Liverpool and Blackpool win accolades at Group Leisure Awards

LIVERPOOL was named the ‘Best UK City’, while Blackpool won the ‘Best UK Resort’ at the Group Leisure Awards, last night.

The Group Leisure Awards, held at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole and run by Group Leisure magazine, are voted for by group travel organisers.

In Blackpool, new group initiatives for 2011 included developing a range of packages with many of the resort’s top attractions to offer deals for group travel organizers, which can be booked through the resort’s Visitor Services team. 

Cllr Graham Cain, cabinet member for Tourism and Culture for Blackpool Council said: “We are confident that the new developments which have taken place in Blackpool will ensure that our group visitors, past, present and future, enjoy returning for many years to come.”

For Liverpool, the accolade comes just weeks after readers of Condé Nast Traveller voted Liverpool as the UK’s Friendliest City for a second successive year.

Lorraine Rogers, chief executive of The Mersey Partnership, the official Tourist Board for Liverpool City Region, said: “The destination has benefited from major investment in recent years, resulting in new attractions, hotels and events which, together with our rich culture and heritage, play a vital part in attracting first time visitors and encouraging others to return.”