APL Media is celebrating its 25th anniversary this month. Over the years, our team has grown from strength to strength, working with some of the leading names in travel. Since its launch in 1997 with ABTA, APL Media has published hundreds of magazines and worked on an enormous amount of digital content.

Here we take a trip down memory lane and explore how APL Media made it to this landmark anniversary by revisiting 10 of our many highlights:

1997:   APL Media Limited launches as Absolute Publishing Limited (APL), producing a glossy monthly travel trade title, ABTA Magazine, with its founding client, ABTA.  

2006:    Trade title ASTA Network, a quarterly business magazine for ASTA, the US travel association, is launched. The relationship with the brand has developed over the years and APL Media now publishes the ASTA Worldwide Destination Guide, a country-by-country directory packed full of useful information.

2010:   APL Media launches National Geographic Traveller (UK) in 2010, building on the National Geographic brand with a standalone magazine for the UK, published six times a year. A website and iPad edition quickly follow. The magazine has since increased in frequency to 10 issues a year.

2011:   The APL Media direct response unit distributes print promotional newspaper supplements with the Mail on Sunday and, later, The Guardian. The division has continued to grow and now works with more titles, including The Telegraph and the Evening Standard.

2015:   APL media launches the Travel Media Awards, in collaboration with Travega, to celebrate the very best of the travel sector. Open to all travel writers, broadcasters and photographers, the Awards has since become a true barometer of the travel media sector.

2017:   Postcards, an award-winning custom travel magazine published four times per year, launches, exclusively for Travel Leaders Network. The 68-page perfect-bound magazine is sent to 170,000 customers and delivers exciting editorial about the latest popular destinations and unique travel experiences.

2018:  National Geographic Traveller Food hits the newsstand for the first time. The magazine is packed with authentic travel and food experiences, alongside vivid photography, and insights and tips to inspire would-be explorers to travel widely, ethically and safely.

The first issue of Travel Trends is also published: Travel Trends Latin America, in association with LATA, the Latin American Travel Association. Combining the latest industry analysis from experts and experienced travel writers, every issue of Travel Trends is accompanied by inspirational photography, as well as an A-Z travel directory that highlights the best places to explore and stay around the world.

2020:   APL Media launches its digital newspaper division, creating native content for a range of titles, including the Daily Express, The Independent, The Week and City AM, all tailor-made for each publisher’s distinctive tone and audience.

2021:   Living360 launches to serve as a guide to modern life in the UK and around the world, keeping readers up to date with health and fitness, food and drink, homes and gardens, beauty, travel, finance and all the latest lifestyle trends and seasonal celebrations.

So, whether you’re a client or consumer, thank you for being a part of our journey and here’s to the next 25 years of APL!