News
Search on for Leicestershire and Rutland's top tourism businesses
03/05/2006
Leicestershire and Rutland tourism businesses are being urged to win recognition for their achievements by entering the third annual Enjoy England Excellence Awards, organised by East Midlands Tourism.
Last year 16 gold awards were presented at a glitzy ceremony in Leicester by BBC TV Working Lunch presenter, Rob Pittam. Now East Midlands Tourism is inviting entries for the 15* tourism ‘Oscars’ up for grabs this year. These include awards for the best self catering holiday, tourism website and both large and small hotels and visitor attractions, plus a new Think Family award. This has been introduced to recognise businesses which have successfully addressed the changing needs of the family market by delivering customised facilities, customer care, disabled access, food that caters for a variety of ages and information which is easily accessible to children and their parents.
The awards, run in conjunction with the Enjoy England Awards for Excellence 2007, are open to tourism businesses in both counties with winners having an opportunity to go forward to the national final which will be held next year. The closing date for entries is 31 May.
“These awards provide a unique opportunity for Leicestershire and Rutland’s tourism businesses, which excel in delivering an exceptional visitor experience, to gain recognition for their work. They are designed not just to identify the very cream of the region’s tourism businesses, but to let those businesses provide quality benchmarks to which the rest of the regions tourism industry can aspire,” commented East Midlands Tourism’s Chief Executive, Richard Dickinson. “By promoting best practice they will help the East Midlands entice even more visitors and ensure that we continue to improve on the quality of our products. The awards also bestow significant prestige upon the winners, providing them with an invaluable marketing tool and the opportunity to showcase their product nationally.”
Last year Leicestershire businesses took three gold awards including the Outstanding Customer Service title which was won by Sam Hill of Leicester’s Holiday Inn hotel. Sam was nominated by her manager for her “unparalleled level of customer care” during 10 years at the hotel, and her commitment and dedication recently brought her further acclaim when she won the national title at an awards ceremony held at London’s Madame Tussauds. Leicestershire’s other regional gold winners were Kilworth House Hotel in Lutterworth which was named as Best Small Hotel/Townhouse, and Swadlincote’s Conkers which took Best Large Visitor attraction. The county also won five silver and two bronze awards.
Martin Peters, Chief Executive of Leicester Shire Promotions added: “The annual Enjoy England Excellence Awards are an excellent showcase for the cream of Leicestershire and Rutland’s tourism businesses. By nominating themselves for the regional awards, local attractions, accommodation providers and other tourism organisations and individuals stand to gain from the publicity surrounding this prestigious scheme. I am delighted that Sam Hill of Leicester’s Holiday Inn has been successful nationally and hope that other local businesses can follow in her footsteps by achieving success in the 2007 awards.”
Businesses interested in entering the Enjoy England Excellence Awards should contact:
Leicester Shire Promotions – Josie Martino-Snook, tel: 0116 225 4015 or email josie.snook@l-p-l.com
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