England for Excellence Awards finalists announced

Leading ‘green’ domestic tourism businesses feature in a new sustainable tourism award as part of the 2008 Enjoy England Awards for Excellence.

These range from an environmentally sustainable villa in Norfolk, once home to Howard Carter who famously discovered Tutankhamun’s tomb, to a luxurious B&B in the New Forest National Park.

The 44 shortlisted finalists are announced today in advance of the winners being unveiled at St Georges Hall, Liverpool, on April 23.

The 15 categories for the 2008 awards are: large hotel of the year (over 35 bedrooms), small hotel of the year (under 50 bedrooms), self-catering holiday of the year, bed & breakfast of the year, caravan park of the year, tourist Information centre (TIC) of the year, large attraction of the year (over 100,000 visitors), small attraction of the year (under 100,000 visitors), tourism website of the year, the meet England business tourism award, outstanding customer service award, taste of England, sustainable tourism award, tourism experience of the year and travel journalist of the year.

There is an additional award for Outstanding Contribution to Tourism to be announced on the night.

All the finalists were selected from more than 100 regional winners submitted by the nine regional tourist boards.

They have had to demonstrate excellence against strict criteria such as service and customer care.

Finalists span a range of attractions, accommodation, websites and Tourist Information Centres.

They include Rockingham Castle and Forde Abbey and Gardens to some of the most high-profile attractions in the world such as the V&A Museum in London; a small restaurant in Lincoln used by Tom Hanks during the filming of the ‘Da Vinci Code’ to a converted Lakeland self-catering cottage and a five-star caravan park in Blackpool boasting 20 timber clad lodges.

A children’s attraction and story centre in Bucks and a 16th century restaurant with rooms displaying a new breed of B&B are also in the line up for awards, as are a number of individuals who have been recognised for their outstanding service and contribution to English tourism.

Other contenders include a food and drink festival in Shropshire as well as one of Europe’s largest free air-shows in Sunderland.

VisitEngland chairman Hugh Taylor said: “Tourism depends on its ability to safeguard the attractions and wonderful countryside that make people holiday at home – and our new award shows just how England is leading the field in providing enjoyable and sustainable holidays.

“Judging of the Excellence Awards is becoming an increasingly difficult process. We can now truly say that England is a world-class tourism destination.

“The finalists have been chosen for leading the way in terms of innovation through continued investment whilst also maintaining consistently high quality and standards in their field.

“It is vital we continue to encourage English tourism businesses to strive for this excellence – and that we shine a light on those that achieve these high standards.”

The finalists were selected by a board of tourism industry judges including Superbreak’s Nick Cust, a member of the VisitEngland board, and travel journalist Alison Rice.

Also on the judging panel was Brian Richardson, executive secretary of The Caravan Club who said: “Each year we are faced with an even tougher challenge as standards continue to improve. What sets these awards apart is the fact that all the regional winners are assessed anonymously by independent inspectors according to a strict criteria of excellence, and we feel that the results are an honest reflection of the very best that England has to offer.”

by Phil Davies