BIG4 Castlemaine Gardens Holiday Park has won Silver in the Excellence in Accessible Tourism category at the 2024 Victorian Tourism Awards. The award was announced at a recent gala ceremony at Palladium at Crown in Melbourne.
The Victorian Tourism Awards are hosted annually by the Victorian Tourism Industry Council (VTIC) to honour business excellence and performance within the industry.
BIG4 Castlemaine owner Claire Height said she was delighted to achieve recognition for the park’s commitment to providing accessible accommodation and holiday information and experiences for mobility-impaired guests.
“This award is particularly important to me and the BIG4 Castlemaine team,” “Ms Height said. “There can be significant, and often unnecessary, barriers to traveling or holidaying for people with a disability as well as the many people who benefit from improved access, including the elderly.
“It’s an important issue and opportunity many tourism operators could do more to support. BIG4 Castlemaine is committed to planning and delivering accessibility and inclusion wherever we can in the business, to enhance the guest experience.”
The park offers a specially modified three-bedroom luxury villa which features extra wide doorways for easy wheelchair or mobility aid access, an over-size master bedroom suite with king-size bed and a huge bathroom featuring a walk-in or roll-in shower and handrails and grabrails for support.
It also has a large, dedicated wheelchair and special needs-friendly bathroom for use by guests as required and accessible bathroom cubicles within its main male and female amenity blocks.
A Sensory Garden has also been installed offering guests a peaceful retreat and a space to connect with the sights, sounds, smells and textures of nature, and the park’s new Workspace Hub, a business and meeting space for guests working while on the road, has accessible access and an accessible washroom.
Detailed information about the park’s accessibility standards and offerings as well as information about accessibility in Castlemaine and the surrounding area features on the park’s website.
“Improving accessibility can seem challenging, especially for small businesses,” Ms Height said. “While providing accommodation facilities is certainly a major investment, it’s possible to start with smaller things like a rubber ramp at the door or space for a wheelchair to manoeuvre and fit at a table.
“I encourage all tourism businesses to make accessibility and inclusivity part of their planning, staff training, marketing and their communications with guests and visitors.”
People with a disability spend $8 billion a year on Australian tourism accounting for 11 per cent of total tourism expenditure, according to Business Victoria.
BIG4 Castlemaine Gardens Holiday Park won Gold in the caravan and holiday parks category at the 2021 Victorian Tourism Awards and Silver in the same category in 2023. It also picked up the Peter Buttigieg Innovation Award at the Victorian Caravan Parks Association’s 2024 Caravan Park Award.
BIG4 Castlemaine’s accommodation range includes luxurious glamping options and family villas, comfortable studios and powered and unpowered sites.
