The Hunter Valley strikes gold
The Hunter Valley was proudly represented last night at the NSW Tourism Awards Dinner and Ceremony at Royal Randwick, with Margan Wines and Chateau Élan at the Vintage both taking home gold.
Covering 32 categories including Heritage and Cultural Tourism, Business Tourism and Major Festivals and Events, the NSW Tourism Awards celebrate the diverse and significant achievements of tourism operators, who collectively contribute billions of dollars to the state’s economy.
Margan Wines were awarded with Excellence in Tourism Wineries, Distilleries and Boutique Breweries and was also acknowledged for their dedication to sustainability as a finalist for the Excellence in Sustainable Tourism award.
“Margan prides itself as a business with a strong focus on environmental sustainability. As farmers managing around 300 acres of vineyard and gardens, we need to ensure that our land is kept in great condition so that it looks after us for years to come,” Andrew Margan.
With the calibre of entrants taking this year’s award program to new heights, winning gold is no mean feat. Joseph Spagnolo, General Manager of Chateau Élan at the Vintage took out gold in the Luxury Accommodation category and is thrilled with the result. “We are very proud the resort has achieved such a great honour,” he says.
“Chateau Élan at the Vintage strives to achieve excellence in customer service and thanks must go to our dedicated team at the resort who work hard to deliver exceptional guest experiences.”
Gus Maher, the General Manager of Hunter Valley Wine and Tourism Association says that he is “not only proud of all the businesses that took home awards at last night’s event, but also those finalists who represented the Hunter. They really are the best of the best. Awards such as this will only increase our profile in visitors’ minds and will ultimately lead to increased visitation.”
Hunter Valley Wine and Tourism would also like to congratulation their other finalists including, Balloon Aloft, Hermitage Lodge, Somewhere Unique, The Vintry and Singleton Information Centre.The NSW Tourism Awards, now in its 24th year, are a major program of the Tourism Industry Council NSW and are supported by Destination NSW. The winners of last night’s event will now go on to become finalists in the Australian Tourism Awards to be held in Sydney February 2014.