Following on from the ongoing, major restructure of Visit London – the official visitor body for London - and in recognition of the huge importance to London of the £15b a year visitor economy, Visit London’s annual industry awards has been renamed, upsized, given a new look, and a bigger profile.

The name will change from The London Tourism Awards to The Visit London Awards and the ceremony will move from a low-key, invitation only breakfast to a glitzy, black tie, evening event. Funding will be via a combination of ticket sales and sponsorship of the awards title plus individual categories. In addition, there will be two new categories added to the 2004 awards.

Best Event acknowledges the huge importance of events to London’s visitor industry. Its introduction increases the awards suitable for entry by the business visitor sector and recognises the importance of this sector to London’s overall visitor economy.

The event award is open to any organisation in the industry, for example, event organisers, destination management companies, professional conference organisers, production companies, exhibition centres, hotels or conference and banqueting venues.

David Campbell said: ‘We need to have an awards scheme that reflects London’s position as a world city with the biggest concentration of attractions in the world. At Visit London we are extremely proud to work with some of the best accommodation providers, museums and galleries, restaurants, event organisers and nightlife venues in the world - now we will have an awards scheme worthy of them.’

This award will be open to all businesses offering entertainment in London from theatres and music venues to nightclubs and bars. The Visit London Awards ceremony will take place at the Natural History Museum on 18 October.

Entries will need to be submitted by 26 July and full criteria and entry forms can be downloaded from www.visitlondon.com/corporate