'Jungle Jerry' Francis
Michael Liu
Marylou Pooley and Garry Watson
Bree Winchester and Sarah McDougall
Jane and Andrew Dimoff
Jenny Boyd, Adam Stankevicius and Diane Ireland
'Comedians of Ceremonies' Emo Parsonson, Chris Ryan and Tom Gibson from Comedy ACT
Stefan Staltaire, Paul D'Monte, Penny Nowlan, Jackie McKeown and Candy Yam with at the back Robert and Rachael Batkovic and Roy Lee
Jason Ingram and Lauren Bullman
Mike Welch, Martin Venn and Mike Domin
Erin Collette, Matt Williams and Gil Hugonnet
Carol Sinclair, Allan Williams and Liz Bendeich
Carol Sinclair and Liz Bendeich
Brendan and Dominque Prout with Belinda Beauman and Colin Thomas
Polly Mitton, Cara Becker, Susie Campbell, Alison Wright and Caitlin Taylor
Ian Hill, Alison Wright and Stephen Wood
Jonathan Kobus and Paul Donhoe
Emily Hill, Jerry Francis and Elissa Michel
Jonathan Kobus - Tourism Award winner for Outstanding Contribution by and Individual
Waiting for Uber.....the uber management team from Palace Electric

The Canberra Region Tourism Awards

10 December 2015

The Canberra Region Tourism Awards are our annual showcase of the vitality and vision of the many facets of the tourism industry of our city and the region. It has been over the years the platform for many of the icons of the industry to take their success to the national finals and come back winners, some now happily ensconced in the ‘Hall of Fame’ arena but still contributing to this multi- million dollar industry.

Our “cool little capital” – a title Chief Minister Andrew Barr is proud to say - has become an international listing on the ever sprouted ‘best of’ lists so enamoured of journalists looking for a story hook as we evolve from the Bush Capital with an inferiority complex to a vibrant, unique and ever changing city where slowly but surely the ‘government city’ tag is obtuse.

The national attractions are the major drawcard – as locals we sometimes take them for granted – but they continue to up the ante in creating international exhibitions for the whole country to flock to. And yes we want them to come but it’s the value adding that has grown exponentially and adds so much to what we call the visitor experience.

Our wine region is exceptional, Liquid Geography a perfect name for the experience and the National Arboretum slowly evolving and revealing its pattern and future beauty are among our treasures. The new accommodation growth is extraordinary, there are restaurants, bars, and shopping precincts to explore, entertainment venues that bring in world class acts and IKEA. Yes Ian Hill, director of VisitCanberra, made mention of the impact this new addition will have on the visitor numbers to Canberra. Of course our airport is beautiful and a long way from that wooden shed with the green lino from the early days. It’s the perfect welcome to all.

So the partying at the awards was a celebration of all that we should be proud of and acknowledged those who keep the $1.62 billion coming in and 14,700 people it employs