Stratford-upon-Avon recognised in 2011 Group Travel Awards

Stratford-upon-Avon has received another prestigious award from the 2011 Group Travel Awards. The town has been voted runner-up in the category of Best UK Destination for Groups.

The awards were presented in over 20 categories at a ceremony held at London's Park Plaza Riverbank Hotel in June.

The Group Travel Awards is the annual celebration of the very best suppliers to the group travel industry. Each year the 10,000 readers of Group Travel Organiser magazine are asked to vote for who they think are the best suppliers in more than 20 categories.

Councillor Valerie Hobbs, Enterprise, Housing & Revenues Portfolio says: “This is fantastic news for Stratford-upon-Avon's tourism sector and demonstrates the towns appeal as a group-friendly destination and great news for everyone involved in the visitor welcome.  We are absolutely delighted to be awarded runner up this year and are committed to offering the highest standards."

Latest figures* show that tourists visiting the Stratford-on-Avon District spend £335 million a year on accommodation, sight-seeing, shopping and dining out. 4.9 million trips are undertaken, made up of 3.7 million on day trips and approximately 1.2 million overnight visits.

*Latest figures taken from the Tourism Economic Impact Assessment report produced in January 2011.

This year's winner was York.  Other contenders  were Blackpool, Canterbury, Eastbourne, Hull, Isle of Wight and London.

Group Travel Organiser magazine, the UK's first and leading publication exclusively addressing the needs of group travel organisers. GTO was first published in 1988 and over the past 19 years has brought a wealth of news, information and ideas for group trips to organisers all over Great Britain. The magazine is still published ten times a year and mailed to 10,000 individuals, along with numerous supplements on particular countries, regions and subjects of interest to groups.

This award follows Stratford-upon-Avon raking sixth in the UK's best destinations by the world's largest travel website, TripAdvisor.