This time I stayed put and my blog went traveling.

After about a decade on the server (and domain) of my book publisher, I finally took the leap and moved this award-winning Cheapest Destinations Blog to its own host and a more logical domain: CheapestDestinationsBlog.com. Yeah, I know, not so creative. But I figure if you’re looking for the cheapest places to travel in the world or how to stretch your budget for a long-term international adventure, calling this thing something cutesy isn’t going to help you find it.

For now, nothing else is changing. Over time I might need or want to make some adjustments, but hopefully the old site will redirect like it’s supposed to and you should be able to see the RSS stream okay in your reader as is.

Now that I’ve got this on my own host, I should be able to make some tweaks that people have been requesting for a while, like getting buttons for Facebook and Pinterest on the posts. Meanwhile, if you’ve just landed here for the first time, a few popular and definitive posts you might want to check out:

The Cheapest Places to Live in the World

Out Now – the 4th Edition of The World’s Cheapest Destinations

The Best Backpacks for Long-term Travelers

Travel Prices in Vietnam

No More Excuses – Your Travel Resolution Starts Now

Bargains and Beauty in Bolivia

Meanwhile, if you’re wondering who the heck I am and why you should listen to my advice, see the About Me button at the top of this page. Or look me up on Wikipedia. Or go to the Tim Leffel portfolio site to see articles, awards, books I’ve published, and other websites I run.

The February issue of Perceptive Travel is out, with more of the best travel stories from book authors on the move.

Once again it’s fair to say “best travel stories” because for the third year in a row, the publication I edit placed for “Best Travel Journalism Site” in the annual awards from the North American Travel Journalists Association. We got the Bronze this time, but first was National Geographic Traveler’s website and I think theirs is actually produced in a real office with a water cooler. (Two of our stories won too—see the home page for details.)

This month we travel to three distinct places and go beyond the usual tourism brochure fluff.

Chris Epting has a story on where the Rolling Stones spent their early years while touring around the U.S. David Lee Drotar finds the dark side in Costa Rica, looking at what all that tourism and real estate development is doing to howler monkey habitats. I’ve got a piece on a place few people seem to visit, but should get onto their radar: the eastern half of Slovakia.

Susan Griffith highlights new and noteworthy travel books, including a biography of legendary travel writer and adventurer Redmond O’Hanlon. Laurence Mitchell is back to spin some new world music albums worth checking out from troubled Mali; Persia via India; and Bollywood and Havana via Canada.

As usual, one of our readers will get something new by entering the monthly gear contest and winning. Last month’s winner is getting decked out in a travel clothing outfit from Mountain Khakis. This month we’re giving away a small portable battery pack for your quick-dying iPhone or other gadgets. If you’re on the monthly newsletter list, you already got your chance to enter. If not, sign up here for next time and get a shot at this month’s by following Perceptive Travel on Facebook.

And between new issues, don’t forget to check out the cool PT blog!

It’s time for a new issue of Perceptive Travel, home to the best travel stories on the web. If you don’t believe me, check out the just-announced results of the Solas “best travel writing” awards. We took home six of them. I got two golds, Luke Armstrong won a gold, Beebe Bahrami got a gold, Chris Epting got a silver, and Gloria Kirchheimer got a silver. This is a month after scoring another five from NATJA. Sweet.

In this issue we travel to Norway with Chris Epting to see if the place painted in The Scream actually exists.

Luke Armstrong takes us to a festival in Guatemala around Day of the Dead where people try to get giant handmade kites aloft.

Michael Buckley tries parahawking in Nepal. Parawhat? Check out the cool video of his below to get a sampling.

We’ve also got a new batch of travel book reviews and world music reviews.

Are you signed up for the newsletter? ‘Cause each month we give away something cool. This time it’s a great camera backpack from LowePro. See the home page for a picture and link.

Sometimes this Cheapest Destinations Blog gets picked in some readers poll or an individual writer gives me a shout-out. But for the second year in a row I’ve been named one of the top travel blogs by the North American Travel Journalists Association. This one’s judged on writing and usefulness, not just how many people you can persuade to vote for you, so it means something.

Last year I got a silver, this year I got…the GOLD!

Here’s how it played out, in good company:

Category: Travel Blog

• Gold: Tim Leffel, Cheapest Destinations Blog
• Silver: Gary Arndt, Everything Everywhere, Everything-Everywhere.com
• Bronze: Jennifer Miner,  The Vacation Gals, TheVacationGals.com

Thanks to everyone who has been reading, subscribing, tweeting, whatever. Especially those who were around when I launched this thing, back in the blogging stone age of 2003.

And proving that when it rains it pours, Perceptive Travel positively cleaned up. It won a Silver for Best Travel Journalism Site (behind some obscure pub called USAToday.com) and three of the individual writers won prizes for stories, including a Gold for me and for Amy Rosen.

Onward!

If you haven’t been reading this blog for very long, I may seem like just another guy who threw up a blog and put out a book. But although I find it hard to believe myself sometimes, apparently I can do more than provide cheap travel advice. I’m a real writer too.

Most writers have their moments of self-doubt, but then some affirmation will come along to reverse it for a while at least. In the past month I’ve won a slew of awards and it would be humble to the point of pretentiousness to not pass this news on. Especially since you can read both the stories online.

First up, my Perceptive Travel story Unbalanced in the Sinking City won “Best Article Written for the Internet” at the annual awards from the North American Travel Journalists (NATJA). I was quite proud of that story, so this makes me happy. I’ll get a few nights in a hotel as a prize and not be working the whole time, which also makes me happy.

That same story won a Silver in the Destinations category of the annual Solas Awards sponsored by Travelers’ Tales Publishing. I also scored a Bronze award there in the “Doing Good or the Kindness of Strangers” category.

That Bronze was for a story I hadn’t previously published anywhere, called “The Collision.” You can now read the whole thing online though because it also scored a second prize in Transitions Abroad’s annual narrative travel writing contest. It’s also on Mexico, but is one of those “bad trip” stories. You’ll see: The Collision.

That’s it for now. Next week we return to travel bargains, cheap places, travel gear deals, and rants.