VisitEngland Awards for Excellence
Introduction
Meet the 2024 winners
Our annual VisitEngland Awards for Excellence champion the very best of the country’s tourism industry – celebrating quality, innovation and customer service. Winning an award shows that your business is among the best in the country, and provides valuable media exposure, business development and networking opportunities.
The awards cycle begins with a series of regional competitions, which feed up to the national VisitEngland Awards for Excellence. Entering is easy. All you need to do is complete a single application to your local contest. If you win, you’ll automatically proceed to the national contest, which is decided by a team of expert judges.
The highlight of each year is the national VisitEngland Awards for Excellence event, where the finest tourism businesses receive the industry’s most coveted accolades.
Scroll down to explore the award categories, previous winners and how to apply.
In recognition of running a high quality, fair and transparent awards programme, the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence have been accredited with the Awards Trust Mark.
The Caravan and Motorhome Club is proud to support the Visit England Awards for Excellence 2024 and the Experience of the Year category.
The Club is the UK’s No 1 rated touring organisation, representing, helping and inspiring over one million caravanners, motorhomers, campervanners, glampers and campers. Whatever your interests, outfit or location, the Club can help you make the most of the great outdoors, enjoy new adventures, destinations and activities.
Membership of the Club gives access to over 2,700 scenic campsites in the UK and across Europe, along with numerous membership benefits, services and products including, overseas travel bookings and advice and worldwide tours.
As one of the UK`s leading and fastest-growing independent holiday let rental agencies, Sykes Holiday Cottages has been supporting holiday home owners for over 30 years.
Sykes Holiday Cottages is one of the best-known travel brands in the UK, having won the British Travel Award for Best Large Holiday Cottage Booking Company for ten consecutive years. We are experts in our field and we know holiday letting inside out.
Sykes Holiday Cottages are thrilled to sponsor the Self-Catering Accommodation of the Year and the Ethical, Responsible and Sustainable Tourism Award categories at the 2024 VisitEngland Awards for Excellence.
- Website
- X (formerly Twitter): #SykesCottages ! #MySykesStay
“Virgin Experience Days was founded by a pair of aviation enthusiasts, who decided to make flying a thing everyone could try. Fast-forward 30 years and we’ve got 4,000 experiences, with people putting more value on life-affirming days out and time together than ever before.
We’re thrilled to be sponsoring the Small Visitor Attraction at the Visit England Awards for Excellence 2024, kicking off what promises to be a fantastic celebration of the country’s world-famous tourism industry.
As a company built on sharing experiences, we understand the hard work, passion and dedication that goes on behind the scenes of this industry. We look forward to raising a glass (or two) as we recognise the teams and individuals that make England such an unforgettable country to visit.”
Danni Rush, Chief Operating Officer - Virgin Experience Days
Why apply?
A great PR opportunity
Use your win to attract media attention. We provide a PR toolkit for national winners, as well as the official VisitEngland Awards for Excellence logos to use in your marketing materials.
Apply now
National recognition
Showcase your reputation as one of the best tourism businesses in the country. Core category winners of local competitions are automatically enrolled in the national VisitEngland Awards for Excellence – whose winners are promoted by VisitEngland.
A competitive edge
Stand out from your competitors. Being an award winner provides you with a unique and high-profile selling point to promote your business. As an official endorsement, it gives potential customers another reason to book or visit.
Better business practices
All entrants receive feedback on their application from an independent judge, highlighting areas for improvement. Applying for an award is a useful business exercise, allowing you to step back and identify areas for future development.
Reward and motivate your team
Winning an award is a great opportunity to reward your employees for their contribution to the business. It can help you to attract high-quality staff and increase your current team’s motivation, loyalty and pride in their work.
Network at the awards events
Enjoy your success and network with other businesses in your area at the local awards ceremony. National finalists can socialise with the best of the best from around the country at the prestigious VisitEngland Awards for Excellence event.
How to apply
Your journey to the national VisitEngland Awards for Excellence starts by entering your local competition. The process is easy: simply complete one online application for your regional awards, answering a few key questions and providing links to your online presence and customer reviews.
In the local awards, there are two types of categories:
Local: these categories are only offered at a regional level.
Core: these categories feed into the national awards, so all winners are put forward to the main judging panel. These categories use an application form that is consistent across all local competitions. For competitions covering large areas, additional winners may also be eligible to progress.
Eligible winners will be automatically entered into the national awards by their local competition, and judged within their category via the main judging process. Then, finalists are invited to the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence Awards event, where the national winners are announced.
Use the search below to find details of local competitions that are aligned with the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence. Entry dates vary, so double-check the deadline. We recommend signing up to updates from your local awards organisers.
No business is too small to win an award: all applications are judged in context, and it’s the customer experience that really matters.
Find your local tourism awards
Meet the winners: VisitEngland Awards for Excellence 2024
The Gold, Silver and Bronze winners for the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence 2024 were announced on the 5 June at the Rum Warehouse at The Titanic Hotel Liverpool.
