In 1956, a group of professional food, wine and travel writers founded The International Food Wine and Travel Writers Association (IFWTWA) in Paris to critique restaurants, wines and hotels in France. The IFW&TWA's headquarters was moved to the United States in 1981 and by 1991 had grown to include writers, authors, photographers and broadcasters (mostly domestic and several international). Our members cover a broad spectrum of travel destination attractions such as active and passive adventure activities, ecology, historical features, culture, fairs, festivals and special events. Some of our members' writing niches also include food and wine. 

The International Food Wine and Travel Writers Association (IFW&TWA) strives to be a gathering point and resource base for an active membership composed of professionals engaged in the food, wine and travel industries. The association's membership includes professionals in culinary arts and sciences, the wine growing and production industry, and in the hotel and hospitality management industries.

Strict Membership Standards

Our membership standards include a minimum of 10 published or other media travel articles per year. We enforce a code of professional conduct and periodically audit our more than 300 members. 

Coordinated Media Trips

The association organizes conferences, regional meetings, and press / media trips to provide members with story opportunities, information and contacts essential to a successful career in food, wine, and travel journalism.

Since 1994, we have held at least three media trips per year (usually several), out of which have come thousands of travel articles, photographs, and broadcasts to a wide range of outlets reaching millions of viewers, listeners, and readers.

The trips are typically done in coordination with visitors and convention bureaus, chambers of commerce, public relations agencies, and marketing and communications personnel of airlines, cruise lines, resorts, hotels, and restaurants. They facilitate story opportunities for our members, and they also facilitate access for our hosts to working qualified journalists with substantial outlets and mass circulation. 

We recently adopted a policy of forwarding clips resulting from our members' visits directly to hosts, relieving them of this collection task.