Skip to main content
blooloop innovation awards

The Blooloop Innovation Awards 2021 presented with AREA15

We are delighted to announce the launch of the very first Blooloop Innovation Awards presented with AREA15. These annual awards will celebrate and highlight outstanding innovation in the visitor attractions business.

Blooloop is uniquely placed to draw together and identify innovation in the sector. blooloop.com is read worldwide by over 2 million attractions professionals a year. We have been leading the way reporting on the latest news, trends and developments in museums, theme parks, zoos and other attractions since 2005.

AREA15

We’re supported by our friends at AREA15 who are not only sponsoring these awards, but have created the AREA15 Rise Award with a top prize of $20,000 to be awarded to the most innovative entry, set to disrupt the attractions sector.

AREA15 is the world’s first purpose-built experiential entertainment district located minutes from the Las Vegas Strip. The complex is designed to be an imagination box and a place of wonder, where creativity and content flourish through best-in-class experiential entertainment companies such as Meow Wolf, Lost Spirits Distillery, Wink World, and Illuminarium.

The 2021 awards are now closed – next year’s open soon!

What are the Innovation Awards?

blooloop innovation awards

Companies within the attractions business have responded to the pandemic with incredible dynamism and imagination. These awards celebrate that spirit of innovation as we move forward.

Our judges, well-known thought leaders and industry experts, will be looking for the most innovative products and projects driving the future of the visitor experience.

The winners will be announced at our virtual blooloop V-Expo event, 4th-6th October 2021, online, live from AREA15.

Presented with AREA15

Winston Fisher, AREA15

AREA15 is thrilled to partner with Blooloop in launching the first-ever Blooloop Innovation Awards. The Blooloop newsletter is a must-read for our entire team every day; it is the go-to source of information for everything happening in the amusement and destination entertainment industry.

“This collaboration is rooted in a shared philosophy; to celebrate the projects shaping the future of visitor attractions and immersive experiences.

“Now more than ever, we all see a greater demand for immersive experiences, storytelling, and experiential entertainment to serve the innate human need for gathering to create meaningful and authentic connections.

“At AREA15, we are constantly asking what more can we do to enhance the visitor experience and create a more engaging environment for our guests to leave with lasting memories and transformative experiences. We’ve worked hard to develop and deliver these experiences to you, and it is now your turn to show the world the creative, innovative, ground-breaking projects you’ve dreamed up.

“The Blooloop Innovation Awards presented with AREA15 will hand the stage over to the ambitious, passionate individuals and companies leading the way to the future of immersive entertainment.

“Thank you to Charles and Rachel Read, and the entire Blooloop team for this opportunity. Let’s thrive together!

Winston Fisher, CEO , AREA15

What are we looking for?

We are looking for groundbreaking new projects, products, services and more that push the boundaries of what has been done before. We welcome entries from across the visitor attractions business worldwide.

From the design of the next generation of rides and attractions and the very latest exhibitions; to the creation of the transformative technologies and game-changing advances in sustainability, marketing and leadership, the Blooloop Innovation Awards will shine a spotlight on what the industry is doing and where it is going.

The Blooloop Innovation Awards Categories

  • Immersive – enthralling with a deeper, richer environment
  • Interactive – from the highest tech to the simplest human interaction
  • Storytelling – engaging with a compelling narrative theme or IP
  • Technology – tech-driven projects advancing the experience
  • Digital – improving the visitor journey and experience
  • Spectacular – experiences that lift the spirit
  • Places – innovation in the built environment
  • Splash – from water slides to aquaria
  • Inclusion – accessibility for all
  • Engagement – from viral social media campaigns to moving museum exhibits
  • Sustainability – reducing an attractions’ environmental impact
  • Thrills – getting pulses racing – from coasters to horror
  • Covid – innovations that help attractions re-open and stay open

What is the AREA15 Rise Award?

area15

Now more than ever, there is a deep desire for experiences, visual stimulation, and storytelling. AREA15 wants to celebrate and showcase the individuals or companies leading the way to innovate new forms of immersive entertainment and to foster the ideas disrupting the status quo of location-based entertainment.

AREA15 is offering cash prizes for the most disruptive innovations, across all categories:

1st Prize: $20,000

2nd Prize: $10,000

(Rules and restrictions apply)

Why enter the Blooloop Innovation Awards?

