Walkhighlands beat stiff competition from the National Trust for Scotland and Wilderness Scotland to win the innovation category of the Scottish Thistle Awards, from a field of almost 70 entrants.
The award was presented by veteran comedian Ronnie Corbett, who confirmed that he was indeed the first person to climb all the Corbetts and that they were named after him. This conversation took place during an evening when much food and drink was consumed and we may have misheard him slightly.
VisitScotland’s Thistle Awards are regarded as the Oscars of the tourism industry and are now in their 17th year. Commenting on the awards, Finance minister John Swinney MSP stressed that innovation is vital for the growth of the industry and described the Thistle winners as having been “singled out by their peers as being the best of the best.”
Phillip Riddle, Chief Executive of VisitScotland, emphasised the importance of tourism to the economy of Scotland saying, “This year it has been harder than ever to decide on the shortlist and then to make the final decision on the winners. The judges sought entries where businesses or individuals demonstrated a strong commitment to providing quality products, fantastic visitor experiences and outstanding customer service.”
“The Scottish Thistle Awards are now firmly established as the benchmark of excellence and innovation across Scottish Tourism. Customers of enterprises that have won a Scottish Thistle Award can be assured that they will experience the very best of what Scotland has to offer”.
Walkhighlands was cited by the judges as as an exemplar of collaboration and design, and for being an inspiring one-stop shop for walkers. Co-founder and partner Paul Webster said, “We’re amazed to have won the award. Building the site has felt like scaling a mountain range at times, but this makes it worthwhile. It’s brilliant for a small business like ours to be recognised in this way and we look forward to working with more tourism providers to bring business to the Highlands in the future and to continue to expand to showcase the fantastic walking Scotland has to offer.”