Still on a high after our recent success as being crowned “Best Tour Company” in the 2019 Cotswolds Awards, this week we were thrilled to learn that we have been shortlisted for a 2020 West Midlands Tourism Award!

What are the West Midlands Tourism Awards? 

Facilitated by the West Midlands Growth Company (WMGC), the West Midlands Tourism Awards is a celebration of tourism businesses across the West Midlands area, including venues, people, experiences and attractions. 

According to the Awards’ website, the Awards “also serve to highlight the importance of tourism’s contribution to the regional economy – currently standing at £12.6 bn – which the WMGC, with their industry partners, seeks to grow over the coming 10 years, using major events including UK City of Culture 2021 in Coventry and the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games as a springboard.”

There are 15 Awards categories in the West Midlands Tourism Awards. The winners of each category will not only be crowned regional champions, but will also be put forward to be in with a chance of receiving “the highest accolade in English tourism”: a VisitEngland Award for Excellence. 

How did Go Cotswolds become a finalist?

In the Cotswolds Awards, we were nominated by a person or persons who clearly love us (!), and were then voted for to win by friends, family, customers and anyone we could persuade to vote! However, these regional awards are a bit different. 

This time, we submitted our own application to be considered for an award in the International Tourism category. It was quite a lengthy application form, which involved detailed descriptions about what we do and why we think we should receive an award. The shortlist was drawn up by the WMGC, and we were gobsmacked to be among the finalists! 

What happens next?

The winners of each category will be decided by a panel of industry experts. The judging process involves further scrutiny of our application, and a visit by one of these panellists sometime in the next week or so, so they can experience first hand what we do! A videographer is also going to film us for a short movie that will be used to introduce us at the Awards ceremony, which takes place in Birmingham on the 26th February 2020. 

Fingers crossed!

The full shortlists for each category haven’t been announced yet, but we’re sure to be up against some stiff competition. It would be out-of-this-world to win an award, but we are remaining hopeful but realistic. It’s incredible just to be shortlisted!