A VINTAGE campervan hire company based in Okehampton has been shortlisted to the finals of Visit Devon Tourism Awards.

O'Connors Campers, who hire out campervans ranging from a 1960s VW Splitscreen 21 window Samba to classic baywindow vans from the 1970s, are finalists in the 'tourism experience and activity award' category and will discover today (Thursday) where they are placed in the top three.

The company faced stiff competition from more than 250 other top businesses across Devon. The awards celebrate the cream of the Devon tourism industry and are designed to raise the profile of the county's high performing tourism providers. 

Successful businesses from the Devon awards will then be fast-tracked into the South West tourism excellence awards in November 2010 and possibly on to the National Enjoy England awards next spring.

Owner of the Okehampton business, Peter O'Connor said: 'We are absolutely delighted to be in the finals for this award. This placement in the finals represents recognition for our whole team of staff and the campervans, too, for all their hard work and focus on the customer experience'.

O'Connors Campers was set up six years ago with three vintage VW Campervans.  Since then it has gone from strength to strength and now has 15 vans which come with either their original interior or a brand new interior and are restored in the on-site workshop.

More than 4,000 people have returned from happy holidays in the vans, having explored the South West at a more relaxed pace.

O'Connors have created successful promotional partnerships with such national companies as Innocent, White Stuff, Boden, Jamie Oliver and Bump to 3 and have featured in national publications such as the Sunday Times, the Observer, the Financial Times and the Guardian.

General manager of Visit Devon Rosie Bates said Devon tourism providers had performed very well this year: 'It was difficult choosing the shortlist but it was also inspiring to see that so many businesses have continued to invest in their services during what are challenging economic times for many businesses.'