Outstanding Contribution to Tourism Award
WINNER
Host of the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest, The City of Liverpool
Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Award:
GOLD - Hoe Grange Holidays, Derbyshire
SILVER - ROARR! Norfolk
BRONZE - Colchester Castle, Essex
B&B and Guest House of the Year:
GOLD - The Bosham Boathouse B&B, West Sussex
SILVER - MonkBridge House, North Yorkshire
BRONZE - Bossington Hall, Somerset
Business Events Venue of the Year:
GOLD - Telford International Centre, Shropshire
SILVER - Warwick Conferences, West Midlands
BRONZE - Winter Gardens Blackpool, Lancashire
Camping, Glamping and Holiday Park of the Year:
GOLD - The Secret Garden Glamping, Lancashire
SILVER - Kits Coty Glamping, Kent
BRONZE - Darwin Forest Lodges, Derbyshire
Ethical, Responsible and Sustainable Tourism Award, sponsored by Sykes Holiday Cottages:
GOLD - Mill Farm Eco Barns, Norfolk
SILVER - Kent Wildlife Trust, Kent
BRONZE - The Yan at Broadrayne, Cumbria
Experience of the Year, sponsored by The Caravan and Motorhome Club:
GOLD - Grey Seals & Seabird Cruise, Serenity Farne Island Boat Tours, Northumberland
SILVER - York Ghost Walk, The Deathly Dark Tours, North Yorkshire
Large Hotel of the Year:
GOLD - The Grand, York, North Yorkshire
SILVER - Hope Street Hotel, Merseyside
BRONZE - Rockliffe Hall Hotel, County Durham
Small Hotel of the Year:
GOLD - The Gallivant, East Sussex
SILVER - Wildhive Callow Hall, Derbyshire
BRONZE - THE PIG-at Harlyn Bay, Cornwall
New Tourism Business of the Year:
GOLD - The Wizard Walk of York, North Yorkshire
SILVER - Sleepy Owl Devon, Devon
BRONZE - Boys Hall, Kent
Pub of the Year:
GOLD - The Peterville Inn, Cornwall
SILVER - The Acorn Inn, Dorset
BRONZE - The Red Fox, Merseyside
Self Catering Accommodation of the Year, sponsored by Sykes Holiday Cottages:
GOLD - Sleepy Owl Devon, Devon
SILVER - My Cottages in St Ives, Cornwall
BRONZE - Bethnal&Bec, Hertfordshire
Taste of England Award:
GOLD - Allium at Askham Hall, Cumbria
SILVER - Blackfriars Restaurant, Tyne & Wear
BRONZE - La Locanda, Lancashire
Large Visitor Attraction of the Year:
GOLD - WWT Slimbridge Wetland Centre, Gloucestershire
SILVER - Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter, Hertfordshire
BRONZE - ROARR! Norfolk
Small Visitor Attraction of the Year, sponsored by Virgin Experience Days:
GOLD - Nothe Fort (operated by Weymouth Civic Society), Dorset
SILVER - Cotswolds Distillery, Warwickshire
BRONZE - The Battle of Britain Memorial, Kent
Travel Content Award:
GOLD - Ben Aitken, The Guardian – ‘O’er vales and hills in a wheelchair: a new accessible trail in the Lake District’
SILVER - Liz Edwards, The Times – ‘I went for a cross-country swim in the Thames, here’s what happened’
BRONZE - Richard Franks, JRNY Travel Magazine – ‘Greener Heartlands’
Unsung Hero Award:
GOLD - Katie Calder, V-ATE Automotive Smokehouse and Bowl, Lincolnshire
GOLD - Duncan Wise, Northumberland National Park Authority, Northumberland
SILVER - Brett Hawkes, Crowhurst Park, East Sussex
Tourism Superstar Award:
TXGB Trailblazer Award:
WINNER - National Lottery Days Out Campaign
Awards brochure
Awards brochure
Key dates for your diary
March to February: Local award competitions open for entries (dates vary).
April: After the local awards, winners are put forward to the national VisitEngland Awards for Excellence, and the judging process begins.
June: Winners are announced and recognised at the official ceremony.
Award categories
Award categories
There is an award category to suit every type of tourism business – from hotels and holiday rentals to attractions, restaurants and museums. In 2024, there will be 15 main categories in total, including New Tourism Business of the Year, Small Hotel of the Year and Taste of England Award – in addition to four special national honours, such as Tourism Superstar.
Frequently asked questions
The local awards are open to tourism businesses that are located in the catchment area of the relevant destination. In order to be forwarded to the national awards, the local competition must be officially linked to and recognised by the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence. All businesses must be directly involved in tourism, contributing to the visitor economy with a significant proportion of business generated by people visiting from outside the local area. Winners of local awards will automatically be entered into the national VisitEngland Awards for Excellence.
Category-specific eligibility requirements can be found on the awards categories page.
It is free to be put forward to the national VisitEngland Awards for Excellence. Local competitions may charge an entry fee, although the majority are free or only charge non-members to apply.
To ensure a level playing field, all applicants must succeed in their local competition in order to progress to the national awards. We are liaising with destinations that do not currently offer local awards to offer support in setting up a competition.
If there isn’t a local competition in your area, you can contact your local Destination Management Organisation to let them know that you’re interested in them establishing one that’s officially linked to and recognised by the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence.
All applications, regardless of which local competition you are applying for, are judged using the same guidelines. Feedback is given to every entrant on how they can improve their application. Once all entries have been scored, a shortlist is created to help determine the overall local winner.
Some competitions may carry out judging visits to all applicants, while others may visit a selection. Local winners are automatically put forward to the national VisitEngland Awards for Excellence.
More information on the national judging process can be found on the Judging page.
PR toolkit
How to make the most of your win
Winning an industry award doesn’t only confirm the quality of your product – it represents a valuable PR opportunity. This PR toolkit advises you on how to secure and maximise the media coverage around your award win, covering who to contact, what to say, how best to say it and when to say it.
Become a sponsor
Become a sponsor
Access a unique opportunity to reach England’s tourism industry at the national VisitEngland Awards for Excellence.
The VisitEngland Awards for Excellence have been celebrating the very best of English tourism for more than 30 years.
Becoming a sponsor is a fantastic opportunity to promote your brand to thousands of potential customers in your target market, and be associated with high quality tourism experiences.
To discuss sponsorship opportunities, email awardssponsorship@visitengland.org.
