25 towns in regional Victoria are competing for gold in prestigious tourism awards

Victoria is dotted with regional towns that have so many attributes making them worth a visit. Our state has plenty of spots that are perfect for weekend getaways, offering everything from world-class galleries to fine-dining restaurants, and off-grid escapes to stunning hotels. Every year, these places across Victoria compete to claim an award in the TAC Victorian Top Tourism Town Awards, with only three towns in the whole of the state claiming a title. The finalists for 2025 have just been revealed, with 25 towns making the cut, and it seems like the competition will be a close call if the calibre of these towns is anything to go by. It all comes down to votes from the public that will help to decide who the winners will be.
To make it a fair competition, the three award categories are defined by population size, which means that there are three prizes to be won. The Top Tourism Town award is for regional cities with a population of more than 5,000 people, with nine Victorian destinations in the running to claim the title. The finalists for this category are the historic goldfields towns of Ballarat and Bendigo, the riverside spots of Echuca, Swan Hill, Mildura and Shepparton, the seaside towns of Warrnambool and Lakes Entrance, and last but not least, Werribee (which was once its own town, but is now an outer suburb of Melbourne).
The next prize to be awarded is the Top Small Tourism Town, with qualifiers having a population between 1,500 and 5,000 people. The wine havens of Heathcote and Rutherglen, the lake laden spot Camperdown, the peak-side town of Mount Beauty, picturesque Paynesville and the coastal towns of Port Fairy and Portarlington make up the seven finalists for this category.
Last but not least, there's the Top Tiny Town award, encompassing places with a population of fewer than 1,500 people. The nine finalists for this category are the Grampians ' Dunkeld and Halls Gap, seaside spots of Flinders, Kilcunda, Marlo, the mountain range towns of Natimuk and Noojee, as well as Whitfield and Trentham.
To be selected as a finalist in the TAC Victorian Top Tourism Town Awards, each hopeful town had to make a submission demonstrating a strong commitment to tourism, increasing visitation to the destination, collaborating with local businesses, and overall making the town the best destination it can be. A panel of expert judges then chose the top destinations to determine the finalists.
Last year, the winners of the three awards were Bendigo for Victoria's Top Tourism Town, Daylesford for the Top Small Tourism Town Award and the ice cream haven of Timboon came out a winner for the Top Tiny Tourism Town Award.
Now, the public get to decide who this year's winners will be. Voting for the TAC Victorian Top Tourism Town Awards is now open, and will close on June 27 at 5pm, so make sure to cast your vote here.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Scottish Sun

12 hours ago

• Scottish Sun

Inside the historic 135-year-old hotel right in the city centre – perfect for an Aberdeen adventure

Restaurant was so good despite we returned for a second feed DON TO PERFECTION Inside the historic 135-year-old hotel right in the city centre – perfect for an Aberdeen adventure Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) THERE was no way the forecast of dipping temperatures and cold winds from the North Sea was going to put us off from a trip to Aberdeen. This was to be a first-time visit to the city for my wife Jackie, so we packed the woolly hats and layers and set off. 4 The hotel dates back to 1890 4 The classy lounge at the Station Hotel 4 Allan soaking up the sun at Aberdeen beach But the weather gods were more than kind to us as the clouds dispersed and we were treated to welcome sunshine. That wasn't the only bright spot during our visit. Arriving at the iconic Station Hotel we knew the hotel gods were also looking out for us. Built way back in 1890, the hotel maintains its Victorian charm but has no shortage of modern-day comforts. Our large, bright superior double room had welcome tea and coffee facilities, along with delicious shortbread and mineral water. The huge Hypnos double bed was extra comfortable and the bathroom featured a super-powerful and refreshing overhead shower. Plush and fluffy bathrobes and comfy slippers added to the luxury feel and there was even ear plugs to guarantee a silent night. The staff were friendly and helpful, especially in the brasserie where our first night's dining highlights were the tempura king prawns, sea bass and braised beef featherblade. In fact, it was so good that, despite the temptation to eat out on our second night, we returned there and enjoyed tasty ribeye steaks. With locally-sourced cuisine, the hot buffet breakfast was excellent with the usual sausage, bacon and egg complimented by the tasty black pudding and haggis. There was also a wide choice of cereal and fruit and, of course, porridge. As the hotel name suggests, it is situated right beside Aberdeen's rail and bus station. It was ideal for us as we decided to make this trip as leisurely as possible — by leaving the car at home. We boarded a Citilink coach at Glasgow's Buchanan Street Bus Station and seated upstairs we enjoyed the comfort of someone else driving as we took in the splendid scenery heading to the north-east coast with drop-off and pick-up spots at Perth and Dundee. Aberdeen is a city full of history and we strolled across the old Motherwell-built steel bridge beside the hotel on Guild Street then made a drinks stop at Molly's Bistro which kept us on the history trail as it's on at the start of Shiprow. Fly-through video shows what major Scots city will look like after huge £20m revamp This was originally the main entrance to Aberdeen, dating back to 1281, and the Shiprow Village project now sees it featuring pubs and restaurants. Walk further up Shiprow and you come to the impressive Maritime Museum, housed in the 16th-century Provost Ross' House and church building. The exhibits, across four floors, give you an insight into the city's trading, fishing and shipbuilding past, to today's offshore and global energy. The centrepiece between these is an amazing nine-metre high model of the Murchison Platform oil rig, with terrific oil-field details. I reckon a bus tour is a great way to explore cities and we boarded the Aberdeen Adventurer at the impressive Marischal College, the world's second-largest granite building and now the City Council's headquarters. One of the highlights was driving through picturesque Old Aberdeen with its cobble streets and King's College. As well as being known as the Granite City, many also refer to Aberdeen as the Silver City by the sea because the mica in the stone sparkles in the sun. GO: ABERDEEN ROOMS at the Station Hotel start from £60 a night for a standard double room and from £90 a night for a superior double room. See And as the sun broke through the light clouds it did just that and we hopped off the bus to enjoy it from the city's golden sand beach. The threatened biting winds were still absent as we strolled the lovely promenade for a refreshment and then enjoyed a lovely wander back through the city to the hotel. Thank goodness we didn't let that doom and gloom forecast put us off a trip up north, because we had a cracking few days in one of the Granite City's finest hotels.

