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24 Incredible Travel Photos Recognized By The Artist Gallery In Its 2026 Contest
Travel photography can take many forms. Sometimes it’s about standing before a landscape that looks almost unreal, while other times, the most memorable image comes from an ordinary street, a local tradition, or a fleeting interaction that could easily have gone unnoticed. The Travel category of The Artist Gallery’s 2026 photography competition brings together exactly that kind of variety.
Over the past few months, we’ve already explored several other categories from The Artist Gallery’s competition here on Bored Panda, including the striking entries recognized in the Wildlife and Minimalist contests. While those collections challenged photographers to focus on particular subjects or visual approaches, the Travel category leaves plenty of room for both, bringing landscapes, wildlife, architecture, street photography, and human stories together under one broad theme.
Scroll down to explore the collection, and don’t forget to upvote the images that make you want to pack a bag and see the world for yourself.
More info: theartistgallery.art | Instagram | Facebook
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#1
“Fleeting Moment” By Andy Marty
1st Place Winner in the Travel Category
Description: “Nature sculpted the arch over time; the passage beneath it lasted only moments. In Greenland's Disko Bay, a lone sailing vessel glides through the window in an iceberg, offering a fleeting sense of scale against a landscape shaped by time, ice and an ever-changing Arctic.”
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#2
“Standing Against The Sea” By Bill Wilkins
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “Port of Cassis, located just southeast of Marseille. My photo shows the Phare de Cassis, the iconic lighthouse standing guard to the entrance of the village harbor. The lighthouse stands proudly at the tip of the Quai des Moulins jetty.
The lighthouse is built entirely out of the region’s famous, durable Cassis stone. Originally constructed at the beginning of the 20th century, the historic lighthouse was destroyed in 1944 during World War II. Local quarrymen meticulously rebuilt it in 1946. The lighthouse stands 56 feet tall and as you can see in my dramatic photograph, the waves were breaking up to 70 feet tall when I took that photo!”
#3
“Tunnel Tree” By Florian Kriechbaumer
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “The tree tunnels of Bangkok‘s suburbs are my favorite part of the city.”
#4
“Meteora Monasteries” By Bill Wilkins
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “This photograph captures the remarkable landscape of Meteora. Towering stone pillars rise from the valley floor, monasteries seem to grow naturally from the cliffs. The warm, golden light invites the viewer to reflect on solitude, faith, and the enduring beauty of this extraordinary place.”
#5
“Baobab Sunset” By Héctor Ruiz
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “The sun sets directly behind a cluster of majestic baobab trees along the famous Avenue in Madagascar. The golden and orange hues of the sky silhouette the unique, massive trunks and branching crowns of these ancient trees. The composition captures a classic, powerful moment of the natural world.”
#6
“Ancient Paths” By Preeti And Prashant Chacko
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “One beautiful sunset evening on the dried lake bed of Amboseli, we saw a herd of elephants in the distance. We wanted to photograph them in this beautiful setting, and waited for the herd to align with the fork on the ground. We then found a high vantage point to capture this frame.”
#7
“Touched By Light” By Khaichuin Sim
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “Swift-moving clouds cast shifting shadows across the Dolomites. I waited for sunlight to break through and illuminate the lonely Church of San Giovanni in Ranui, transforming it into a glowing sanctuary beneath the towering peaks—a fleeting moment revealed only through patience.”
#8
“Sub-Zero Companionship” By Khaichuin Sim
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “As sunset falls over Mongolia’s taiga, reindeer herders gather around a campfire, sharing warmth with their animals. One of the country’s last reindeer-herding communities, fewer than 500 remain. This portrait reflects their resilience, traditions, and enduring bond with the reindeer.”
#9
“Can You Feel The Love” By Preeti And Prashant Chacko
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “One morning in Maasai Mara, we photographed this mating pair against the backdrop of the mountains in the background. The scene for us seemed to be something right out of the lion king.”
