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Tourism NI announces Diageo as title sponsor of the Northern Ireland Tourism Awards

Photo Caption: Tourism NI has welcomed Diageo as title sponsor of its flagship Northern Ireland Tourism Awards event, now in its 39th year. The leading drinks producer is partnering with Tourism NI at a time of strong growth for the tourism industry which has been enjoying record overseas visitor numbers and hotel occupancy levels. Pictured are Jorge Lopes, Country Director Diageo, left, with Tourism NI Chief Executive John McGrillen. 

Tourism NI has welcomed Diageo as title sponsor of its flagship Northern Ireland Tourism Awards event, now in its 39th year. The leading drinks producer is partnering with Tourism NI at a time of strong growth for the tourism industry which has been enjoying record overseas visitor numbers and hotel occupancy levels.

Tourism NI Chief Executive John McGrillen welcomed the sponsorship;
“We are delighted to have Diageo on board as title sponsor for the Northern Ireland Tourism Awards. Last year tourism went from strength to strength with visitors spending on average £2.4 million every day. Tourism and hospitality businesses across the country worked extremely hard to provide a world class service and welcome to our visitors and it is only right that we take the opportunity to celebrate their contribution to growing the visitor economy. I look forward to working with Jorge and his team at Diageo to make this year’s event in Enniskillen on the 18th May even more successful.”

Jorge Lopes, Country Director for Diageo Northern Ireland, added;
“At Diageo we are committed to playing our part in helping to support and expand Northern Ireland’s tourism and hospitality offering. We know our iconic brands, such as Guinness, Harp and Smithwick’s, are enjoyed by visitors and locals alike and play a key role in the tourism experience.

“As such, we are delighted to sponsor the Northern Ireland Tourism Awards. The Awards provide a great opportunity to celebrate the achievements and successes of our tourism industry here. This is a chance to show our support for all the tourism and hospitality businesses, organisations and initiatives that have shown the ambition and drive to put Northern Ireland firmly on the tourist map.”

The Northern Ireland Tourism Awards bring together tourism and hospitality businesses from across Northern Ireland to celebrate their achievements. A total of twelve tourism awards are up for grabs including Hotel of the Year, Best Marketing Initiative and Most Promising New Tourism Business.

Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased via www.nitourismawards.com