Whitsunday operators brought home a swag of awards including five Gold, four Silver, three Bronze and two Highly Commended Awards.
The ‘best of the best‘ in tourism were recognised recntly with the Whitsundays bringing home 14 trophies from the 2017 Queensland Tourism Awards.
The 2017 Queensland Tourism Awards were held on Friday, November 10 at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, recognising Queensland’s finest tourism operators.
Whitsunday operators brought home a swag of awards including five Gold, four Silver, three Bronze and two Highly Commended Awards.
In all, the Whitsundays collected the second highest number of awards for one region.
Tourism Whitsundays CEO Craig Turner said it was a wonderful achievement for the award recipients and also the entire Whitsundays tourism industry.
“We are very lucky to have a strong, robust tourism industry in the Whitsundays and when operators like these win awards at state level, it is a sign to the rest of the world just how good our tourism offering is,” Mr Turner said.
“I would like to heartily congratulate the winners and also acknowledge every operator who entered, as the awards are a great opportunity to showcase to the world what the Whitsundays can offer in terms of world class tourism experiences.”
The Queensland Tourism Awards, which are hosted by the Queensland Tourism Industry Council (QTIC), cover 30 different categories and recognise the outstanding achievements of operators across the state.
QTIC Chief Executive Daniel Gschwind said the 33rd Queensland Tourism Awards had attracted an outstanding array of tourism operators across all award categories.
“I congratulate the winners of the 28 business, event and individual categories, as well as winners of the inaugural RACQ People’s Choice category,” he said.
“All operators and individuals have demonstrated excellence in Queensland’s thriving tourism industry, which has continued to grow in the past financial year by more than 5.5 per cent, and international visitor numbers for Queensland saw record growth in the 12 months to June 2017, growing 5.6 per cent.”
All Gold Award winners from categories 1-25 in the Queensland Awards will now automatically gain entry into the Qantas Australian Tourism Awards, due to be held at the new Perth Stadium, in Perth, Western Australia, on Friday, February 23, 2018.
Award-winning Whitsundays operators:
01. Major Tourist Attraction – Abell Point Marina – Gold
11. Major Tour & Transport Operator – Ocean Rafting – Gold
12. Tour & Transport Operator – Red Cat Adventures – Highly Commended
12. Tour & Transport Operator – Whitsunday Jetski Tours – Bronze
13. Adventure Tourism – Whitsunday Jetski Tours – Highly Commended
13. Adventure Tourism – Red Cat Adventures – Silver
13. Adventure Tourism – Ocean Rafting – Bronze
15. Tourism Restaurants & Catering – Fish D’Vine – Silver
17. Caravan & Holiday Parks – BIG4 Adventure Wsy Resort – Gold (+ Hall of Fame)
19. Unique Accommodation – Whitsunday Escape – Silver
19. Unique Accommodation – Cumberland Charter Yachts – Gold
20. Self-contained Accommodation – Pinnacles Resort – Silver
22. Deluxe Accommodation – Mirage Whitsundays – Bronze
24. New Tourism Business – Island Jet Boating – Gold
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales. She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
