After some frantic voting during the month of January, it is finally time to reveal the winner of #TravelMatch, the Twitter travel competition that ran for nearly three years!

The grande finale, Match #111, had Bhutan facing off against the Faroe Islands in a battle to win it all.

To get to the finale, each of these contenders did what all other countries and travel destinations on Earth couldn’t do – they won all of their previous matches.

The Travel Match Finalists:

One one side, the Faroe Islands had the most passionate, loyal following of people voting for them for each of their matches. Throughout the course of Travel Match (which started in Spring 2010) the leader of the Faroe Islands charge was @FaroePodcast who took it upon themselves to spread the #TravelMatch word to as many Faroese lovers as possible.

It helped them beat out big players such as France and the Galapagos Islands, among others.

On the other side was the Happiest Nation on Earth. Bhutan actually measures happiness and has become a somewhat hot destination in recent years for travellers and backpackers who can get to this somewhat secluded country. It was a legion of world travellers and support from Bhutan tour companies and @TourismBhutan that got them to the finals. Diverse landscapes and friendly Buddhist culture lured people to vote and beat out powerful destinations such as Antarctica and Tibet.

A Travel Match Twist in the Finale

An interesting thing happened during the Travel Match finale. Half way through voting, with the Faroe Islands in the lead, Bhutan started to make a charge. Votes began to pour in for the quiet nation. However they were, for the most part, votes to stop the Faroe Islands from winning, instead of personal votes with a desire to visit Bhutan.

It seems the animal rights activists took up the cause to stop the Faroes from winning because the small nation still participates in a traditional whale hunt.

Such is the way on Twitter though and it wasn’t the first controversial competition to happen during #TravelMatch! Instant access to unlimited knowledge creates interesting conversations on Twitter. So, without further delay…it’s time to say:

Bhutan won the #TravelMatch Finale!

While the Faroe Islands definitely win the prize for most passionate, enthusiastic travellers, it is Bhutan who walked away with the most votes and claims the #TravelMatch title as Most Desired Travel Destination on Twitter. In the end Bhutan garnered more than 65% of the votes in the finale.

Congratulations to both destinations for making it to the final. After 30+ months, 10,000+ votes and 111 total matches it was no small feat making it to the finals! Big thanks to everyone who voted and shared in the fun of the #TravelMatch series.