“The Bahamas is unlike any other tourist destination in the world. Here we have dozens of islands, each with their own unique offerings. How can a visitor know the difference between a vacation in Nassau and one in Cat Island, or between Long Island and Bimini?

“The writers who participate in our writing internship will help us to educate visitors and motivate them to visit the Out Islands,” said Kerry Fountain, BOIPB executive director.

“We want the blog to speak to the myriad of questions visitors tend to have when they choose to travel to the Bahamas and we want to give them an insider’s perspective on questions they might not even know to ask,” said Mr Fountain.

Interested writers are invited to apply by October 31 by submitting a letter of interest, a writing sample, and resume to writers@domestictourist.com. To be considered, writers must have a strong grasp of the English language; a passion for the Family Islands; an interest in island hopping; and they must be comfortable conducting interviews and online research.