The awards are announced yearly on 5 June for Europe, Canada, Morocco, Tunisia, and other countries in a similar geographic location, and on 1 November for the Caribbean, New Zealand, South Africa, and other countries in the southern hemisphere.
Modré vlajky sú udeľované každoročne 5. júna pre Európu, Kanadu, Maroko, Tunisko a krajiny s podobnou geografickou polohou a 1. novembra pre Karibik, Nový Zéland, Južnú Afriku a pre iné krajiny na južnej pologuli.