With only three weeks to go until the deadline for the 2023 North East England Tourism Awards business across the region are being encouraged to get their entries in.
It is the 20th anniversary of the awards next year and organisers NewcastleGateshead Initiative (NGI) are keen to make it the best one yet.
The deadline for entries is 5pm on Thursday 22nd September and businesses can enter any of the 16 categories ranging from B&B of the Year to Business Events Venue of the Year, which makes a return to the ceremony in 2023.
The awards are then judged by a panel of industry experts, with a focus on experiencing the North East tourism industry first-hand. Winners will be announced at a ceremony in March 2023.
The North East England Tourism Awards 2023 are run in partnership with the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence. Eligible winners of the awards will automatically feed into the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence, ensuring the best of the region is shown on a national stage.
This year the region picked up four awards at the nationals including, Seaham Hall Hotel, who won Gold in the Small Hotel of the Year, Hotel Indigo, who won Silver in the Large Hotel of the Year, Triple A Food Tours, who won Silver in the New Tourism Business category and Clive Goodwin, of The Ouseburn Trust, who won Bronze in the Unsung Hero award.
Sarah Green, Chief Executive of NGI, said: “We’re so excited about next year’s awards and being able to celebrate 20 years of this important industry event.
“We want to see businesses from all corners of the region enter. If you have never entered before, considered it but not done it, or want to defend your title, this is the year to get your application in.
“It is a busy time of year for tourism businesses, and we understand that, but we also know from past winners the difference it can make to take a bit of time to apply. Not only does it raise the profile of your business, but it also helps you to connect with other tourism businesses and spread the word about this amazing destination.”
Steve and Amanda White, of the Market Cross Guesthouse, Belford, know first-hand the positive impact winning can have, after picking up Gold in the B&B of the Year category at this year’s awards.
Steve said: “We have been running Market Cross Guesthouse for 10 years and we felt it was time we were judged against our peers by the industry. Believing we had an excellent business is one thing but to be judged the best from what is such a competitive category with such a high standard of competition is an achievement we are proud of.
“Winning brings it home to us that the hard work and constantly striving to be better has worked. It shows us that our business is where we want to be, but we are always looking for improvement.
“The exposure following the awards can be considerable. Just having the award logo on our website and promoting our achievement on social media has no doubt contributed to our almost 100% occupancy this year.”
To enter the awards go to https://tickets.northeasttourismawards.co.uk/apply-now/ Businesses can enter multi categories and all entries are FREE.
An online workshop to help businesses with their application is being held on Monday 12 September from 10am to 11am. Sign up here