Sussex Businesses Win Big At Beautiful South Tourism Awards

Vine + Country Tours, The Stag Inn, The Gallivant and Drusillas Park were all winners at the annual Beautiful South Tourism Awards.

The awards represent the best of tourism, leisure and hospitality businesses across South-East England. The prestigious awards were announced on Tuesday 13 December at The Grand Brighton.

The team at Stag Inn in Hastings won their category to be named Pub of the Year. Nestled in one of the Old Town’s most historic streets, the cosy sixteenth-century pub, with its inglenook fireplace and regular live music, seamlessly mixes the traditional with the contemporary. This gold award tops off an incredible year for one of Hastings’ quirky favourites as they feature in the Good Food Guide 2022 and have been awarded an AA 2 Rosette Award for Culinary Excellence.

Vine + Country Wine Tours were also among the gold winners of the night, for Experience of the Year (Active or Learning). Duo Steph and Jamie, experts in immersive wine and food tourism, have grown their businesses from strength to strength, partnering with local vineyards at the heart of the UK’s expanding viticulture scene to offer the ultimate in Sussex and Kent Wine tasting at stunning rural locations. Their vineyard lunches have this year been complemented by Shanty Sunday seafood pop-ups with Charles Palmer Vineyards and they’ve recently been busy with their Christmas party packages.

The Gallivant, the boutique hotel on Camber Sands, were the recipient of an impressive four awards, including winning gold for Business Events Venue of the Year. They also received silver accolades in the categories of Hotel of the Year, Restaurant of the Year and Wedding Venue of the Year. Situated right across from the sandy beaches at Camber, near Rye, the venue prides itself on promoting wellness and happiness, and that’s certainly shining through.

Drusillas Park in Alfriston won silver for Large Visitor Attraction of the Year and Accessible and Inclusive Tourism. Since reopening in 2021, Drusillas have added SPARK, a 360-degree sensory play experience to their offer and remain popular with their zoo experiences. Zookeeper Gemma Romanis was singled out, wining silver as an Unsung Hero for her dedication to the park.

This is a huge boost for the tourism and hospitality businesses in 1066 Country, who have seen unprecedented challenges in the sector over the last couple of years. These award stand as testament to their resilience and innovation as they look forward to the future ahead.

Nicole Holt, licensee of The Stag Inn said:
“It was such a wonderful surprise to get this award. Nick and I were thrilled to be just in the top three - we were a little stunned when we actually won the thing! We love The Stag, and we love Hastings, it’s a great, undervalued town and we are so proud to get a mention for the Old Town!  We also love our brilliant staff who have worked their socks off though some weird times over the last five years. So, Ben, Tracy, Natalie and the rest - this is for all of us.”