Garden scoops award
ALNWICK GARDEN, one of the jewels in Northumberland’s tourism crown, has had its popularity with visitors rubber-stamped as part of a Visitengland award scheme.
With tourism in the UK currently worth an estimated £127bn annually, and Northumberland recently chosen as Britain’s best county for holidays, Visitengland has announced the winners of its 2018 Attractions Accolades, recognising the quality of visitor experiences.
And Alnwick Garden is the only Northumbrian attraction awarded the Welcome Accolade, scoring 98% for their exemplary welcome shown to visitors.
The creator of the garden, the Duchess of Northumberland, said: “Delivering the highest quality visitor experience and customer service is everything, and to see the team at The Alnwick Garden get the recognition for their hard work is very special.
“This comes on the back of winning Gold in the North East Large Visitor Attraction category, and continues to showcase our goals for the future of the garden and our charity, The Alnwick Garden Trust.”
The Alnwick Garden is the only visitor attraction in the UK with a drop-in centre for the socially isolated, working hard with the community to combat loneliness in the older generation.
Visitengland director Andrew Stokes said: “England is home to world-class attractions right across the country, welcoming visitors throughout the year and offering experiences of the highest quality including excellent food and drink and outstanding customer service.
“It is also really fantastic to see these accolades recognising the work of those employees, managers and owners who make sure that all who pass through their doors have a truly memorable experience.”
The award for The Alnwick Garden comes on the back of Northumberland being awarded first place in the Best UK Holiday County/destination category in the prestigious 2018 British Travel Awards, having been beaten to the top prize by Cornwall for the previous four years.
Lorraine Barnes Burton, chief executive of the British Travel Awards, said: “Northumberland is to be congratulated on winning Best UK Holiday County/destination.
“The British Travel Awards are the only travel industry accolade voted for exclusively by the consumer and the awards serve to recognise all that is great about travel, as experienced by the travelling public. To win a British Travel Award is a true achievement.”