Noosa’s tourism gold

IT was a successful night for local businesses at the 2015 Queensland Tourism Awards, with several operators walking away with top honours.
The annual awards were held at the Brisbane Convention Centre on Friday (13 November) and saw the Noosa region shine bright, according to Tourism Noosa CEO Damien Massingham.
Mr Massingham congratulated all the Tourism Noosa members who received awards or were finalists at the gala event.
Among the winners was RACV Noosa Resort, which took out gold in the deluxe accommodation category, and Noosa Boathouse, which won gold in the tourism restaurant and catering services category.
As this was their third consecutive win in their respective categories, both operators were inducted into the hall of fame.
“This is a wonderful testament to the consistently high standard of excellence exhibited by the dedicated teams at both establishments,” Mr Massingham said.
Also receiving medals on the night were Australia Zoo winning gold in the major tourist attraction category, while the home-grown Noosa Festival of Surfing took out bronze in the festivals and events category, with festival organisers already eyeing off gold at next year’s awards.
In a win for Tourism Noosa, the Noosa Visitor Information Centre won silver in the visitor information services category, while Belmondos Organic Market was a finalist in the category for excellence in food tourism.
“Seven of the 11 awards received by operators in the Sunshine Coast region went to Tourism Noosa members, including the Visitor Information Centre,” Mr Massingham said.
“We’re proud of the achievements of everyone involved, including Tourism Noosa’s 95 volunteers at the centre and look forward to continuing to work with all our members towards a great future for tourism in the Noosa region.
“The Queensland Tourism Awards are the state’s key industry awards recognising excellence and celebrate the outstanding achievements of tourism operators across various categories.”
Mr Massingham said Noosa had an incredibly strong tourism industry and it was wonderful to see operators, volunteers and the Tourism Noosa team recognised as true industry leaders within their various fields.