Region’s Top Visitor Spots Make Tourism Awards Shortlist
The shortlist for the 2027 North East England Tourism Awards has been revealed after a record number of entries.
The best places to visit, taste, stay and experience will be competing for the region’s top tourism accolades as the shortlist for the 2027 North East England Tourism Awards is revealed.
Delivered by Experience North East England in partnership with the national VisitEngland Awards for Excellence, the awards have celebrated the region’s visitor economy for almost two and a half decades.
Independent judges have carefully considered a record number of entries to shortlist the best accommodation providers, venues, eateries, attractions and experiences, which will be subject to a rigorous second round of judging by independent experts. Pre-announced or mystery shopper judging visits, depending on the category, will take place before a final line-up of winners are revealed in Spring 2027.
The awards champion the businesses and people who work tirelessly, year-round to attract more than 69 million visitors, celebrating outstanding customer service, innovation and the unforgettable experiences the North East of England is famous for.
Winning a North East England Tourism Award is a recognised mark of excellence and quality, with previous winners reporting an increase in bookings, visitors, profile and visibility as an outcome of participating in the awards. Winners also have the chance to compete nationally at the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence in June 2027.
The awards programme features a range of wrap-around business support including expert webinars and customer experience workshops designed to help businesses improve and develop their offer for visitors from around the world.
The shortlist announcement comes as entries open for four extra, specially designed local categories, giving businesses an extra opportunity to go for gold at the ceremony in March 2027.
These four categories are designed to showcase more of the North East’s unique places, businesses and people, with Festival or Event of the Year and Rising Star of the Year returning alongside the newly created Cultural or Live Venue of the Year and Independent Business of the Year joining the category line-up.
These local categories join the 16 core categories set by VisitEngland, which closed for entries in August; winners of these categories become eligible for consideration at the national finals in June 2027.
Businesses have until 9th November 2026 at 12 pm to enter the newly announced categories at https://experiencenortheastengland.co.uk/neeta
We want more people to come here and experience all our region’s treasures, from our world-renowned history and heritage to our dramatic coastlines and beautiful countryside. These incredible finalists represent the diverse array of experiences, places and people visitors will discover when they come here, and they show why North East England is such a fantastic, welcoming and unforgettable place to visit.
The North East England Tourism Awards offer us an opportunity to celebrate the incredible, hard-working businesses and people who make this industry tick and who work so hard to make every experience unforgettable for millions of visitors. It is fantastic to see yet another record-breaking number of entries and such a diverse array of businesses, of all shapes and sizes, represented.
These awards are all about celebrating the people, businesses and experiences that make our region such a special place to visit. As we work towards our ambition to double the value of the visitor economy, championing excellence and showcasing the quality and diversity of our sector has never been more important. A huge congratulations to all our 2027 finalists.
This event is led by destination marketing agency Experience North East England, working in partnership with Visit Northumberland, Visit County Durham and NewcastleGateshead Local Visitor Economy Partnerships (LVEPs) and all seven local authorities to recognise excellence across the North East’s visitor economy.
