The winners of the 2004 Excellence in England Tourism Awards were announced on Friday – St George’s Day – and saw television presenter, Judith Chalmers, win the Outstanding Contribution to Tourism Award.

Recognised for three decades of presenting Wish You Were Here…?, Chalmers follows previous recipients including Her Majesty the Queen, Harry Potter and Manchester United.

The awards, organised by VisitBritain as part of its Enjoy England campaign, were presented by His Royal Highness the Duke of Kent in a ceremony held at Kensington Palace.

Chair of VisitBritain, Sir Michael Lickiss, said: “Domestic tourism is flourishing and we are optimistic about prospects for 2004.

“The awards are an important way of recognising the people who ensure domestic tourists and international visitors have a world-class experience when visiting England.”

Of the gold and silver award winners on the night, Chalmers was one of 11 gold winners.

In the hospitality categories, Swinton Park hotel in North Yorkshire won Small Hotel of the Year, while The Lowry in Manchester was named Large Hotel of the Year.

Field House in Hindringham, Norfolk, won the Bed & Breakfast of the Year Award and Far Grange Caravan Park in North Yorkshire won Caravan Holliday Park of the Year, while the Thatched Cottage Company in Devon won the Self-catering Holiday of the Year.

Visitor attractions recognised included the National Portrait Gallery in London, which won the Tourism for All award. The Natural History Museum, also in London, won Large Visitor Attraction of the Year and the Thackray Museum in Leeds won Small Visitor Attraction of the Year. The British Airways London Eye took the award for Tourism Website of the Year.

Salisbury Tourist Information Centre (TIC) in Wiltshire won the TIC of the Year award

VisitBritain chief executive, Tom Wright, said: “I’m delighted with the exceptional quality offered by the winners in this year’s Excellence in England Tourism Awards – this reflects the ever-increasing quality of England’s tourism product.”

VisitBritain also revealed the results of its business confidence survey on Friday, which showed businesses are expecting a great year – anticipating Britons will spend a record £22bn on overnight trips in England. Details: www.visitbritain.com