Press release -
VisitScotland Chairman hails“Stunning” Tourism Success
VisitScotland Chairman, Mike Cantlay responds to the release of the quarterly International Passenger Survey(IPS) tourism statistics by the UK Office of National Statistics (ONS) and the Domestic tourism statistics derived from the Great Britain Tourism Survey.
Mike Cantlay, Chairman of VisitScotland said:
“We named 2013 the Year of Natural Scotland, and it certainly did us proud! With fantastic weather and boundless energy, enthusiasm and engagement from across the tourism industry, visitor numbers soared higher than the sun.
“VisitScotland’s confidence and continuing investment in European markets, despite unpredictable economic climates has proved tangible with a large rise in spend and visits from this continent overall. And of course new flight routes played their part with Air Canada Rouge and Virgin’s Little Red – to name but a few - linking up Scotland with the world.
“Strong growth in the domestic market has been fuelled by a rise in visitor numbers to rural areas including the Highlands and south of Scotland, which reflects the success of putting an emphasis on ‘the great outdoors’ in 2013.
“After a challenging 2012, these results are simply stunning. It’s just the motivation Scotland needs as we head into 2014, the year that we welcome the world with an outstanding programme of global events including the Ryder Cup, Commonwealth Games, Homecoming Scotland and the MTV EMAs. We must keep the momentum going!”
KEY FACTS
YEAR TO DATE FIGS (2013)
Year to date (Jan - September 2013) - Overseas visitors
Overseas visits have increased: 7.9%
Overseas spend has increased: 18.8%
Year to date (Jan - September 2013) - Domestic visitors
Domestic visits have increased: 1.3%
Domestic spend has increased: 3%
Year to date (Jan - September 2013 - Combined domestic and overseas visitors
Combined overseas and domestic visits have increased: 2.3%
Combined overseas and domestic spend has increased: 8.5%
QUARTER 3 ONLY FIGS
Quarter 3 (July - September 2013) - Overseas visitors
Overseas visits have increased: 18.7%
Overseas spend has increased: 28.7%
Quarter 3 (July - September 2013) - Domestic visitors
Domestic visits remained the same
Domestic spend has increased: 8.8%
Quarter 3 (July - September 2013) - Combined domestic and overseas visitors
Combined overseas and domestic visits have increased: 3.2%
Combined overseas and domestic spend has increased: 16.2%
ROLLING YEAR STATISTICS
Rolling year (Oct 2012 – Sept 2013 – Overseas Visitors
Overseas visits have increased: 2.8%
Overseas spend has increased 5.1%
Rolling Year (Oct 2012 – Sept2013) – Domestic Visitors
Domestic visits have increased: 2.1%
Domestic spend has increased: 2.8%
Rolling Year (Oct 2012 – Sept 2013) – Combined Overseas and Domestic
Combined overseas and domestic visits have increased: 2.2%
Combined overseas and domestic spend has increased: 3.6%
Topics
- Tourism
Categories
- corporate communications
- international marketing
- uk & ireland marketing
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 has three key roles:
- To market Scotland to all parts of the world to attract visitors
- To provide information – and inspiration – to visitors and potential visitors so they get the best out of a visit to Scotland
- To provide quality assurance to visitors and quality advice to the industry and partners to help the industry meet and strive to exceed customer expectations
- VisitScotland works together with tourism businesses to make tourism a success for everyone and ensure the industry continues to grow.
- The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and VisitScotland Information Centres across Scotland.
- 2014 is the year Scotland welcomes the world, when it hosts the Glasgow Commonwealth Games, the Ryder Cup at Gleneagles and more than 800 Homecoming events throughout the country.For more information on Homecoming Scotland 2014, go to www.visitscotland.com
- The VisitScotland Information Centre network is a unique face-to-face channel engaging with around five million visitors and locals each year. Everyone who uses a VisitScotland Information Centre goes on to spend an additional £5.35, generating over £24 million for Scotland’s economy.
- According to a recent Deloitte study, tourism employs 270,000 people in Scotland in 20,000 diverse businesses. The same study calculates that the industry contributes £11 billion annually (direct and indirect impact, including day visits) and supports around 10 per cent of employment in Scotland. Almost 16 million tourists take overnight trips to Scotland.
- 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
- For more information on VisitScotland’s annual review please go to www.visitscotland.org/about_us/our_focus/annual_report.aspx