By Vanessa Cavasinni, editor Australian Hotelier
The list of nominees for each category at the upcoming AHA NSW Awards for Excellence has been released, with a record 40 categories at this year’s awards.
The list of awards is varied, encompassing all facets of running a hotel – from food awards such as Best Casual Dining, Best Burger and Best Steak Venue; to awards as wide-ranging as Best Social Media Activity and Best Sports Bar.
The major award – Best Overall Hotel (City) – has a list of 15 nominees, all of which are noted hotels within Sydney. The list includes last year’s winner, The Oaks, Neutral Bay, and three venues from Merivale (establishment, ivy and Beresford Hotel).
“It is a huge honour for Merivale to receive three nominations in the Hotel of the Year category at this year’s AHA NSW Awards for Excellence,” stated David Clifton, Merivale’s Group Operations Manager. “It is a testament to the talented, driven and passionate teams behind each venue – relentlessly striving for and achieving excellence and delivering world-class experiences to our guests every day”.
Best Overall Hotel (Country) is comprised of 10 venues from regional areas as far-ranging as Wagga Wagga (Kooringal Hotel), Perisher Valley (The Man From Snowy River) and Newcastle (The Lucky Hotel).
AHA NSW CEO, John Whelan, was very impressed with the list of nominees for all of this year’s awards.
“The quality of hotels in NSW really is second to none and that is on show at the Awards for Excellence,” he said.
“These awards are recognition of the hard work put in by hoteliers, their families and staff to provide great entertainment venues for the people of NSW. They have been thoroughly assessed by a team of independent judges and really do represent the best in the business.
“I congratulate the finalists and wish them all the best of luck.”
The Awards for Excellence will be announced on Tuesday 1 December at The Star Event Centre in Pyrmont.