Queensland's peak tourism celebration were held in Cairns on 24 November 2023 and Bundaberg and the Southern Great Barrier Reef was on show again with our operators, members and partners bringing home 11 awards including 4 Golds and 2 Hall of Fame entries.
Bundaberg Rum Visitor Experience and Fun Over 50 Holidays - Immersive Tours and Adventures were entered into the Queensland Tourism Industry Council’s Hall of Fame, which recognises three consecutive wins in a category. Fun Over 50 Holidays - Immersive Tours has been awarded Gold in the Cultural Tourism category three times, while Bundaberg Rum Visitor Experience's Hall of Fame entry for the Tourist Attractions category is their second, after entering the Hall of Fame in 2021 for the Tourism Wineries, Distilleries and Breweries category.
In the Year of Accessible Tourism, Bundaberg Tourism celebrates Hailey Brown who was awarded the Stephen Gregg Award for Young Achiever of the Year. Hailey is a Queensland entrepreneur who has become a catalyst for change in the tourism industry by creating VacayIt, a tour guide app that is fully audio, allowing people with vision impairment to have an audio guide to the world, which Bundaberg Tourism was proud to be a founding partner of.
There were 31 award categories ranging from attractions, events, tour and transport operators, accommodation, restaurants, culture and marketing with 78 operators were awarded including 31 Gold, 26 Silver and 20 Bronze.
The full list of Bundaberg and Southern Great Barrier Reef award winners are:
Bundaberg Operators & Partners
- Bundaberg Rum Distillery Visitor Experience - Gold & Hall of Fame - Tourist Attractions
- Fun Over 50 Holidays - Immersive Tours and Adventures - Gold & Hall of Fame - Cultural Tourism
- Fun Over 50 Holidays - Immersive Tours and Adventures - Gold - The Steve Irwin Award for Ecotourism
- Lady Musgrave Experience - Silver - Unique Accommodation
- Hailey Brown - Young Achievers Award
SGBR Operators & Partners
- Rockhampton Regional Council / Explore Rockhampton - Gold - The Richard Power Award for Tourism Marketing and Campaigns
- Empire Apartment Hotel Conference Centre - Silver - Business Events Venue
- 1770 LARC! Tours - Silver - Tour and Transport Operators
- Great Keppel Island Hideaway - Silver - 3-3.5 Star Accommodation
- Empire Apartment Hotel - Silver - 4-4.5 Star Accommodation
- Rare Spares Rockynats 03 - Bronze - Major Festivals and Events
