Eight Wirral names are on the 2026 Liverpool City Region Tourism Awards shortlist, from the Floral Pavilion to the Red Fox. The full Wirral list and when winners are named.
Eight Wirral businesses, attractions and people are on the shortlist for the 2026 Liverpool City Region Tourism Awards. Between them they hold ten nominations. The winners will be named at a ceremony at Liverpool Cathedral on Thursday 4 February 2027.
The Liverpool City Region Destination Partnership, which runs the awards, published the full shortlist on 13 October. Wirral Council followed with its own announcement on 15 October.
The Wirral names on the shortlist
| Shortlisted | Where | Category |
|---|---|---|
| Floral Pavilion Theatre and Conference Centre | New Brighton | Entertainment Venue of the Year |
| Sandy Davies, Floral Pavilion | New Brighton | Unsung Hero Award |
| Future Yard CIC | Birkenhead | Entertainment Venue of the Year |
| Eureka! Science + Discovery | Seacombe | Large Visitor Attraction of the Year |
| Eureka! Science + Discovery | Seacombe | Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Award |
| New Brighton Creative Futures CIC | New Brighton | Regenerative Tourism Award |
| New Brighton Creative Futures CIC | New Brighton | Independent Tourism Business of the Year |
| Port Sunlight Village Trust | Port Sunlight | Small Visitor Attraction of the Year |
| The Red Fox | Thornton Hough | Pub of the Year |
| The Hideaway, Wirral | Wirral | Self-Catering Accommodation of the Year |
The categories above are taken from the partnership’s full shortlist. The council’s release puts Port Sunlight Village Trust in the large attraction category, but the shortlist itself lists it under small visitor attractions, against the Liverpool Beatles Museum and the Royal Liver Building 360 Tour.
Who they are up against
Most categories are dominated by Liverpool city centre names. The Floral Pavilion and Future Yard face four Liverpool venues for Entertainment Venue of the Year: BOXPARK Liverpool, the Liverpool Empire Theatre, the Everyman and Playhouse, and Liverpool Philharmonic.
Eureka! is one of seven in the large attraction category. The others include Liverpool Cathedral, the Beatles Story, Strawberry Field and Speke Hall.
The Red Fox is one of four pubs, alongside Dicey Reilly’s Irish Sports Bar, Hotel Anfield and The One O’Clock Gun. The Thornton Hough pub was also made a Pub of Excellence by Wirral CAMRA this year; it is in our guide to Wirral pubs.
Like Eureka!, New Brighton Creative Futures is in two categories. The community interest company was awarded £22,000 from the council’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund money earlier this year for two street art murals celebrating local heroes in New Brighton.
How the winners are picked
The partnership says the awards are judged independently. The process includes:
- expert judging panels
- interviews, where relevant
- mystery shopping, where relevant
Only one category goes to a public vote, Event or Festival of the Year, and voting opened on 19 October. No Wirral event is on that list.
Category winners can go forward to the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence, the national scheme. Eureka! reached the VisitEngland finals in two categories in 2025, the partnership reported.
Cllr Jenny Johnson, who chairs the council’s Tourism, Communities, Culture and Leisure Committee, said the nominations “reflect the incredible range of attractions, venues, hospitality businesses and community-led initiatives that help make Wirral such a vibrant and welcoming destination.”
What it means for you
Nothing to do unless you want to back one of the venues: there is no public vote in any category with a Wirral name. Several are worth a visit over the winter anyway. The Floral Pavilion’s pantomime runs through Christmas, and Eureka! and Port Sunlight are on our list of things to do in Wirral with prices.
We will update this page with the results after the ceremony on 4 February.
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