Two tourist attractions from north of the Daintree River have walked away with double honours at the Queensland Tourism Awards.

Daintree Discovery Centre was awarded the Steve Irwin Award for Ecotourism and the Qantas Award for Excellence in Sustainability at Brisbane Showgrounds last Friday, while Jungle Surfing Canopy Tours won gold medals for the region’s best tourist attraction and best adventure tourism.

The awards are a double coup for the Daintree, as the area’s tourism industry has taken a hit in recent years, and it is hoped the recognition will attract further tourist numbers back to the region.

Daintree Discovery Centre Owner and Director, Ron Birkett, who attended the awards with wife, Pam, said they were really excited to have won their two state awards and were proud their ecotourism ethos had been recognised.

“Ecotourism and sustainability are our core business,” he said. “Everything we do at the Discovery Centre reinforces the need to preserve the Daintree Rainforest - we have elevated walkways designed to protect the fragile root systems, interpretive displays that foster environmental sustainability and we model best practice in water conservation, waste management, recycling and eco-friendly design.”

“We are also carbon neutral business since establishing our Carbon Offset / Bio-sequestration project in 2007, and we sponsor Carbon Flux research by James Cook University. The Centre is also one of 10 environmental research Supersites that form the Australian Supersite Network collecting scientific data across various ecosystems.”

The Centre was also recognised in June this year, winning the Small Business category at the Queensland Premier’s Sustainability Awards, and will now go on to represent Queensland at the Qantas Australian Tourism Awards in Sydney next February. The centre has won 14 awards in the past five years in local, state, national and international fields.

Meanwhile, the best tourist attraction and best adventure tourism awards were a fitting 10th birthday present for Jungle Surfing Canopy Tours, which celebrated a decade of thrilling guests above the rainforest canopy in August this year, adding to their raft of awards in the past three years.

“For the team it is very satisfying to be rewarded for your efforts, and it really lifts everyone’s spirits and instills group pride,” Operations Manager, Ian Samuels, said after the awards.

“For the company it’s a very important marketing tool for remote areas such as the Daintree. It’s also very timely with our managing director, Sheena Walshaw, currently promoting tourism in Queensland across Europe, as part of the Daintree Marketing Co-op.”

A record 52 nominees from Tropical North Queensland entered this year with 23 receiving awards.

Congratulations also go to local tourism businesses:

Indigenous Tourism
Silver: Mossman Gorge Centre

Major Tour and/or Transport Operators
Gold: Quicksilver Group

Tour and/or Transport Operators
Bronze: Ocean Safari

Adventure Tourism
Gold: Jungle Surfing Canopy Tours

Tourism Restaurants and Catering Services
Bronze: Sheraton Mirage Port Douglas Resort

Qantas Award for Excellence in Sustainable Tourism
Gold: Daintree Discovery Centre

Tourist Attractions
Gold: Jungle Surfing Canopy Tours
Bronze: Kuranda Scenic Railway

The Steve Irwin Award for Ecotourism
Gold: Daintree Discovery Centre