The people, venues and experiences driving the West Midlands visitor economy were celebrated at the 2026 West Midlands Tourism Awards, as winners across 16 categories were announced at the industry’s annual awards ceremony, held at The Belfry Hotel & Resort on Monday 16 March.
Tourism businesses from destinations including Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Solihull, Shropshire, Warwickshire, and Wolverhampton were recognised for excellence across a wide range of categories, including “Restaurant of the Year”, “Outstanding Contribution to Tourism”, and “Business Events Venue of the Year”.
The awards highlight the vital role these businesses play in the region’s growing visitor economy. The West Midlands is attracting increasing numbers of leisure tourists, with rising visitor spend on attractions, cultural events, and sporting fixtures. Tourism now supports an all-time high of 114,475 full-time equivalent jobs through direct and indirect activities, and the awards shine a light on the people and organisations driving this success.
The ceremony was hosted by Santina Bunting, 2024 Greater Birmingham Young Professional of the Year, with live entertainment provided by music group Riptides. The awards were organised by the West Midlands Growth Company, the region’s lead body for the West Midlands Destination Development Partnership.
Gold and silver winners from the regional awards automatically qualify for the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence 2026, taking place in June, where West Midlands businesses will compete for national recognition. At the 2025 ceremony, Black Country Living Museum (Gold - Large Visitor Attraction), Mallory Court Hotel & Spa (Gold - Large Hotel of the Year) and St Mary’s Guildhall (Bronze - International Tourism Award) all achieved national success.
It was fantastic to see the very best of the West Midlands’ tourism industry come together to celebrate its hard work in creating memories for visitors all year round. We wish all winners – both in the West Midlands and across England – every success as they progress to our national awards ceremony this summer.
Tourism drives economic growth for our regions, underpinning pride in our local communities and making them places that we want to live and work in and tell the world about. Every destination has a great story to tell and, as we mark English Tourism Week, I encourage everyone to go out and support our tourism businesses, attractions and local events. You will have an amazing time and they will be pleased to welcome you.
- Patricia Yates, CEO of VisitBritain / VisitEngland
The 2026 West Midlands Tourism Awards were held during English Tourism Week (13-22 March), a nationwide campaign celebrating the importance of tourism to local communities and regional economies. The weeklong celebration promotes the innovation, quality and range of products and services on offer to boost domestic breaks.
English Tourism Week is all about celebrating the diversity, uniqueness and quality of our country’s tourism offering. The winners of this year’s West Midlands Tourism Awards demonstrate that nowhere are these qualities more apparent than in the West Midlands.
I am always delighted to see the strength of the entries from our independent businesses in the region. They are the shining lights of our thriving visitor economy scene and I wish them all the best of luck when they go on to fly the flag for the West Midlands at the national awards this summer.
- Andrew Lovett, OBE, Chair of the West Midlands Tourism & Hospitality Advisory Board
Tourism remains one of England’s largest and most valuable industries, supporting hundreds of thousands of businesses, employing 2.4 million people, and contributing £147 billion annually to the UK economy - around five per cent of national GDP.
