Eden Project wins Best UK Leisure Attraction at travel industry Oscars

November 3, 2011

The Eden Project has been named Best UK Leisure Attraction at the British Travel Awards 2011.

The announcement was made last night (Wednesday November 2) at a Gala Awards Dinner held at Battersea Evolution in London, attended by more than a thousand travel industry people.

The Natural History Museum and the London Eye were also nominated in the same category.

The awards ceremony was a successful night for Cornwall. As well as the Eden honour, Cornwall was declared winner in the Best UK Holiday County or Region category and St. Ives won Best UK Seaside Town.

Collecting the Best UK Leisure attraction award on behalf of the project, Eden Operations Director Ian Williams said: “This year is Eden’s tenth anniversary and it has been a momentous 12 months for the project. A year ago we suffered a massive flood which caused millions of pounds worth of damage but we bounced back quickly to enjoy a memorable year including the anniversary celebrations, a great Eden Sessions season and our first summer residency with the brilliant NoFit State circus.

“On top of this we re-invented our catering with the installation of the Eden Bakery in the area which suffered the most damage in the flood. This award is a tribute to the entire team who have worked so hard to make this an epic year. The fact that the general public voted us best attraction in such esteemed company makes this award very special and is a great springboard for our next ten years.

"Next year, 2012, will be a challenging one for the UK travel industry. This award marks Eden and Cornwall as must-see destinations for UK tourists next year."

British Travel Awards’ chief executive Lorraine Barnes Burton said: “The British Travel Awards is the largest awards programme in the UK, created to reward travel companies, with the winning accolade being the benchmark for excellence when it comes to finding out who really is the best in the business of travel for the UK consumer. This year the competition was fierce and Eden is to be congratulated on their achievement.”

Companies were nominated by travel industry professionals before being voted for by the British public, including readers of News International publications, listeners of LBC and readers of the British Travel Awards magazine Check-In http://www.magazine.btacheckin.com. In 2011 over 700,000 votes were cast with the results scrutinized and audited by Deloitte LLP.