Festival of Flight in running for tourism award

Festival of Flight in running for tourism award

20 September 2017

THE international Festival of Flight which attracts over 100,000 visitors to Newcastle is in line for a prestigious tourism award.

The flagship tourist event has been shortlisted in the best Northern Ireland festival category in the Province’s annual hospitality awards which take place next month.

Confirmation the event is in the running for an award comes after the Newry, Mourne and Down Council area was nominated as one of the ‘top 100 green tourist destinations in Europe.’ The winning region will be unveiled on World Tourism Day next week at a gala ceremony in Portugal.    

The award nominations are the latest in a string of announcements recognising the continued growth of tourism in the region which has included some the district’s top tourism attractions being acknowledged as offering outstanding visitor experiences. 

Down County Museum and Slieve Gullion Forest Park have both recently been awarded four-star quality status as part of Tourism NI’s Quality Assurance Scheme for visitor attractions.    

Council chairwoman, Roisin Mulgrew, said the district’s “epic tourism events” such as the Festival of Flight, the area’s beautiful environment and natural heritage and fantastic visitor attractions are just some of the many aspects that make the region so unique and awe-inspiring for visitors.

She continued: “Growth of the tourism industry is one of the key priorities of Newry, Mourne and Down Council and I’m pleased that these latest award announcements and nominations recognise the very best of our tourism offering and our continued commitment in making this district one of the premier tourism destinations on the island of Ireland.”

This year’s Festival of Flight was part of the highly successful Giant Adventures series of festivals which has drawn record crowds including the Footsteps in the Forest, Skiffie Festival and Wake the Giant events.

The Giant Adventure programme of events draws to a close with the inaugural City of Merchants Festival in Newry which starts on September 29. This new three day festival will celebrate Newry’s rich maritime and industrial heritage through a huge programme of events, entertainment, food and drink.