awards

chill-out holiday accommodation awards

chill-out beachside @ forster

Local business chill-out beachside @ forster named finalist in prestigious accommodation award

(22nd November, 2010) – Local accommodation supplier, chill-out beachside @ forster has been named as a state finalist in its category in the fourth annual TakeABreak Awards.

The awards – run by Australia’s leading independent boutique accommodation site, TakeABreak.com.au – recognise outstanding service in specialist segment categories and provide holiday-makers with great suggestions based on their needs.
Awards were divided into two groups – the accommodation awards and the themed awards. Accommodation awards for 2010 were across the following categories: Serviced apartment; Self-contained/Self-catering; Budget; Hosted; Self contained B&B; Health/lifestyle; Hotels and Motels; Holiday Parks and Farm Stays.
Meanwhile the themed categories consisted of Gay and lesbian-friendly; Accessible; Beach; Group accommodation; Luxury; Romantic; Unique; Pet-friendly; Family-friendly; City and Country.
Being a finalist in the The Category in which you won award, chill-out beachside @ forster owner Annmaree Mitchell said, “These awards from TakeABreak.com.au are a great recognition of our work, and we are proud to be a state finalist. We strive to provide visitors with exemplary service. It is also a testament to the Mid North coast region.”

All listings on TakeABreak.com.au are reviewed by guests, and the finalists are then specially selected from over 22,000 properties in 1500 localities and 39 accommodation types.

Guests were the ultimate judges with the finalists having to qualify with a consistent 4/5 rating from five or more guest comments.

Using this feedback to narrow down the field to approximately 200 state finalists, the TakeABreak.com.au team is now reviewing each property on a number of criteria, to select a winner in each category.

Justin Butterworth, joint CEO of TakeABreak.com.au explained, “We hold these awards to showcase accommodation providers who consistently do an outstanding job in meeting and exceeding their guests’ expectations. We felt there was a huge gap in the market for recognition in these specialist categories of boutique accommodation by the travelling public.

“By holding these awards and nominating the “best of the best” it gives visitors to our site the confidence that they will find a range of truly outstanding accommodation in whatever category they are searching.”

About Takeabreak.com.au
Takeabreak.com.au was established in 2003, offering travellers with a booking service for small and niche accommodation options. More than 50% of the accommodation listed on takeabreak.com.au is not found on other popular last minute and hotel websites. It now attracts over 2.5 million visitors annually, with over 20,000 bookings enquiries per month. It has been in the Hitwise Top 10 consistently since 2005 and has won several tourism awards and was a finalist in the NSW Telstra Business Awards 2007 and the Australian Tourism Awards (2006 and 2007). Takeabreak.com.au is a nationally Accredited Tourism Business.

chill-out lakeside @ forster

Finalist announced in TakeABreak.com.au Best Places to Stay Awards

(3rd September, 2009) – Local accommodation supplier, chill-out lakeside @ forster has been nominated as a finalist in the third annual TakeABreak.com.au Awards. (insert short paragraph about your accommodation)

The awards run by Australia’s only independent boutique accommodation travel site, TakeABreak.com.au, recognise outstanding service in specialist segment categories.

18 categories were judged in total with chill-out lakeside @ forster being named a finalist in the FAMILY FRIENDLY category .

This year the judging was divided into two groups – “Best Places to Stay” and “Destination” categories.

“Best Places to Stay” included the following categories:

    * Self-contained/Self-catering (chalet, cottage, fibro weekender, holiday apartment, holiday house, holiday unit, self-contained apartment, serviced apartment, ski lodge)
    * Budget (back-packer, bunkhouse/dormitory, hostel, lodge)
    * Hosted (bed & breakfast, farm stays, guest house)
    * Health/lifestyle (health retreat, light house, resort, spa)
    * Hotels and Motels (boutique hotel, hotel, inn, motel, motor inn, pub, time-share)
    * Parks (cabins, camping ground, caravan park, tourist park)
    * Farm stays
    * On the Move (campervan, 4WD tour, accommodated tours, horse-riding tours, walking tours, charter boat, house boat, yacht)

“Destination” categories included:

    * Pet-friendly
    * Family-friendly
    * Gay and lesbian-friendly
    * Accessible
    * Beach
    * Eco
    * Group accommodation (10+)
    * Luxury
    * Tidy Towns
    * Romantic

For the first time in 2009, travellers who had stayed at the properties were invited to vote in the destination categories via the TakeABreak Facebook site giving them the opportunity to provide personal feedback on the places they had stayed throughout the year.

In the “Best Places To Stay” category, all properties listed on TakeABreak.com.au with a rating of 4 or higher out of 5 by guests were shortlisted for the accommodation awards. Operators were then asked to complete a questionnaire to select the category that their property is most appropriate for and why.

A TakeABreak judging team then selected finalists which ultimately go into selection for the state and national winners. For the first time this year TakeABreak also has some celebrity judges for a number of the criteria.

Judges look at relevance to the category, information provided to guests, service provided and personal guest feedback.

The state winners will be announced at the end of September and the national winners in each category will be named in November.

Penny Parsons, joint CEO of TakeABreak.com.au explained “We hold these awards to showcase accommodation providers who consistently do an outstanding job in meeting and exceeding their guests’ expectations.   We felt there was a huge gap in the market for recognition in these specialist categories of boutique accommodation by the travelling public.”

“By holding these awards and nominating the “best of the best” it gives visitors to our site the confidence that they will find a range of truly outstanding accommodation in whatever category they are searching.” Parsons concluded.

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chill-out holiday accommodation awards

chill-out beachside @ forster

chill-out lakeside @ forster