Why Enter?

Here's what some recent entrants say:

"It’s our first year taking part in the Tourism Awards and it’s been a fantastic experience from start to finish.  The stand-out difference between the Tourism Awards and other awards that we have entered in the past is the judging process. It’s so thorough and the judges really do take the time to get under the skin of the business. This was achieved via a couple of ‘mystery shops’ but also a judge visited our venue, and spent a few hours with the team.  The glowing feedback that we gained from the judges was invaluable and a huge motivational factor for everyone working at our venue, but also it’s a tool that we can use to support our reputation and help affirm our values of professionalism and trust, as a well-regarded wedding venue to potential couples and clients.  With such a credible judging process, it made our Gold win at county, and regional level all the more worthwhile.” Aimee, Rockbeare Manor

 

"Lighthouse, Poole is thrilled to have been awarded the Best Business Events Venue at the South West Tourism Awards 2023. It is highly prized award, and we are pleased as punch to have received it against such amazing competition. Being nationally recognised as the best business events venue in the South West will really help us promote our business to new customers, and confirm to our existing clients that they are using the best venue! Being endorsed in this way provides us with a badge of quality that is incredibly valuable to us and gives our staff the motivation to continue to deliver a brilliant level of service to all our clients."  Elspeth, Lighthouse Poole

 

"We still regards ourselves as ‘newbies’ in the b & b world.  We entered for the Tourism Awards hoping to get expert feedback on how we are doing.  The whole experience has proved to be more valuable than we ever imagined.  We have had extremely helpful feedback throughout the judging process and made some invaluable contacts along the way.  The icing on the cake has to be winning Gold in Dorset and the Southwest.  The whole process has been a positive experience from the start…..making the application really makes you assess what you and your business are about."  Nikki, The Brunswick B & B

 

“The Visit Isles of Scilly team are delighted to have won silver for Visitor Information Services. It’s testimony to the hard work, passion, and commitment devoted to ensuring the customer journey is seamless, informative, and inspiring, from our digital communications to the support and welcome received on island"  Amanda, Islands Partnership

 

"Winning Gold at the prestigious South West Tourism Excellence Awards means the world to us at Farmer Palmers. It’s an incredible and overwhelming feeling, to be marked against other top large attractions that work equally as hard to provide exceptional service for customers across the South West. At the awards, we were given the opportunity to network with the other nominees to create a better offering collectively. Since the awards, we have received an extraordinary amount of praise and love from our existing customers, as well as gaining new ones into the park."  Sandra, Farmer Palmer's Farm Park 

 

"We're thrilled to claim the top spot in the region for large hotel as the standard of competition we were up against was incredibly high. This is a great achievement for us and I’m incredibly proud of the Bowood team who work tirelessly to provide a memorable experience for every guest who comes through our doors, and this has now been recognised on a regional scale.”  Jeff, Bowood Hotel, Spa & Golf Resort 

 

"The trophies are so beautiful - and make a fabulous talking point both in reception and on social media."  Chrissy, Matt & Karen, Bagwell Farm Touring Park 

 

'We are so thrilled that we decided to enter the Cornwall Tourism Awards and never even dared to hope that we could win Gold in Cornwall and then to go on to be awarded Silver for the South West! It was lovely to have all our hard work, and that of our small team of staff, our ongoing investment and attention to detail recognised by the judges and we are grateful for their invaluable feedback and tips to help us build upon these successes even further in the future. It is a real honour to display our winners logos on our website and social media, and to display the stunning glass trophies in our reception, and we definitely recommend taking part in the 2022/23 awards - you’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain!'  Neil and Annette, Trevalgan Touring Park 

 

“The awards cycle provides an amazing way to network with like-minded people who want to develop the tourism industry which makes such a vital contribution to our regional economy. We’d recommend it to every tourism business”  Ryan, The Cottages at Blackadon Farm 

 

'As an entirely new tourism business and a micro one at that, we felt it so important to review and evaluate our progress so far and looking forward. The Cornwall and South West Tourism Awards provided an opportunity for that, we really had no idea we would go through to the finals. The whole process has been invaluable and inspiring. We are so excited for the future and really feel part of a community of excellence in our sector.'  Liz, Higher Pendeen Camping 

 

"This is such amazing news and so unexpected!  Tears of joy are most certainly happening right now.  Thank you, to you all and to everyone else involved in the awards, for such wonderful news and recognition.  We are truly thrilled.We have had some wonderful emails and calls from local people and guests since our Silver Awards and to be selected as one of the businesses to go onto the South West Tourism Excellence Awards is an honour, beyond words." Lizzie & Nathan, Nethway Farm Holiday Cottages

