The Royal International Air Tattoo, which takes place annually at Fairford, has landed a top honour in the Cotswold Tourism Awards 2014.
The airshow, which attracts around 100,000 visitors over three days, has been named Tourism Event of the Year 2014 with judges citing recent innovations as setting it apart from other events.
These included establishing three new service station areas in 2013 which brought together food courts, free wi-fi hubs, information booths, toilets, merchandising and street entertainment.
The visitor experience was enhanced further with the unveiling of three interactive entertainment zones along with improvements to the showground layout.
The latest accolade follows its victory in the Best Event of the Year category in 2012, the year after it celebrated its 40th anniversary.
Cotswolds Tourism manager Chris Dee said: “The Cotswolds thrives on the high quality of local tourism businesses and services. These awards reward our achievers and help us to highlight the best of what’s on offer here. The Royal International Air Tattoo continues to be a great event, going from strength to strength. The Tourism Event category was very strong and the Air Tattoo fought off some stiff competition.”
This summer’s Air Tattoo on July 11-13 will stage official celebrations marking the 50th display season of the RAF Red Arrows. It will also be the final airshow in charge for chief executive and co-founder Tim Prince.
He said: “Each year, the Air Tattoo attracts visitors from around the world to the Cotswolds and this helps generate millions of pounds for the local economy.
“I see the award as a huge pat on the back for our large army of volunteers, many of whom come from the Cotswolds, whose enthusiastic and hard work each year provides the magic ingredient that makes the Air Tattoo so special.”
