Outback tourism nab nine prizes at 2021 Qld tourism awards

They were one of three big wins for outback tourism operators at the black tie gala in Brisbane on Friday night.

Matching them was Beef Australia's gold medals in the Major Event and Food Tourism categories in its inaugural appearance at the state's major tourism awards.

The Neal's five star glamping experience on the outskirts of Longreach opened its doors in July 2020, when the national COVID-19 lockdown had curtailed life as most knew it.

Despite that enormous hurdle, the Mitchell Grass Retreat attracted plenty of new business plus the New Tourism Business gold award.

"It's special because opening basically into COVID was fairly hard and the months leading up to that were very tough, not being able to operate, although being virtually ready to go," Mr Neal said. "It's been amazing to build something, start something and be able to run something - so this is wonderful."

Outback Queensland had 22 nominees in the running for all the awards, highlighting their role in regenerating the Queensland tourism economy throughout the pandemic, and providing excellent tourism offerings.

It was the region's most successful tourism year to date, reflected in the nine awards nabbed, three gold, three silver and three bronze.

Other gold awardees included the Julia Creek Caravan Park, the winner of the Caravan and Holiday Parks award, and Longreach's Visitor Information Centre, which won the Visitor Information Services accolade.

McKinlay Shire Council tourism coordinator Georgia Crocker said she thought it was fair to say they punched above their weight in Julia Creek.

"2021 just blew us out of the water," she said.

After revising expectations of visitor numbers way down, thanks to border closures and lockdowns further afield, they had a bumper tourist season of unprecedented demand for the accommodation and artesian bathhouses at the Julia Creek Caravan Park.

"From a small town of just 500 people, this nomination is a testament to the momentum we have been building over the past decade," she said.

Leigh Hook, the tourism executive officer with the Longreach Visitor Information Centre said the gold award for visitor information services was something she'd dreamed of since taking on her role.

She thanked the Longreach Regional Council for its support.

Silver award winners included ibis Styles Mount Isa (3-3.5 star accommodation), the Balonne Shire Council (Visitor Information Services), and the Australian Age of Dinosaurs and Museum of Natural History at Winton (Major Tourist Attraction).

The Qantas Founders Museum received two bronze awards, in the cultural tourism and major tourist attraction sections, along with the Big Red Bash's bronze award in the festivals and events category.

The entire Beef 21 team was over the moon to have been announced best Major Event and Best Food Tourism Event for 2021.

Beef Australia board chairman Bryce Camm said it was thrilling to see Beef 21 acknowledged as the state's best among a premium line-up.

"It was a massive team effort to deliver Beef 21 in May, given the many challenges that COVID restrictions and measures threw at us," he said.

"This award is a tribute to the dedicated staff and volunteers, the generosity of our sponsors, exhibitors and suppliers and the 110,000-plus guests who passed through the gates."

More than 1100 operators and guests gathered in Brisbane on Friday to celebrate their efforts and resilience over the past two challenging years.

Queensland Tourism Industry Council chief executive Daniel Gschwind said the 36^th annual awards offered a timely platform to showcase Queensland's iconic Indigenous tourism experiences.

"After a pause in the awards program last year, it is time to shake off the gloom, look forward and celebrate this great industry, its people and its future," Mr Gschwind said.

"This year's entrants, across the 31 business, event and individual categories, are a demonstration of the strength and calibre of the state's tourism operators - all of whom have been able to adapt to the circumstances of the pandemic and continue to do great things during ongoing challenges."

A total of 81 awards, including 32 gold, 26 silver and 23 bronze awards were presented across 31 categories

Mr Gschwind said the awards came at a critical and exciting time as Australia began to open up to the world.

In Queensland, domestic overnight visitor expenditure increased by 6.7 per cent year-on-year to $16.3 billion, on the back of visitation increasing by 1.6 per cent to 20.8 million.

"Thanks to these visitors, Queensland was one of the fastest states in its domestic recovery from COVID-19, with these results continuing to support more than 234,000 jobs across all regions of Queensland," Mr Gschwind said.

"There is enormous pent-up demand coming from those southern states and the announcement that Queensland will open its border before Christmas gives us something to celebrate."

Select category winners gain automatic entry into the Qantas Australian Tourism Awards, to be held on the Sunshine Coast on March 18 next year.

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