Awards & Accolades
The Great Walks of Australia have been humbly rewarded during the tourism awards season this year.
Firstly, recognising consistently high standards of business excellence across the 2013/14 financial year, Twelve Apostles Lodge Walk (formerly bothfeet) was awarded a finalist gong (runner up) in the Adventure Tourism category at the Victorian Tourism Awards on October 25th.
Then just a week later in Tasmania, Cradle Mountain Huts Walk and The Maria Island Walk were recognised with a silver and bronze award respectively in the same category of Adventure Tourism. And Bay of Fires Lodge Walk was awarded the silver medal in the Eco Tourism category.
The Larapinta Trail by World Expeditions was voted the Most Outstanding Travel Product by the Australian Society of Travel Writers at their recent awards in Sydney and, to cap off a week of recognition, The Maria Island Walk topped the Vogue magazine’s list of top things to do this summer: a prestigious honour.
“Whilst winning awards is not why we are in business, it is lovely to be recognised for the consistency and excellence of our world class experiences.” acknowledged Dana Ronan, Chair, Great Walks of Australia.
Ends.
Bothfeet, the leading Victorian-based walking operator, is now known as Twelve Apostles Lodge Walk. The name change, and accompanying re-branding, is designed to more accurately describe the company’s popular walk along Victoria’s South West Coast which culminates at the iconic Twelve Apostles.
Dana Ronan, Director of Twelve Apostles Lodge Walk, explained the reason for the new name: “We felt that Twelve Apostles Lodge Walk was a more apt name and explains how the company has evolved over the last ten years. We are now just focusing on this one popular walk, so it made sense to have the same company name as the product name. In addition, when we built the eco-lodge at Johanna Beach in 2008, it immediately became a pivotal component of the product. So, in short, Twelve Apostles Lodge Walk describes exactly who we are and what we do!”
The price of the Twelve Apostles Lodge Walk includes return Melbourne transfers to the Twelve Apostles, daily gourmet meals including morning and afternoon teas, non-alcoholic drinks, gear hire AND a scenic helicopter flight over the Twelve Apostles. There is no single supplement for single travellers and they are catered for in single rooms.
Tasmania’s acclaimed The Maria Island Walk is delighted to be selected and featured online as the No 1 thing to do in the ‘35 things to do in Australia this summer’ list by Australia’s highly respected and leading travel, design and cultural magazine, Vogue Living.
Ian Johnstone, owner of The Maria Island Walk, says “we are honoured by this wonderful acknowledgement from Vogue Living and proud to be recognised as one of the top things to do in Australia this summer. Our guests have been telling us for years that our walk has been one of the best things they have done – this follows on from being selected as a finalist in the Adventure Tourism category in the 2014 Tasmanian Tourism Awards”.
The Maria Island Walk is a luxury four day guided walking holiday that takes place off the east coast of Tasmania on the world heritage listed Maria Island. The experience treats guests to luxury accommodation, spectacular scenery including walking along pristine beaches and through old blue-gum forests, encounters with rare Tasmanian wildlife and fascinating history.
The Maria Island Walk is delighted to have received eighteen reviews on TripAdvisor this season, with all guests selecting the highest possible score – excellent.
TripAdvisor, the world’s largest travel site, offers trusted advice from real travellers and a wide variety of travel choices.
“If I could give more than 5 stars, I would!”
“Fantastic attention to detail to make the whole experience so amazing and enjoyable.”
“Highlight of our Australian vacation.”
Owner, Ian Johnstone said of this remarkable achievement, “having our family owned and operated business recognised in this way by our guests, is the best type of accolade we could wish for. To know we’re succeeding at delivering exceptional Tasmanian experiences through TripAdvisor is fantastic and it makes me very proud of our team.”
To read the full reviews, click here.
Six of the Great Walks of Australia feature in the Australian Traveller 100 Greatest Holidays of Australia list. Some 12,000 nominations were accepted and after some serious short listing, 20 of Australia’s most well travelled people were invited to rate each holiday.
Here are the results:
#13 Walk the Freycinet Experience – Tasmania
#16 Become a Firewalker with Bay of Fires Lodge Walk – Tasmania
#22 Hike the Overland Track with Cradle Mountain Huts Walk – Tasmania
#25 Trek The Maria Island Walk – Tasmania
#32 Trail The Great Ocean Track with bothfeet – Victoria
#56 Follow the Larapinta Trail with World Expeditions – Northern Territory
To view the full list, click here
For the first time this year, Cradle Mountain Huts Walk will be offering a limited number of winter walks. So grab your boots for an unforgettable winter walk in Tasmania when the crowds are gone, the air is crisp and the Overland Track beckons with winter adventure.
Departure Dates:
July – Saturday 5 July; Saturday 19 July 2014
August – Monday 4 August; Saturday 16 August 2014
September – Saturday 13 Septembers 2014
For more information: http://www.cradlehuts.com.au/winter-walks/
