Chester Zoo and Nothe Fort among Visit England Awards winners

Chester Zoo, Nothe Fort and Black Country Living Museum are among the 19 winners of this year's Visit England Awards for Excellence.

Picking up the Large Visitor Attraction of the Year award, Chester Zoo pipped Bletchley Park (Silver award) and Pensthorpe Natural Park (Bronze award) in Norfolk to the gong.

Nothe Fort – Weymouth's Historic Sea Fort in Dorset – was named Small Visitor Attraction of the Year, beating other finalists Royal Liver Building 360 (Silver) and the British Music Experience (Bronze), both located on Merseyside.

Meanwhile, Black Country Living Museum was given the Resilience and Innovation Award.

The awards – which have been running for more than 30 years – celebrate and champion innovation, quality and best practice across the industry, recognising businesses and individuals who raise the bar of England’s tourism offer.

The winners were announced at an evening ceremony at the Library of Birmingham on 8 June, hosted by broadcaster and author Clare Balding.

The ceremony was held live for the first time since 2019, due to the pandemic restrictions on gatherings in 2020 and 2021.

VisitEngland Advisory Board Chair Nick de Bois CBE said: “It is wonderful to see the Awards event back in-person, giving us the opportunity to come together, celebrate and congratulate the best-of-the-best across England’s world-class tourism industry.

“From an accessible and inclusive sailing school to a family-run rural glamping site and an immersive living museum, these awards highlight the outstanding quality, the innovation and the customer service excellence across our industry. All these businesses are winners in every sense.

“Millions of jobs and local economies depend on tourism and this year’s awards also highlight the dedication of tourism businesses as they rebuild, championing best practice and providing visitors with first-class experiences.”

For the full list of winners, click here.