Izzy Bee, The Cowboys and The Ville: Top winners at Townsville’s tourism awards

Some of Townsville’s biggest venues and names have been celebrated at this year’s tourism awards in a continuing sign of strong results for the visitor economy. SEE THE LIST.

Daniel Shirkie

2 min read

October 14, 2022 - 10:30PM

Townsville Bulletin

Some of Townsville’s biggest venues and names have been celebrated at the North Queensland Tourism and Events Awards.

News

Don't miss out on the headlines from News. Followed categories will be added to My News.

North Queensland’s biggest events and tourism hot spots have been identified after the winners of the 2022 North Queensland Tourism and Events Awards were notified late on Friday.

The annual slate of awards saw a number of surprise winners crowned this year, after a tumultuous 12 months following on from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Townsville Enterprise’s Director of Visitor Economy and Marketing Lisa Woolfe said the awards had accrued strong interest this year across the People’s Choice round.

“We received more than 17,000 votes over the four-week voting period across the Award’s six People’s Choice Categories – a record number for this event and a great sign of support for our industry,” Ms Woolfe said.

In pictures: Who’s who of Townsville Tourism frocks up

VIEW GALLERY

In total 16 winners were announced, with a number of deserving runner ups also receiving recognition.

Among the mainstays, familiar faces once again found success as The Ville Resort-Casino was recognised in the accommodation category, and Texas Longhorn Tours won the best Tour and Attraction award.

The importance of sport to the region was highlighted by the Cowboys two blockbuster XXXX Derby matches being awarded best major event, as well as the Laurie Spina Shield competition taking out the award for best destination event after bringing thousands to the city earlier this year.

“It was great to see the North Queensland Cowboys (Cowboys v Broncos) receive the Best Major Event and the North Australian Festival of Arts as the runner up,” Ms Woolfe said.

“A perfect example of the diversity of our region’s events calendar and the important role the Cowboys play in visitation to the city.”

Queensland Country Bank stadium hosted some of the biggest games of the year.

Magnetic Island also cemented it’s sport as one of the region’s top tourism destinations across a number of categories.

“Magnetic Island continually punches above its weight

when it comes to the exceptional destination experiences and it’s clear our locals and visitors agree,” Mrs Woolfe said.

“We were also thrilled to announce Izzy Bee from Netflix’s Izzy’s Koala World, Magnetic Island local and our latest tourism campaign Ambassador as the recipient of the Young Achiever Award.”

Bee, 15, is now the youngest ever recipient of the award after making headlines earlier this year with her starring role in her own streaming series.

Every award winner:

Winners

Accommodation

Winner: The Ville Resort-Casino

Runner Up: Kernow Charters Towers

Dining

Winner: Cowboys Leagues Club

Runner Up: A Touch Of Salt

Tours and Attraction

Winner: Texas Longhorns Tours

Runner Up: Pilgrim Sailing