Why enter the blooloop Innovation Awards? Benefits of the award

There are many compelling reasons to enter your project or work for a blooloop award, including:

  • Raise your profile and showcase your work in front of the world’s biggest audience of attractions industry professionals.
  • All entries are seen by Blooloop’s editorial team and our expert judges.
  • All entries will have their own dedicated page in our Innovation Awards Gallery on blooloop.com.
  • Your entry will be included in our Innovation Showcase at blooloopLIVE in October.
  • Celebrate your work with your team and your clients. Leverage your award entry for marketing and to boost team morale.
  • Use your award to attract new business and new talent.
  • Be considered for the fantastic AREA15 Rise Award with a top prize of $20,000.

Judges

  • Steve Alcorn, CEO, Alcorn McBride
  • Jenefer Brown, Executive VP and Head of Lionsgate Global Live, Interactive and LBE
  • Brent Bushnell, Chairman and co-founder, Two Bit Circus
  • Charlotte Coates, Editor, Blooloop
  • Juliana Delaney, Chief Executive Officer, Continuum Attractions
  • Silvia Filippini Fantoni, Dep. Director, Learning & Engagement, Newark Museum of Art
  • Karen Fifield, Chief Executive, Wellington Zoo
  • Winston Fisher, CEO, Area15
  • PY Gerbeau, CE, The London Resort
  • Dominic Hare, Chief Executive Officer, Blenheim Palace
  • David Harland, Chief Executive Officer, Eden Project International
  • Shelby Honea, Show Producer, Universal Creative
  • Vince Kadlubek, Founder and Director, Meow Wolf
  • Bart Kresa, Founder/ Master Projection Designer, BARTKRESA Studio
  • Ike Kwon, COO and Head of Government Affairs, California Academy of Sciences
  • Chris Lange, Creative Director, Creative Studio Berlin
  • Rachel Mackay, Manager of Historic Royal Palaces, Kew
  • Alan Mahony, Director of Operations, Atlantis resort
  • Elizabeth Merritt, Founding Director, Center for the Future of Museums, AAM
  • Paul Moreton, Group Creative Director, Merlin Entertainments
  • Rachel Read, Director, Blooloop
  • David Rosenberg, VP Monterey Bay Aquarium, Chairman of the Board, IAAPA
  • Carolyn Royston, Chief Experience Officer, Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
  • Evi Sari, VP, Nickelodeon Experiences Asia
  • Theron Skees, Founder, The Designer’s Creative Studio
  • Steve Tatham, Executive Creative Director, Universal Creative
  • Keith Thomas, Managing Director, reefLIVE

How to enter the awards

The awards are now closed – next year’s open soon!

Entry is now open and closes on 12th September 2021. Winners will be announced at the blooloop V-Expo, 4th-6th October 2021.

Don’t miss out on our 40% off early bird pricing up until 5 September 2021. Entries must be submitted and paid for before midnight BST on 5 September 2021 to be eligible for the early bird price.

Blooloop clients receive a 20% discount on the entry price!

Each Innovation needs its own entry. The Deluxe Entry allows one Innovation to be considered under multiple categories.

Standard Entry | £500 or £300 early bird

  • Enter 1 award category
  • A dedicated page on blooloop.com to showcase your Innovation as part of the Innovation Awards Gallery, including a link, images and video
  • Innovation Showcase space at the blooloop V-Expo in October. This space will include images, links to web pages and videos, as well as information about the project for visitors to explore during the online event
  • 2 tickets to the blooloop V-Expo

***Standard entries to the Sustainability and Inclusion categories are FREE!***

Stand out from the crowd at blooloopLIVE with our Deluxe Entry | £1,500 or £900 early bird

Everything on the Standard entry PLUS:

  • Enter 3 award categories (total)
  • Promotion in an Innovation Newsletter and online feature before the blooloop V-Expo
  • Larger and more prominent Innovation Showcase at the blooloop V-Expo with data
  • Prominent listing in the blooloop V-Expo programme
  • A place at our Innovation Award roundtable discussion at the blooloop V-Expo
  • Live chat feature on your Innovation Showcase – use it to present, demo, tour and to talk to attendees
  • 10 tickets (total) to the blooloop V-Expo – invite your clients or team to our awards announcement and they can enjoy the whole conference too

The awards site includes lots of information and tips to help you fill in your entry. We also have a summary document below.

If you have further questions, please email Alice at events@blooloop.com.

Your web browser is out of date. Update your browser for more security, speed and the best experience on this site.

Find out how to update