The National Trust Giant’s Causeway is the UKs Best Heritage Attraction according to voters of the nation’s largest consumer poll, the British Travel Awards.
Northern Ireland’s best-loved landmark scooped gold at the glamorous gala awards ceremony held in London on 25 November attended by close to a thousand travel industry people.
The Giant’s Causeway, comprised of thousands of interlocking basalt columns – evidence of a dynamic and transformative period in our earth’s history – is Northern Ireland’s first World Heritage Site as well as its most visited tourist attraction.
The National Trust team at the Giant’s Causeway regularly welcomes thousands of daily visitors offering a first-class visitor experience and a warm welcome to travellers from across the world.
Esther Dobbin, Commercial and Visitor Operations manager, said: ‘Our team have worked so hard to deliver exceptional customer service. This is the first time it has been won by a Northern Ireland attraction. The awards are voted for by visitors which makes them all the more special. We are really passionate about what we do, and I’m so proud of our entire team. This is great for the National Trust and for Northern Ireland’.
This is the second year that the Giant’s Causeway has been nominated in the awards, having won bronze last year. It is also the first ever win for the National Trust in this category. The Giant’s Causeway had competition from National Maritime Museum Cornwall and Sterling Castle and last year’s winner, Edinburgh Castle.
British Travel Awards’ chief executive Lorraine Barnes Burton said: ‘More than a quarter of a million consumers voted this year to determine the winners of the 2015 British Travel Awards – it’s the largest awards program in the UK and to win is a clear statement that companies are providing excellence in travel to the discerning consumer. The travelling public regard the British Travel Awards winners logo as the benchmark for excellence when it comes to finding out who are the best travel companies and National Trust Giant’s Causeway is to be congratulated on their achievement.’
The British Travel Awards is a proudly independent organisation, verified by leading global accountancy practitioners Deloitte.