#10
“Drying Incense” By Azim Khan Ronnie
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “Vietnamese workers sits surrounded by thousands of incense sticks in Quang Phu Cau, a village in Hanoi, Vietnam, where the sticks have been traditionally made for hundreds of years. Incense plays an important role in the spiritual lives of Vietnamese people.”
#11
“Sharing The Planes” By Julijana Zandersone
2nd Place in the Travel Category
Description: “A hot-air balloon passes above the plains of Tanzania as a lone giraffe stands below. Seen from the air, their difference in scale becomes part of the vast landscape.”
#12
“Sacred Fire Ritual” By Héctor Ruiz
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “A young practitioner holds a multi-tiered brass oil lamp high during the evening Ganga Aarti ceremony along the Varanasi ghats. Wisps of smoke and the bright, intense flame illuminate his focused expression against the dark background. The image captures a powerful moment of devotion and ritual light.”
#13
“Sacred Twin Flames” By Héctor Ruiz
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “A striking low-key portrait of two young ritual snake dancers in traditional paint and cowrie shells, illuminated by candlelight.”
#14
“Tokyo Tower” By Yoshiki Nakamura
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “It's been long time since I passed this area with a car although I used to live in Tokyo. Now I visited there for an occasion and had a chance to pass by Taxi. Tokyo Tower has not been changed but the scene I captured seems different from my memory. Probably I used slow shutter speed shooting.”
#15
“Beyond The Pattern” By Andy Marty
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “In a moment of stillness, one face emerges from a tapestry of painted bodies, drawing the viewer beyond the striking artistry to the humanity within. Photographed in Ethiopia's Omo Valley, this portrait celebrates the Surma people's rich cultural traditions.”
#16
“Silken Sands” By Héctor Ruiz
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “Layers of soft, orange sand dunes roll toward the horizon, their sweeping curves highlighted by subtle highlights and soft shadows. A rocky ridge breaks the sea of sand on the right, providing a sense of scale and grounding to the expansive, timeless landscape.”
#17
“First Light On The Sea Of Stone” By Colas Decloitre
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “At sunrise, the first light reaches Campo de Piedra Pómez in Catamarca, Argentina, revealing a surreal landscape shaped by ancient volcanic activity. Thousands of pale stone formations stretch toward the horizon, carved by wind and time across an immense volcanic plateau.”
#18
“Contemplation” By Gary Goldsmith
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “A man seated on a bench, his cup of coffee near, is in a deeply pensive mood.”
#19
“Reflection” By Gary Goldsmith
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “A man with head lowered walks along a wall. His distorted reflection is visible on the glass covering of an information board. His figure completes the composition.”
#20
“Harvesting The Dawn” By Yoshiki Nakamura
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “At sunrise near Hoi An, Vietnam, a fisherman skillfully works among sweeping nets and a small boat, gathering the morning catch in a sea of golden light.”
#21
“Wings Of The River” By Yoshiki Nakamura
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “Fishermen cast their nets from wooden boats on a river outside Hue, Vietnam, their sweeping forms opening like wings above the water.”
#22
“Dance Of Merit” By Florian Kriechbaumer
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “Captured during the annual Paro Tshechu, one of Bhutan’s most important religious festivals, this image looks down into the courtyard of Paro Dzong as masked dancers perform sacred cham dances before hundreds of spectators.”
#23
“Colorful Streets” By Saurabh Sirohiya
Honorable Mention in the Travel Category
Description: “Vibrant sarees hang against Jodhpur's blue walls as an elderly woman walks by with her cane - everyday life woven into the timeless charm of the Blue City.”
#24
“Splash Of Color” By Saurabh Sirohiya
3rd Place in the Travel Category
Description: “A crowd of devotees, drenched in crimson in celebration as a man hurls yellow-tinted liquid mid-air during Holi at Barsana, all singing folk songs together - chaos, color, and collective euphoria captured in a single throw.”
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