KEEPING a venue operating at a high level while undertaking major renovations can be near impossible, but All Seasons Bendigo managed the task with ease and come out the other side with gold medal results.
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All Seasons Quality Resort and Hotel received a gold award at the Choice Hotels Australasia annual conference in Auckland earlier this month.
The venue was one of 31 in Australia and New Zealand under the Choice banner to receive a gold award. There are more than 270 properties in the Choice network.
All Seasons venue manager Jeanine Cooke said she was proud to see the resort recognised for the hard work and effort over recent years.
"It's important to me because it shows that the effort we've put in to changing the business in the last couple of years has paid off," she said.
"We've done a lot of refurbishment work, virtually the entire business has been transformed.
"We were commended for our good results, which were achieved in an area where there are a lot of hotels under the Choice brand."
Venues had to meet strict criteria to receive a gold award, relating to property development and growth, as well as consistently high guest feedback.
Representatives from All Seasons Bendigo attended the four-day conference where they took part in workshops focusing on marketing strategies, distribution channels and networking opportunities.
Ms Cooke said one of the most important aspects in running a successful hotel, resort and function centre was to have the staff on board.
"It's been a major turnaround for us, and a lot of it came down to getting the staff on board and seeing that they really enjoy their work," she said.
"We have a great staff who really want to work here."
The conference also allowed Choice Hotels representatives to hear from industry leaders in hospitality.
Ballarat's Comfort Inn and Suites City Views was named the Quality franchisee of the year, while hotels in Horsham, Wodonga and Melton also received gold awards.