Cornwall has won the title of Favourite UK Holiday Destination in the British Travel Awards 2017 for an incredible ninth year in a row.

Announced at a ceremony in London, the award comes following a nomination by Visit Cornwall and a ‘show your love’ campaign, which was spearheaded by the tourism body to encourage both locals and visitors to vote. And vote they did, retaining Cornwall’s crown for a record-breaking ninth time and beating rival category contenders - Cumbria/Lake District, Norfolk, Northumberland and Pembrokeshire.

Giving double reason to celebrate and adding yet more fuel to Cornwall’s prowess, the county has also been named Best UK Destination for Families in the Family Traveller Awards 2017.

“We couldn’t be prouder of these achievements,” said Visit Cornwall chief executive, Malcolm Bell. “Cornwall has a bulging trophy cabinet but we don’t take any title for granted – they represent an incredible amount of hard work from across the industry and each and every one is well deserved.”

In addition to winning the top holiday destination award, the Lost Gardens of Heligan won the Best UK Leisure Attraction, and Bude won silver for the Best UK Coastal Resort.

British Travel Awards’ chief executive, Lorraine Barnes Burton agreed: “Visit Cornwall is to be congratulated on winning Best UK Holiday Destination. The British Travel Awards is the largest consumer voted awards programme in the world and this year over 700,000 votes were cast. To win is truly an accolade and a badge of excellence.”

Malcolm added: “Cornwall has been the official favourite UK holiday destination since 2009 so next year we have the possibility of celebrating a decade of wins. It will be key to cementing Cornwall’s undisputed position as the forerunner of the domestic tourism industry. At Visit Cornwall we shall be working hard to harness and grow Cornwall’s reputation to ensure the future success of our thriving visitor economy.”