Michigan Meetings + Events Magazine has named Traverse City Tourism the best Convention and Visitors Bureau in Michigan.

The magazine's readership of 20,000+ convention and meeting industry professionals vote annually on the award, along with 27 other categories. “It might be easy to assume that the bureau has a no-brainer job – after all, Traverse City is breathtakingly beautiful and abounds in activities of all stripes,” writes magazine editor Alexa Stanard. “But it also takes time and effort to get there, and historically wasn’t nearly as well known outside the state as within it. That has changed significantly, thanks to the bureau.”

Seven other Traverse City organizations were also named best in their categories in 2016. They included the Grand Traverse Resort & Spa (Best Hotel with Meeting Space/Over 200 Rooms, Best Golf Resort), Sarah Brown Photography (Best Photographer), the Cathedral Barn at Historic Barns Park (Best New Venue), Short's Brewing Company (Best Craft Brewery/Brewpub), Chateau Chantal Winery (Best Winery), Red Ginger (Best restaurant with Meeting Space), and Events North (Best Event Planner).

A dozen local companies were also runners-up in their categories. They included Turtle Creek Casino & Resort (Best Casino), Floral Underground (Best Florist), Park Place Hotel (Best Hotel with Meeting/Event Space – Less Than 200 Guest Rooms), Corner Loft (Best Intimate Venue), Hagerty Conference Center (Best Meeting/Event Venue Outside Detroit Metro Area), Events North (Best Meeting Planning Company), Bonobo Winery (Best New Venue), The Franklin (Best Rooftop), Shanty Creek Resorts (Best Ski Resort), Celtic Shuttle & Tours (Best Transportation Company), and Black Star Farms and Bowers Harbor Vineyard (Best Winery).