The Tweed Wins Gold at 2025 NSW Tourism Awards
The Tweed region is celebrating today with an impressive four Gold award wins at last night’s NSW Tourism gala. The Tweed’s tourism excellence was on show at the state’s most coveted industry awards, the NSW Tourism Awards, held in Sydney.
NSW TOURISM GOLD AWARDS WINS 2025
NSW Tourism Hall of Fame
The Tweed Tourism Company
Tourism Marketing & Campaigns
Northern Rivers Rail Trail
Tourist Attractions
Pipit Restaurant
Tourism Restaurants and Catering Services
Better By Bike
Tourism, Retail, Hire and Services.
Highlight wins included The Tweed Tourism Company winning Gold for best Tourism Marketing & Campaigns. It is their third consecutive win in the category, resulting in entry to the NSW Tourism Awards Hall of Fame. Other highlight wins included Northern Rivers Rail Trail winning Gold in the Tourist Attractions category, Pipit Restaurant winning Gold for Restaurants and Catering Services, and Better By Bike winning Gold for the Tourism, Retail, Hire and Services.
Other top honours at the gala awards included Earth Beer Company winning Silver for Distilleries & Breweries, Mantra on Salt Beach winning Bronze in the Business Events category, Savour The Tweed winning Bronze in Festivals and Events, and Northern Rivers Rail Trail winning Silver in the Adventure Tourism category. Also spotlighted as Finalists were Ecoasis and Tasman Holiday Parks North Star.
Special recognition was awarded to Rose Wright who was posthumously awarded the Outstanding Contribution for an Individual. Rose was Founder of Regionality and former CEO of Destination Tweed. She was a pioneering leader in agritourism and culinary tourism and a tireless champion for The Tweed.
Sally Scott, General Manager of The Tweed Tourism Company, said that the sweep of outstanding wins on the night was a celebration of the relentless hard work, innovation and excellence shown across the Tweed tourism community.
“We are so proud of all of the winners and finalists from The Tweed who represented the industry at this year’s NSW Tourism Awards. We especially wish to congratulate the teams at Northern Rivers Rail Trail, Better By Bike and Pipit for Gold Awards.”
“Each of these outstanding operators play an integral role in The Tweed tourism community. It is a testament to the talent and excellence across our region that we have once again achieved such overwhelming success. Our operators should be so proud of these accolades, not only for their own businesses but for also representing The Tweed at a state level. Together, they have helped to further lift the profile and reputation of our incredible region,” she said.
Mayor of Tweed Shire Chris Cherry said the awards showcase the exceptional
quality and innovation of tourism operators across the Tweed, supported by
outstanding consumer campaigns and events that continue to elevate the region’s profile. “It’s wonderful to see the broader tourism industry recognising what we’ve always known – the Tweed is truly unmatched. From world-class accommodation and incredible cuisine to the diverse experiences on offer, our region delivers something special for every visitor. We’re immensely proud of all the Tweed businesses represented at these awards.”
Dean Cooper, Regional Lead, Northern Rivers Rail Trail, said of their award wins: “The Northern Rivers Rail Trail is proud to share this recognition with our member councils who are currently operating open sections of the trail – Lismore City Council, Richmond Valley Council, and Tweed Shire Council – whose vision and commitment have made the trail a reality. These awards highlight not only the beauty and adventure of the Rail Trail, but also the strength of collaboration across our region. Together, we’ve created a destination that welcomes visitors from near and far, celebrates local stories, and delivers lasting community impact.”
Campbell Shepherd, Better By Bike Director said: “The whole team at Better By Bike are honoured to receive the Award for Best Retail, Hire and Service in NSW. We built the company from the ground up to deliver a quality, immersive eco-tourism experience that highlights the best of the new Northern Rivers Rail Trail. This award is an acknowledgment of a job well done. We thank all those business partners who make the Rail Trail come to life to deliver customers a world class experience and we look forward to doing this across the entire 132kms in the future.”
Yen Trinh, Business Manager at Pipit added: “We are proud to receive the award, and to support The Tweed to be further recognised as a food and agritourism destination. Every day in our a la carte and set menus, we proudly showcase local ingredients and producers unique to our area – we want to surprise travellers with things they can’t get at home, and inspire them to explore even more. Every diner gets a Pipit Produce Map of our suppliers sending them to markets, cellar doors, farm tours to help visitors further explore our incredible region.”
The NSW Tourism Awards are the tourism industry’s peak awards, recognising and promoting excellence in tourism across 30 business categories, including individual excellence categories and the Judges’ Tourism Star Awards, honouring outstanding resilience and innovation. Managed by the NSW Tourism Association and supported by Destination NSW, the awards are an annual celebration for all tourism businesses across the state to gather together and recognise outstanding achievements in customer service, innovation and resilience.
As a national program, Gold Medal Award winners of select categories at the state level automatically receive entry to compete at the Australian Tourism Awards. Award winners will travel to Freemantle to represent the region on the national stage at the 2025 Qantas Australian Tourism Awards, held in Fremantle on 6 March 2026.
Media enquiries: Gabrielle Wilson | gwilson@thetweed.com.au | 0433 972 915
The Tweed Tourism Company is the official tourism development and destination marketing agency for The Tweed through a partnership with Tweed Shire Council.