THE state\u2019s top tourism offerings have been named with the finalists for this year\u2019s Victorian Tourism Awards announced.<\/p>\n
More than 90 nominees have been unveiled with four of them Ballarat-based organisations.<\/p>\n
Ballarat Begonia Festival, Ballarat Heritage Festival, Ballarat Wildlife Park, and Kryal Castle are all up for awards, with the latter\u2019s CEO, Bart Hamilton saying the nominations are a source of good recognition.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of it\u2019s very reputational,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s quite a coveted award. You have to score a certain amount based on their scoring system.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt puts you up in that upper echelon. Sovereign Hill\u2019s won it a few times, Melbourne Zoo, Royal Botanical Gardens, all cracking attractions.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust to be among those nominated is a nice touch for our team.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Hamilton said Kryal Castle sees about 125,000 visitors each year.<\/p>\n
The medieval attraction was previously a finalist during last year\u2019s awards, and won silver in the Tourist Attractions category in 2019.<\/p>\n
Ballarat Wildlife Park\u2019s history with the awards includes receiving bronze in the Tourist Attractions category in 2018, and owner Greg Parker said it\u2019s validating to be nominated.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been operating for 40 years now and it shows we\u2019ve moved from humble beginnings into an internationally significant attraction for this region,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re a small park but fairly sophisticated in terms of our animal husbandry. As a tourism venue, I think we pride ourselves on customer service.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a nice feeling for our team that have worked so hard to reach the standards we\u2019re at now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Led by the Victorian Tourism Industry Council, the nominees are being judged by a panel of 40 industry representatives.<\/p>\n
The winners will be announced during a gala event on Thursday 30 November at Crown\u2019s Palladium in Melbourne.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
THE state\u2019s top tourism offerings have been named with the finalists for this year\u2019s Victorian Tourism Awards announced. More than 90 nominees have been unveiled with four of them Ballarat-based organisations. Ballarat Begonia Festival, Ballarat Heritage Festival, Ballarat Wildlife Park, and Kryal Castle are all up for awards, with the latter\u2019s CEO, Bart Hamilton saying […]<\/p>\n