Seven tourism attractions and businesses in Yorkshire are finalists in the most prestigious tourism awards in the country.

The highly coveted Enjoy England Awards for Excellence, organised by VisitEngland, promote the best places to visit and stay in England from large hotels to small Bed and Breakfasts, and tourist attractions.

The seven finalists include the highly acclaimed Railway Children performance by York Theatre Royal at the National Railway Museum in York for Best Tourism Experience; Lebberstone Touring Park in Scarborough is up for the Best Caravan Holiday Park; Linda Banks who works in the Wakefield Tourist Information Centre is a finalist in the Outstanding Customer Service category; Ripley Castle is hoping to win the Best Small Visitor Attraction Awards; the Crown Spa Hotel at Scarborough is short listed for the Sustainable Tourism Award; the well known fish restaurant Green’s in Whitby is up for the Taste of England Award and Wakefield Tourist Information Centre will be battling it out against Nottingham and Portsmouth for the Best Tourist Information Service.

It is the highest number of finalists Yorkshire has had to date. Last year saw five Yorkshire finalists, out of which three achieved the to accolade of being the best in the country. Harewood House took the Large Visitor Attraction beating off competition from Blenheim Palace and The Science Museum in London. Noelle’s Cottages in North Yorkshire was awarded the best Self Catering Holiday of the Year and the prestigious Taste of England Award went to the Pipe and Glass Inn, East Yorkshire, which has since achieved its first Michelin Star.

The winners will be announced at the Enjoy England Awards for Excellence ceremony in Brighton in April.