DEVON has been recognised as one of the UK's top holiday destinations, after scooping a prize at the prestigious British Travel Awards last week.

The county won bronze in the 'Best UK Holiday Region/ County' category at the awards, held in London on Wednesday, November 26.

Devon, represented by online accommodation company Stay in Devon, came third for the second successive year, holding off competition from rivals Lan­cashire, Pembroke­shire and Durham. The county eventually lost out to Cornwall, gold, and Northumber­land, silver, following a closely fought battle.

Emma Seymour-Sloan, marketing manager for Stay In Devon, said: 'This is a fantastic achievement for Devon and we are thrilled to bring the bronze award home for the second year in a row. We hope that this will encourage more visitors to enjoy the stunning South West, with the award reinforcing the fact that Devon is one of the most popular holiday destinations in the UK.

'Following detrimental me­dia coverage of floods in the early part of the year and then cuts to Government funded tourism resources, we have worked hard to ensure we are actively promoting the best of the county to help tourism thrive in the region for years to come.'

British Travel Awards chief executive Lorraine Barnes Burton said: 'The British Travel Awards are the only travel industry accolades voted for exclusively by the travelling public. During the voting period more than one million consumer votes were cast making the BTAs the largest award programme in the UK.'