Press release -
Direct China flight heralds a ‘gear-change’ for Scottish tourism
VisitScotland has welcomed the announcement of the first-ever direct flights from China to Scotland today (15 March).
Hainan Airlines will launch 4 weekly flights from China on 12 June, which link Beijing, Edinburgh and Dublin.
The service will fly from Beijing to Edinburgh and then Dublin and then back to Beijing on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and fly to Dublin and then onto Edinburgh and then back to Beijing on Thursdays and Sundays.
China is an important and growing market for the Scottish tourism sector with Edinburgh being the most popular UK destination after London.
Connectivity has been enhanced in recent years by airlines such as Qatar, Etihad and Emirates providing one-stop connections between China and Scotland via the Middle East. Turkish Airlines and Finnair – with its one-stop connections via Helsinki – have also been competing with British Airways, Air France and Lufthansa for a share of the market.
A direct flight from this important market will take things to a new level.
At next month’s VisitScotland Expo 2018 (11 to 12 April) in Glasgow, there will again be a significant turnout of buyers from China who will have the opportunity to experience and learn about Scotland’s key tourism businesses and attractions.
Malcolm Roughead, Chief Executive of VisitScotland, said: “This first-ever direct flight from China to Scotland is fantastic news and marks an exciting gear change for Scottish tourism and its engagement with the Chinese market.
“Already in recent years we have seen a steady rise in Chinese visitors to our shores and have been working closely with businesses across Scotland to help them to access this important opportunity. At the same time, we have been working with Chinese travel companies to continue to develop the range of Scottish holidays available to their clients.
“At our own VisitScotland Expo travel trade fair in Glasgow next month we will be hosting 35 Chinese tour operators, keen to do business with Scotland, and today’s announcement by Hainan Airlines will offer further encouragement for them to drive forward their plans to increase the number of Chinese visitors choosing Scotland as their next destination.”
For more information on the announcement, visit: http://www.edinburghairport.com/about-us/media-centre/press-releases/direct-route-from-edinburgh-to-beijing
ENDS
Topics
- Tourism
Categories
- international marketing
- hainan airlines
- corporate communications
- china
- edinburgh airport
Regions
- Scotland
Notes to Editors
- Follow us on twitter: @visitscotnews
- VisitScotland is Scotland’s national tourism organisation. Its core purpose is to maximise the economic benefit of tourism to Scotland.
- The organisation’s core objective is to contribute to the Tourism 2020 Strategy ambition of growing tourism revenues by £1 billion by 2020.
- This will be supported by five overarching strategies: Marketing, Events, Quality and Sustainability, Inclusive Tourism, International Engagement.
- The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and VisitScotland Information Centres across Scotland.
- Spending by tourists in Scotland generates around £12 billion of economic activity in the wider Scottish supply chain and contributes around £6 billion to Scottish GDP (in basic prices). This represents about 5% of total Scottish GDP
- For VisitScotland’s press releases go to http://www.visitscotland.org/media_centre.aspx, tourism statistics and frequently asked questions go to http://www.visitscotland.org/
- Where possible, a Gaelic speaker will be made available for broadcast interviews on request (Far an tèid iarraidh, agus far am bheil sin nar comas, bruidhinnidh neach le Gàidhlig aig agallamh)
- For holiday information on Scotland go to www.visitscotland.com
- For information about business tourism in Scotland go to www.conventionscotland.com
2018 Year of Young People
- The Year of Young People 2018 will be the next of the Scottish Government’s series of themed years, following the Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology 2017.
- The Year of Young People (YoYP 2018) will inspire Scotland through its young people aged 8 to 26, celebrating their achievements, valuing their contributions to communities and creating new opportunities for them to shine locally, nationally and globally
- Central to YoYP 2018 will be a celebratory events programme that puts young people at the heart of its development and delivery, creating new and valuable experiences for young Scots and the wider public, with links to the inaugural 2018 European Championships.
- Over 200 young people throughout Scotland are currently being recruited to become YoYP 2018 Ambassadors. Ambassadors will ensure that people and organisations in their communities know about what’s happening and will lead on projects and activities to create events and opportunities to celebrate young people.
- The Year of Young People will have six themes which were developed in co-production with young people themselves:
- oParticipation – looking at how young people can influence public services and decisions which affect their lives
- oEducation – creating a stronger role for young people in shaping their learning
- oHealth and Wellbeing – supporting young people to lead healthier, active lives and have opportunities to learn about and improve their mental health and resilience
- oEquality and Discrimination – broadcasting the value of young Scots, challenging negative perceptions of young people, and supporting young people to take leading roles in challenging discrimination in all its forms.
- oEnterprise and regeneration – celebrating young people’s role in innovation, entrepreneurship and the Scottish economy as well as making Scotland a greener and more pleasant place to live
- oCulture – celebrating young people’s talent and contribution to Scottish culture and arts.
- Further information on what’s happening and how people can get involved can be found on the new website www.yoyp2018.scot or @YOYP2018 on Twitter.
