Georgia's Black Sea town of Batumi received the title of ‘Europe’s Leading Emerging Tourism Destination’ at the World Travel Awards (WTA) ceremony held in Madeira, Portugal last night. 

The organisers of the awards ceremony reported that “the captivating mix of Belle Époque meets contemporary splendour helped Batumi, Georgia, lift the title”.

"Our inaugural ceremony in Madeira has proved an incredible success. We have had the privilege of recognising the leading destinations, hotels, resorts, airlines and travel providers from across Europe and my congratulations to each of our winners”, Graham E. Cooke, the Founder WTA stated. 

Baku (Azerbaijan), Derry (North Ireland), Kutná Hora (Czech Republic), Ljubljana (Slovenia), Matera (Italy), Mostar (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and Sofia (Bulgaria) were competing Batumi in this nomination.

World Travel Awards, often referred to as the Oscar of tourism awards, were established in 1993 to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all key sectors of the travel, tourism and hospitality industries.