The search is on for SA's best tourism town.
Tourism Industry Council South Australia, the state's peak tourism body, is calling on passionate tourists and locals to have their say in the SA Top Tourism Town Awards.
The awards recognise South Australian towns that offer amazing visitor experiences and are committed to increasing tourism in their region.
This year, there are 20 towns competing for the honours across three categories: Top, Small and Tiny Tourism Town.
All 20 towns are eligible for the coveted People's Choice Award, presented to the town that receives the most consumer votes.
TiCSA chief executive officer Shaun de Bruyn was excited to see South Australian towns taking part in the program this year.
"Our regions are incredibly valuable to the state's tourism industry, with over 40 per cent of visitor expenditure in SA coming from our wonderful regions," he said.
"Not only are the Top Tourism Town Awards excellent for celebrating our regions but they also give them the opportunity to improve their tourism marketing and visitor experiences."
Local Government Association of SA president Angela Evans - a major partner in the awards - said local councils play an important part of promoting their regional towns.
"Councils invest millions of dollars every year providing infrastructure to support tourism and the visitor economy and have worked hard in recent years to help local tourism and hospitality businesses survive the impacts of COVID-19," she said.
With the school holidays just around the corner, now is the perfect time for South Australians to get out and enjoy our regional areas, to support our towns and businesses, and to think about which spot they love visiting the most and why."
SA Visitor Information Centre network chair Andy Glen said it was great to shine the light on the state's incredible tourism towns.
"These Awards present a great occasion for our regional towns to promote their unique offerings," he said.
"South Australians are the best critics when it comes to home-grown tourism, so we encourage all South Aussies to get involved and vote for their favourite town."
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The towns in the running for the top towns - population of more than 5000 - are McLaren Vale, Renmark, Port Adelaide, Hahndorf, Gawler, Murray Bridge, Tanunda and Aldinga and surrounds.
Those in the small town category - 1500-500 population - are Coober Pedy, Wallaroo, Angaston, Ceduna, Stirling and Goolwa.
Robe, Quorn, Elliston, Eden Valley, Meningie and Langhorne Creek are the finalist in the under 1500 population tiny category.
Voters can go into the running to win a two-night weekend getaway at a SA Council caravan park, valued at more than $500.
People's Choice Award voting closes on Monday, May 9, with the winners announced on Wednesday, May 18.
To place your vote, visit ticsa.com.au/industry-programs/sa-top-tourism-town
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