A North Wales heritage railway has won the region’s Attraction of the Year award for 2023.

Llangollen Railway won the accolade at the Go North Wales Tourism Awards, an annual event which celebrates the dedication, skill and achievements of the region’s tourism and hospitality industry.

Tom Taylor, Llangollen Railway General Manager, said: “We had to work with the rest of the tourism industry just to survive, but this year we have fulfilled our long-held ambition of taking the railway back to Corwen, which is already making a big difference to the town. The amazing team of volunteers and staff at our railway have been key to getting us back from the brink of collapse to where we are now. This award is for them. We’re totally focussed on moving forward now, supporting our partner organisations in the Dee Valley as we head towards it becoming a National Park. As part of this vision, the Llangollen and Corwen Railway needs to continue to stabilise, recover and develop a really polished offering for both the local community and our visitors to enjoy and benefit from for many years to come.

Phil Coles, Llangollen Railway Chair, added: “It’s been a lot of very hard work over two and a half years, with an awful lot of input from visitors, volunteers and staff. So many of our team have gone over and above in their dedication to our railway and this award is the icing on the cake for us after a highly successful 2023 season.”

Jim Jones, the Chief Executive of North Wales Tourism, said: “Tonight is an opportunity to celebrate the best of best in the tourism and hospitality sector. The sheer volume and quality of entries this year has underlined why North Wales is a truly world class destination.

“I would like to congratulate all the winners but I would also like to stress that all the nominees are playing a vital role in championing what we have to offer visitors from home and abroad. They do an exceptional job in putting North Wales on the map. The priority now is to try to get back up to where we were in 2019 and to increase the spend of the visitors who come here by raising the quality of what we are doing.”

David Cattrall, the Managing Director of Harlech Foodservice, said: “We are delighted to once again be the headline sponsor of this wonderful awards ceremony and it’s very much a vote of confidence in the tourism and hospitality sector which has endured such a difficult time in recent years.

“The fundamental reasons why North Wales is such an attractive place to visit are still there and will continue to be in demand in future. We have amazing scenery and world class facilities so I am sure the sector will go from strength to strength. That means that the tourism and hospitality sector can play a big role in leading the economic recovery in North Wales.”