Hospitality businesses from Bristol will line up against the cream of the West of England’s tourist attractions next month when the region’s most prestigious awards scheme for the sector returns for another year.
The Bristol, Bath, and Somerset Tourism Awards celebrate excellence in an industry that has continued to face huge challenges over recent years but has continued to innovate and develop. 
The 65 finalists will gather on 5 December at a prestigious ceremony for the contest in which Bristol hotels, leisure businesses and tourist attractions have traditionally performed strongly.
Among this year’s finalists is Aerospace Bristol, the museum that celebrates the city’s world-class aviation heritage, which is competing in the Large Visitor Attraction of the Year category, where it will go head to head against Bristol’s Wake The Tiger – the world’s first ‘amazement park’, which landed Gold as the best new tourism business last year.
Conservation and education charity Bristol Zoological Society, which runs the Bristol Zoo Project near Cribbs Causeway, is a finalist in the Accessible and Inclusive Tourism category, while the Tree Tops Adventure at Ashton Court is competing for the Active & Learning Experience of the Year title.
The Bristol Light Festival, which was established in 2020 to showcase Bristol as a vibrant, playful and creative city, is among the contenders for the Tourism Event/Festival of the Year title.
Two Bristol eateries – BANK, a contemporary neighbourhood restaurant in Totterdown, and The Granary on Welsh Back – are on the three-strong shortlist for the Restaurant of the Year Award, while Noah’s, a family-run fish & chip restaurant and seafood kitchen near the Cumberland Basin, is in the running for the Casual Dining Award.
Noah’s, described by The Guardian restaurant critic Grace Dent as ‘One of the nicest restaurants I’ve come across in years’, is also a finalist in the New Tourism Business category, along with Sparks, the creative arts hub in the former Marks & Spencer store in Broadmead.
Coombe Lodge at Blagdon hopes to be crowned Wedding Venue of the Year, with Bristol Harbour Hotel’s CBD Stress at HarSPA underground wellness centre hoping to land Gold in the Spa & Wellbeing Experience of the Year category having won Silver last year.
Boutique luxury hotel Berwick Lodge is a contender for the Ethical, Responsible & Sustainable Tourism Award.
In total, there are 28 categories, with two special awards to be unveiled at the ceremony, which will take place at Batch Country House in Lympsham, near Weston-super-Mare.
The scheme has an ‘outstanding’ accreditation from quality standard organisation Trustmark, which recognises its rigorous judging process.
Each finalist underwent a thorough evaluation that included an in-depth review of entry forms, online presence, and, in most cases, an on-site visit.
All participants, whether winners or not, receive detailed feedback on their entries.
Awards director Nell Barrington said, “We were delighted with the number and quality of entrants this year including many small businesses who had entered for the first time.
“We look forward to celebrating all their achievements on awards night.”
Winners from a number of categories will go forward to represent the region in the 2025 national VisitEngland Awards.
