Luxury cruise line Paul Gauguin Cruises has won a Travel + Leisure Social Media In Travel and Tourism (SMITTY) award for Best Single Social Media Promotion for its 'Meet Me in Tahiti' campaign. The award ceremony was held in Brooklyn, New York, on June 7, 2012. The campaign enabled users to take a five-minute virtual vacation by visiting MeetMeinTahiti.com. Users could select three Facebook friends to accompany them on their vacation. Participants created custom postcards and enjoyed activities such as kayaking, snorkeling, and relaxing on a private beach. The virtual vacationers also placed their postcards to Facebook directly from the site for all to see. Paul Gauguin teamed with Banyan Branch, a Seattle, Washington-based full-service social media agency, whose clients include FOX, Viacom, Paramount, Hartz, Univision, Gilt Groupe, and Microsoft.
