BUCKS COUNTY, PA (May 7, 2025) – Visit Bucks County (VBC) recognized individuals and organizations at the National Travel & Tourism Week (NTTW) award celebration at Broken Goblet Brewing on Tuesday, May 6. Honorees were nominated by peers from across the Bucks County hospitality industry for their exceptional contributions. Each year, NTTW is celebrated nationwide by the U.S. Travel Association to spotlight the power of travel and its impact on local communities.
Commissioner Robert J. Harvie, along with VBC staff, presented the National Travel & Tourism Week Awards. “We are pleased to present Visit Bucks County and the tourism industry with a proclamation recognizing May 4-10 as National Travel & Tourism Week here in Bucks County’,” said Commissioner Harvie, “We extend our sincere thanks to the Visit Bucks County Staff, the Board of Directors and all of you in the industry for your hard work, passion, and commitment to promoting Bucks County as a premier travel destination.”
The 2025 Visit Bucks County Travel & Tourism Week Award honorees were:
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Guest Service Excellence Award: Courtney Phipps, HollyHedge Estate.
This award goes to a frontline staff member with a positive attitude who goes the extra mile to help visitors and interact with customers on a daily basis. -
Hospitality Leadership Award: Shaneka Rolle, SpringHill Suites, Langhorne.
This award honors an individual who has made significant contributions to the tourism and hospitality industry, ultimately increasing visitation to Bucks County. -
Rising Star Award: Julie Hamilton, Holiday Inn Express & Suites Quakertown.
This award is presented to a young professional aspiring to a long career in the tourism and hospitality industry. -
Tourism Innovation Award: Dublin Town Center.
This award honors a business/organization who implements new and creative ways to bring visitors to Bucks County. -
Visit Bucks County Award: Melissa Palmer, Byers' Choice®, Ltd., Michael Traupman, Bucks County Playhouse and David Myers, Bridge Hospitality.
These awards honor individuals who are dedicated to promoting tourism and hospitality in Bucks County.
VBC Chair Doug Miller opened the event and VBC President/CEO Paul Bencivengo shared recently released key tourism figures. “In 2024, Bucks County welcomed more than 8.4 million visitors. This was a 2.4% increase over visitation in 2023. Those 8.4 million visitors generated a record breaking $1.3 billion in economic impact which represents a 3.4% increase from 2023. In 2024, the hospitality workforce also grew to 29,104 jobs.” said Bencivengo.
Bencivengo also shared that the recently launched, redesigned VisitBucksCounty.com is already seeing strong results, with rapidly growing social media impressions, follower counts, and video views continuing to drive potential visitors to the new site. “We attribute this growth to consistent seasonal brand messaging and digital strategy that has played such a pivotal role in generating numerous national headlines over the past year.”
“Visit Bucks County’s brand campaigns promoting Spring and Summer in Bucks County launched in New York, Northern New Jersey and Washington D.C. across streaming, broadcast and billboards at the end of April,” said Bencivengo. “These campaigns will be updated seasonally and will continue to run throughout the entire year.”
Visit Bucks County promotes Bucks County for visitors to explore the trails, plan outdoor adventure, family-friendly getaways, romantic escapes and to visit the many small towns and attractions throughout all the seasons.
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Contact: Megan Connelly
Communications & Marketing Coordinator
Visit Bucks County
215-639-0300 x 237
MeganC@VisitBucksCounty.com
About Visit Bucks County:
Visit Bucks County (VBC) promotes travel to and within Bucks County, Pennsylvania. As the County’s official destination marketing organization, VBC drives visitation, increases overnight stays and fuels the local economy by promoting all there is to see and do in Bucks County. VBC supports local businesses in the tourism and hospitality industry, including lodging, attractions, restaurants, retail, events and more. Annually, Bucks County welcomes more than 8.4 million visitors, generating nearly $1.3 billion in economic impact and supporting a total hospitality workforce of 29,104 jobs.
