The BIG4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort team shone brightly alongside some of the state’s premier tourism operators at the 38h annual Queensland Tourism Awards, held in tropical Cairns on Friday night.
The gala event showcased Queensland’s world-class tourism offerings with 184 nominations in 31 award categories, ranging from attractions and events, to touring and accommodation.
Winning not one, but two, gold awards, BIG4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort was acknowledged with top honours in the ‘Caravan and Holiday Parks’ category for the sixth time at a state level, while also winning gold in the inaugural ‘Excellence in Accessible Tourism’ category, which was supported by the Palaszczuk Government in recognition of 2023 as the Year of Accessible Tourism.
“This recognition reflects our position, not only as one of Queensland’s most loved family holiday resorts, but also as one of the state’s leading accessible resorts for guests of all abilities,” said BIG4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort owner, Greg McKinnon, who attended the gala event.
“We’ve been told that there was a record number of tourism award entries this year and an increase of 25 percent on last year, so how fantastic is it to see operators in Queensland kicking so many goals. It’s such an exciting time in terms of where the Whitsundays is placed as one of the state’s most desirable holiday destinations and all the contingent of Whitsunday operators who attended, whether finalists or winners, showed their commitment to excellence as a region, which was also reflected in the number of gongs,” said Greg.
On the back on the double gold win, Greg and the BIG4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort team will now join the other Queensland gold winners who are automatically entered into the Australian Tourism Awards to be held in Darwin in March next year.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Minister for Tourism, Innovation and Sport, Stirling Hinchliffe, joined industry leaders and operators to celebrate Queensland’s tourism industry.
“Congratulations to award winners and finalists for creating world-class visitor experiences and helping to make 2023 an extraordinary year for Queensland’s tourism industry,” Mr Hinchliffe said.
“Queensland’s place as the nation’s favourite holiday destination and a record $33.2 billion visitor economy is a credit to the ingenuity and commitment of the State’s tourism operators.
“Thank you to BIG4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort for leadership in all-abilities visitor experiences and as winner of the Palaszczuk Government’s inaugural Excellence in Accessible Tourism Award.”
Owned and operated by the McKinnon family, this year saw the popular Whitsunday resort turn the big 3-0. After three decades of transformation to the multi award-winning property it is today, BIG4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort continues to shine, this past year adding another seven new cabins, developing a range of accessible accommodation and facilities, and finishing construction of its 71-bed “Bunk House” quality dormitory accommodation, catering to the Edutourism and groups market, in particular school groups.
Aiming to minimise obstacles guests may otherwise face, areas of focus this year have included new developments for the vision impaired and those with mobility issues, while also complementing its well-utilised Sensory Room, which caters for children on the autism spectrum and their families by offering a special holiday retreat.
“Winning this award reflects the offerings of our quality tourism product, our ongoing development and our exceptional standards of customer service. We are very aware of always exceeding our guest’s expectations so it is really wonderful for our family and our incredible team to receive these awards. We couldn’t ever achieve this without the support of our guests, many who return time and time again, so we thank them sincerely,” Greg said.
“We extend our congratulations to everyone who entered in the awards process and a huge thanks again to the Queensland Tourism Industry Council for putting on a wonderful night for industry to come together and celebrate. See, Queensland always does it best,” he joked.
BIG4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort offers a relaxed, family friendly environment with an extensive range of quality facilities and services, gorgeous cabins and happy, helpful staff. Set amongst 10 hectares of beautifully landscaped tropical gardens, the resort caters for a variety of budgets with a wide range of accommodation options from camping and caravanning sites to luxury, three-bedroom condos. With over 15 onsite activities including a big, huge, mega waterslide park, lagoon style pool, mini golf, outdoor cinema, Kid’s Club, year-round activities program and much more, BIG4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort offers the ultimate holiday escape. The resort is located in Airlie Beach and has easy access to the Great Barrier Reef, Whitehaven Beach, the Whitsunday Islands and a vast array of trips, water activities and truly memorable Australian holiday adventures. F
