More than 800 of the nation's top tourism identities were in Launceston tonight for the 2018 Australian Tourism Awards on Friday.
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The awards are being held at the Cataract Gorge, with a specially-built marquee constructed over the pool.
The Examiner will be onsite for the event, and will be bringing the winners to you as it happens.
Launceston praised
Attendees have dubbed the Australian Tourism Awards in Launceston last night as one of the best events yet.
More than 800 of the nation's top tourism identities flocked to a makeshift convention centre at the Cataract Gorge.
Guests said they had not seen the level of effort put into the awards before.
Australian Tourism Industry Council chief executive Daniel Gschwind said the council had made the right choice by coming to Launceston.
"You have turned a lovely location into a great experience for us … and that's what tourism is," he said.
Tourism Industry Council Tasmania's chief executive Luke Martin said it was really great to show off the region to the nation.
"This is really two-year vision and a lot of work by a lot of people. What a special way to showcase Tasmania," he said.
The weather was perfect for the event, with the temperature reaching 34 degrees throughout the day.
"It was warm too, so we going dealt with a few misconceptions about Tasmania's climate for some of those Queenslanders and Northern Territorians," he said.
The opportunity was a great way to re-package and show Tasmania to the tourism industry and shine a spotlight on Launceston in particular, he said.
"These awards attract operators from every part of the country. All the who's who and a lot of these people it'll be their first time coming to Tasmania and if not, their first time to Launceston," he said.
"At the end of the day we're going to have 840 advocates and the most influential tourism people in praise of Tasmania and Launceston.
"It's already happening, even my colleagues from around the country have never seen the effort that has gone into hosting these awards like there is in Launceston."
Awards recognise Tasmania
Port Arthur has proven its importance to Tourism in Tasmania.
At the Australian Tourism Awards held in Launceston on Friday night, it took home two gold awards. It was the only Tasmanian finalists to take home gold for Best Cultural Tourism and Major Tourist Attraction.
Port Aurthur's Steve Sowerby was completely overwhelmed at the win.
"To win cultural was amazing, but this is just incredible," he said.
Visiting Tasmania for the second time in as many weeks, the Irwin family was inducted to the tourism Hall of Fame as legends. Terri, Bindi and Bob were overwhelmed at the announcement. Bindi gave a shout out to her dad.
State Winners:
Gold
Port Arthur Historic Sites - Cultural Tourism, Major Tourist Attraction
MAQ01 Hotel - Deluxe Accommodation
Silver
Pennicott Wilderness Adventures - Major Tourism and Transport Operators
Roaring 40s Kayaking - Adventure Tourism
Avalon Coastal Retreat - Self Contained Accommodation
NRMA Port Arthur - Caravans and Holiday Parks
Bronze
Three Capes Track - Ecotourism
Excellence in Food Tourism - Coal River Farm
If you missed the action from last night's ceremony - catch up with our live blog
Read the blog here:
Journalist at The Examiner Newspaper
Journalist at The Examiner Newspaper
