Press release -

International agreement to benefit Scotland's skiers and snowboarders

Delegates to the North Atlantic Ski Areas’ Association (NASAA) conference, held recently in Scotland, agreed a ground-breaking offer which will benefit Scotland’s and Iceland’s skiers and snowboarders.

Set up jointly by Scotland’s and Iceland’s snowsports areas, NASAA aims to enhance the experience of skiers and snowboarders at resorts in both countries. At its sixth biennial conference, based at Glenshee and The Lecht, representatives of the nine Icelandic and five Scottish snowsports areas determined that season-ticket holders from each country would benefit from free skiing or snowboarding at the other country’s resorts.

The result is that anyone buying a season ticket from CairnGorm Mountain, Glencoe Mountain, Glenshee, Nevis Range or The Lecht, or who has purchased an all-area season pass from Ski-Scotland, can enjoy free uplift at any Icelandic ski area, just by showing their season pass.

“We believe this is the first international agreement between all snowsports areas in two countries,” said Chair of Ski-Scotland Heather Negus. “While there is cross-border co-operation between individual ski areas elsewhere, what makes this unique is that it includes absolutely every lift at every resort in both Scotland and Iceland. With daily flights linking Glasgow, Aberdeen and Edinburgh with Reykjavik, we believe many of our customers will see this as a wonderful opportunity to ski or snowboard on new terrain and enjoy the culture of a new country. And of course, we also look forward to welcoming Icelandic skiers and boarders to Scotland’s mountain resorts.”

The announcement of this agreement comes just days after Scotland’s First Minister signed a memorandum of understanding between Scotland and Iceland formalising the working relationship between VisitScotland and the Icelandic Tourist Board in sharing information to their mutual benefit.

Malcolm Roughead, Chief Executive of VisitScotland, added: “Both Scotland and Iceland are small countries that punch well above their weight on the global tourism stage. VisitScotland and the Icelandic Tourist Board have built a strong and mutually beneficial relationship over the past three years, culminating in the recently announced formal agreement between the two organisations. This historic collaboration will see the sharing of information and best practice on areas such as quality development, information provision and sustainability.

“The agreement at the North Atlantic Ski Areas’ Association conference is another great example of innovative partnership work between the two nations and we look forward to welcoming many Icelandic snowsports enthusiasts to Scotland’s stunning mountain resorts in the coming months and years.” 

For further information please contact - Elma McMenemy (01569) 750700 or 07836 371972 elma@tourism.force9.co.uk

Topics

  • Tourism

Categories

  • ski-scotland
  • sports tourism
  • corporate communications

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 seven overarching strategies:
    1. Marketing: we will market Scotland and its outstanding assets to visitors from all parts of the world, including the promotion of Scotland to people living in Scotland       to visit different parts of the country
    2. Events: we will support the national events strategy and its delivery, and sustain, develop and promote Scotland’s international profile as one of the world’s foremost events destinations
    3. Internationalisation and International Engagement: we will utilise all our platforms to enable Scottish-based tourism businesses to better understand international       opportunities and market to a global audience and we will work within One       Scotland Partnerships to optimise the potential of Scotland’s Diaspora and our strategic partners at regional, European and global levels
    4. Customer Experience: we will provide information and inspiration to visitors both locally and globally via their preferred medium of choice
    5. Quality and Sustainability: we will provide support and advice to businesses, with the goal of improving the quality and sustainability of the tourism sector in Scotland. We will provide quality assurance to visitors through our Quality Schemes
    6. Inclusive Tourism: we will strive to make tourism in Scotland inclusive and available to all
    7. Working in Partnership: we will listen to and work with the industry, partners and communities to shape our offering and support
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • The Scottish Government is the Managing Authority for the European Structural Funds 2014-20 Programme. For further information visit www.gov.scot or follow @scotgovESIF
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  • 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 events in Scotland go to www.conventionscotland.com


      2016 Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design

  • 2016 will shine a spotlight on Scotland’s achievements in innovation, architecture and design through a wide-ranging, variety of new and existing activity.
  • The Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design started on 1 January 2016 and will end on 31 December 2016.It will build on the momentum generated by the 2015 Year of Food and Drink as well as previous years including Homecoming Scotland 2014, the Year of Creative and the Year of Natural.
  • Through a series of exciting events and activity, the year will showcase Scotland’s position as an “innovation nation”, its outstanding built heritage, and its thriving, internationally acclaimed creative industries sector.
  • The Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design is a Scottish Government initiative being led by VisitScotland, and supported by a variety of partners including Creative Scotland, Architecture + Design Scotland, Scottish Tourism Alliance, Scottish Enterprise, The National Trust for Scotland, Historic Environment Scotland, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS).
  • The Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design is supported by £570,000 of Scottish Government funding.
  • The Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design events fund is managed by EventScotland, part of VisitScotland’s Events Directorate. 
  • Join the conversation at #IAD2016

ERDF.

Contacts

Chelsea Charles

Press contact Scotland’s Themed Years Communications & Engagement Manager Contact for media enquiries on: Scotland’s Themed Years (i.e. 2018 Year of Young People; 2020 Year of Scotland's Coast and Waters; 2022 Year of Scotland's Stories) 0131 472 2067

Carrie MacWilliam

Press contact Senior Corporate Press Officer - National Contact for media enquiries on: Travel media (Scotland); Year of Young People; UK Marketing; Dundee; Fife; Angus; Perthshire 0131 472 2052

Amelia Whittaker

Press contact Senior Corporate Press Officer - Regional Contact for media enquiries on: South Region; Edinburgh and Lothians; Food and Drink; Scottish Thistle Awards 01750 723806