Daily Mirror

a day ago

• Daily Mirror

'We made a change after Covid that's let us quit our jobs to travel the world'

Ryan Losasso and Jade Beaty, 30, are now known as Live The Dash and travel across the world filming their exploits for their TikTok account, which is followed by 505,000 people A couple quit their desk jobs and now travel the world full-time after discovering what they had captured on holiday. Ryan Losasso and Jade Beaty, 30, are now known as Live The Dash, one of the biggest UK travel creators with 505,000 followers on TikTok. They live a life many dream of, getting paid to whizz around the world to intriguing destinations. ‌ The advertising workers had not planned to become full-time TikTok content creators. In fact, it wasn't until they returned from a big six-month trip at the turn of the Covid lockdowns that they realised what they were sitting on. ‌ "We had all this video content when the world shut down, and we had a lot of time on our hands. So we turned to this huge stock of footage," Ryan told the Mirror. "We set ourselves a challenge of posting a video every day for 30 days. Then when some of that did really well, it spurred us on. We continued to post every day for six months." Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@ READ MORE: Tourist warning to 10 million as Europe's hottest capital on alert Jade added: "It was surprising how quickly we got through that content. On a walk in Spain, the videos were doing quite well, and we realised we were going to run out of content soon. We started joking that we'd start going on trips." At first, the couple juggled their desk jobs with travel, booking themselves onto the cheapest flight out after they clocked off on a Friday and returning on Sunday. Two years ago, they decided to go full time. The risk has clearly paid off, as Jade and Ryan are among the most watched travel TikTok channels and won the platform's Travel Award for 2024. Part of the secret to their success is putting in the research hours before they go on a trip and then only travelling when they've landed on a great idea. That might be heading to New York to see if the hallowed 'dollar slice' of pizza can still be purchased, or around the UK in search for a genuine 99p 99 whippy. ‌ They've also spent the night on the fastest sleeper train in the world, which rushes snoozing passengers from Hong Kong to Shanghai. "Was it amazing? The tech is amazing, but you're sharing with three other strangers. It reaches 270 mph, but it's super smooth," Ryan explained. "For TikTok specifically, we have our hooks before we go. We film all we can, we film the journey, we film two intros, two hooks. We bet on all the horses." The search for something new that will engage their audiences takes the pair to places they might otherwise not have visited, which often turn out to be the most enjoyable. READ MORE: Brits warned of travel chaos as European airport hit by 10th walkout in 45 days "Somewhere I wasn't expecting much from was Weston-super-mare. It had a lot of cheap whippies. It is obviously a faded Victorian seaside town, but the beach is gorgeous," Ryan said. ‌ Jade added: "We also like to hunt out weird hotels. We stayed in a cow cabin with unlimited free milk, near Ed Sheeran's hometown, called Easton Farm Park. We also stayed in these huge tree houses in Derby." The old adage of 'if you do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life' seems true in the couple's case. They still have the travel bug and are hugely excited by their trips. Part of that means pushing themselves to engage with people they meet along the way. "We have this rule that whenever we're on the plane, we have to speak to the person next to us. One guy told us 'do what excites you'. Six years later, we still tell ourselves that. We call it Conrad's message." ‌ The couple also recommends running every day and practicing good communication for travelling couples who want to avoid arguments while on the road. In terms of finding inspiration, they recommend using the adjustable 'For You' feed on TikTok. It is now possible to customise content preferences so you can see more or less of certain content in topics from over 10 categories – including travel, sports, nature, and food and drink An AI-powered 'smart keyword filter" that allows users to limit content they don't want to see'. "The For You feed is the heart of TikTok, a way for us to discover new content. We use the new features, manage topics, and think it's really cool that you can filter which topics you want to see more or less of."

Evening Standard

2 days ago

• Evening Standard

From Deal to Leigh-on-Sea: the best beach breaks within two hours of London for a chic staycation

Brighton's beach has been a hotspot for day trippers ever since the Victorian era. And while the pebbles can be painful underfoot, there's nothing quite like pulling out a picnic blanket and soaking in the British sun after a dip in the Channel. The beach itself stretches down the coast all the way to Hove, fringed by the brightly coloured beach huts for which the area is famous, as well as an ever-expanding list of restaurants, bars and tiny art galleries. And let's not forget the pier: a must-visit, if just to soak in the atmosphere.