 

"What wonderful news! Thank you ever so much, we're delighted to have achieved this recognition! We will be thrilled to use the South West Tourism Excellence Awards in our promotional materials alongside our Devon Tourism Awards logo. Thanks again for all that you've done to run these awards this year, it's been a real boost after a very tough 12 months."  Sophie, Saunton Beach Villas

 

"Just going through the awards application process has been an amazing experience.  It’s helped me analyse my small business in ways which I’m not sure I otherwise would have and it’s all lead to so many positive changes and improvements that it feels like we’ve achieved loads before we even click the ‘Submit Entry’ button!"  Mike, Savouring Bath, www.savouringbath.com

"Thank you for all your support the past few years, I would not be where I am today if it weren’t for all the awards and I would probably be struggling considerably more this year, if it hadn’t been for the accolades from the past 3 years that have given my business such a great, grounding reputation"  Saira, Mellulah Yoga Retreats

 

"Thank you so much, this has me superstoked - I'm still on a high from the awards' news last week. It was excellent that Becca and Craig could attend to represent Wild Wookey on the evening; it's great to have updates on how things are looking so positive - totally gobsmacked that Wild Wookey is up for inclusion in the National Awards - like, WOW!, that would be awesome to get recognition at that level. I can but dream. Kind and warm regards for all your efforts and everything you are doing on behalf of each and every one of us."  Christopher, Wild Wookey

 

"The awards have been really good for us over the past ten years - bench marking, training, insipiration, affirmation and the occasional 'kick up the backside' to think differently about things, or to take on more challenges."  Maggie, Wheatland Farm

 

"Thank you so much for the really useful feedback from Round 1 and Round 2.  It is so helpful to have constructive criticism that we can use to improve our 'product'.  We didn't know much about your awards but chose to apply because they seem to be the 'proper job' and not just a case of getting all your customers to vote for you!  This feedback has confirmed and even enhanced our view of the whole process."  Judy Dain, Vaughan's Cookery School

 

"Following a busy weekend back at The Bell I have just wanted to take the opportunity to congratulate you and your team on an amazing event last Thursday evening. We were grateful to be part of the South West Tourism Awards and It was our best night off to date!! The professionalism of the awards evening was evident both in organization, food and other arrangements. Thank you so much for your hard work."   Mark Payne & Sarah Watts, The Bell Inn

 

"Fantastic!!!!! ????????????⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks so much - we are utterly  bowled over and all had celebratory doughnuts on changeovers this morning!!"  Kate, The Treehouses

 

"We are delighted with the news that we were awarded COMMENDED for Small Visitor Attraction of the Year by the South West Tourism Awards. We were put forward for this award after receiving SILVER for Small Visitor Attraction in the Devon Tourism Awards last month. As a small visitor attraction based in one of the largest tourism regions of England, it’s important to differentiate ourselves from other tourist destinations."  Ben Jordan, The Bear Trail

 

“At Mother Ivey’s Bay Holiday Park we feel the tourism awards are a great opportunity to bench-mark our business against best practice, with helpful feedback and scoring from both independent assessors and mystery shoppers. There is only so much we will spot ourselves, and we find it very helpful to have people from outside our business take a closer look. It is also great to answer the entry questions, as it encourages our whole team to look closely at the business.”  Patrick Langmaid, Mother Ivey's Bay

 

“The awards for us really engendered a feeling of pride within the team, we are so proud of everyone here and all that they have achieved in such a short time and these awards really amplified that." Jason Parry, Salcombe Harbour Hotel

 

"It has been particularly useful for our place in our community – the local residents have become great ambassadors for us and do that with the confident knowledge that we are trying our best and are well regarded by impartial judges. They are happy to shout about us and tend to be more inclined to book big ticket items eg weddings, anniversary parties etc. at the hotel." Nicky King, The Eastbury Hotel

 

“Gloucester Tourist Information Centre enters the South West Tourism Awards for a number of reasons. The awards are perfect for benchmarking yourselves alongside other similar businesses in the region, it increases staff morale, provides an opportunity to learn and how to be at the top of your game. We always look to the South West Tourism Awards as recognition for all the hard work involved in delivering a tourism service to the public.” Lucy Chilton, Gloucester Tourist Information Centre

 

If in doubt, why not watch our latest Awards video HERE (it lasts 3 mins or so...)