Australian Hotels Association

Mr TEAGUE (Heysen) (15:25): I rise to recognise the significant achievement of this year's AHA (SA) Hotel Industry Awards for Excellence. They were awarded just a few hours from now this time last week. It has been said that South Australia showcases excellence in hotels and all the services they provide and that is true, but the house might forgive me a bit of parochialism in these circumstances because it is fair to say that the Hills really did shine at the awards last Tuesday.

I want to recognise the AHA for its tradition of hosting this excellent occasion. Having been fortunate to attend now on several occasions it is marvellous to see those who are used to serving in hotels all around the state gathering, nearly a thousand of them, over at the Entertainment Centre and enjoying the party, enjoying the recognition of the delivery of excellence that they do.

A roll call of those winners in the Hills really tells the story and I will save a few words for Mount Lofty House in a moment. First of all, the award for Bar Presentation and Experience (Metropolitan) went to Stirling Hotel, which shared it with The Highway. Stanley Bridge Tavern at Verdun won Bistro Casual Dining (Outer Metropolitan). Uraidla Hotel was a standout, winning two awards: Employee Excellence in Service (General Division)—that was awarded to Heath Johansen of Uraidla Hotel—and Innovation, Sustainability and Energy Efficiency Practice. That is something that Uraidla Hotel has been well known for now for many years and I congratulate Julie Peter in particular in that regard on her ongoing innovations.

Mount Lofty House was a total standout, winning several awards. We got a foretaste of what was to come when Mount Lofty House won Best Bar Presentation and Experience (Accommodation Division). It also won Employee Excellence in Service (Accommodation Division), singling out Christopher Speck, and unsurprisingly Mount Lofty House Sequoia won Best Luxury Hotel Accommodation. David Horbelt and all the staff at Mount Lofty House are right to be proud of those achievements, but that was not all because Mount Lofty House also won one of the three marquee awards to conclude the night. It was the winner of the Best Overall Hotel Accommodation Division.

So it was a proud night indeed for the Hills and for those venues in particular and I might say that the hotel that I have not mentioned, Crafers Hotel, might have been just sort of sitting this one out a little bit because it has been winning best hotel in the state, the nation, the universe and best all round, so it is good that it takes a back seat every now and then. We certainly have some sensational hotel venues in the Hills.

It would be remiss of me to conclude these congratulatory remarks without a special mention to Arkaba Hotel. Apart from anything else, it was the winner of the Best Overall Hotel (General Division) and that tells a story. I say especially to Peter and Jenny Hurley, special congratulations on leading the way. They have committed themselves to the industry, to their venues and to the overall health of South Australians who interact with hotels all the way around the country, not just in the metro area but everywhere else.

That was not the only one the Arkaba won, by the way. Peter was moved to come to the stage to receive that award and he made some remarks. You could clearly see just how heartfelt the investment at Arkaba was and they were worthy winners of the best overall hotel. Congratulations to everyone and well done to the AHA.