Tourism awards for Wells and Chichester

Tourism Awards for our Cathedrals

Wells and Chichester Cathedrals collected accolades at their local tourism awards this month.

Wells Cathedral got a trio of awards at the Bristol Bath & Somerset Tourism Awards winning

• Bronze – Café/Tearoom of the Year –  The Loft Café
• Silver – Dog Friendly Business of the Year – Wells Cathedral and
• Gold – Tourism Event/Festival of the Year – Peter Walker’s Peace Doves.

A spokesperson for Wells Cathedral said:

“These awards are down to our hardworking team, whose dedication and effort made these achievements possible. It’s been an incredible year for Wells Cathedral.”

Chichester Cathedral’s presentation of Peter Walker’s Peace Doves also got an award – winning Silver in the Tourism Event of the Year category of the Tourism South East Beautiful South Tourism Awards 2024.

This category recognises providers of truly memorable and immersive events and festivals that are making a contribution to the visitor economy, with a significant proportion of business generated by people visiting from outside the local area.

Presented in Autumn 2023, Peace Doves was an immersive installation made up of 15,000 paper doves, each containing a hand-written message. Over 50,000 people visited the Cathedral to experience the artwork including 100 schools and local community organisations. Over 25,000 candles were also lit during the exhibition period, with Peace Doves being an opportunity for people to pause, reflect and pray.

Rebecca Lewry-Gray, the Cathedral’s Visitor Experience Manager, said:

“We are thrilled to have received the Silver Award for Tourism Event of the Year. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the artist, Peter Walker, our incredible team of staff and volunteers, and the thousands of people who trusted us in presenting their messages of peace, love and hope as part of the installation. “

Chichester Cathedral celebrates its 950th anniversary in 2025 with an exciting programme of events – read more here.