CARAVAN parks collected a swag of gongs as they competed with other tourist attractions in nationwide 'best of' awards.

Cairns Coconut Caravan Resort owner Geoff Olholm and Jenny Tonkin at the Queensland Tourism Awards presentations

The BIG4 chain of caravan parks featured prominently in the awards, with some members earning a place in next February's prestigious National Tourism Awards in Canberra.

In South Australia, reigning National Tourism Award winner Adelaide Shores Caravan Resort again showed its winning ways by scooping the State's top award in the 2007 Tourism and Caravan Parks category ... for the sixth year in a row.

The four-and-a-half-star, 402-site park is a member of the BIG4 chain.

Its sister property, Adelaide Shores Holiday Village, pulled off its fourth successive win in the Deluxe Accommodation category.

Chief executive Gareth Smith said: "It's a great honour for Adelaide Shores to be consistently recognised by the industry as State leaders in accommodation. We also get great satisfaction from the fact that our guests return to us year after year – they 'vote' for us with their feet. Providing guests with a great experience is the cornerstone of our success."

Australia’s leading eco-friendly tourist park – Lane Cove River Tourist Park – blitzed the field at the 2007 NSW Tourism Awards, winning the Tourist and Caravan Parks category.

It was the first time the park, located in Sydney’s north, has been a finalist in the prestigious industry awards.

Lane Cove beat worthy tourist and caravan parks including the Trial Bay Eco Tourist Park in South West Rocks, Soldiers Point Holiday park in Nelson Bay, Holiday Hub Beach Resort at Pambula Beach and Austin Tourist Park in Tamworth.

Lane Cove manager Andrew Daff said the award "caps off an outstanding year."

The 2007 Victorian Tourism Awards saw the five-star Melbourne BIG4 Holiday Park win top place in the Tourist and Caravan Parks class.

Winners were announced across 26 business categories which saw more than 130 businesses compete for a place in the national finals.

Tourism Minister Tim Holding said: "The awards are an opportunity to recognise those tourism operators and individuals whose commitment to excellence, innovation and professionalism set an ambitious benchmark for the entire industry."

Also in Victoria, the four-and-a-half-star Anglesea Caravan Park was voted the State's best caravan park by the Sunday Herald Sun for its outstanding customer service and broad range of services.

The gong follows a recent upgrading of the 105-site BIG4 park, 109km south-west of Melbourne.

The park also won the 2007 Geelong Business Excellence Awards for Accommodation for the second successive year.

The Queensland Tourism Awards showcased the best of Queensland tourism and saw the five-star Cairns Coconut Caravan Resort continue its winning ways.

The park, which offers 160 sites and is a member of the BIG4 group, carried off first place in the Tourist and Caravan Parks Award category.

During the presentations at the Townsville Entertainment and Convention Centre, StateTourism Minister Desley Boyle paid tribute to the park.

"The Cairns Coconut Caravan Resort has been achieving great things in Cairns for many years and it's great to see it recognised again," she said.

The BIG4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort was a finalist in the same category.

The tourism industry’s night of nights saw the NT's most awarded caravan park added another trophy to its already impressive collection.

Alice Spring's four-and-a-half-star MacDonnell Range Holiday Park was named top Tourist and Caravan Park in the Brolga Northern Territory Tourism Awards.

A member of the BIG4 group, the park offers 273 sites and a range of accommodation from deluxe villas to camping.

Category winners received a $2500 prize package, including support to attend a trade show or tourism conference, increased cooperative advertising support and the waiving of accreditation fees.

Meanwhile in Western Australia, the Merredin Caravan Park and Av-A-Rest Village received an Essential Personnel employer appreciation award for exceptional commitment to employing people with a disability.

The four-star independent park, located between Perth and Kalgoorlie, provides a range of accommodation options from tent sites to motel rooms and luxury villas.

Essential Personnel provides an employment service with a four-star rating, placing it in the top 25 percent of Disability Employment Network providers Australia-wide.
 

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