Press release -
Perthshire forests to grow online
Perthshire’s breath-taking woodlands are to be brought to life through an interactive digital map, thanks to a £35,000 cash boost from VisitScotland.
Perth and Kinross Countryside Trust has been given the money through the national tourism organisation’s Growth Fund for a year-long campaign to encourage visitors to ‘Big Tree Country’.
The environmental charity will use the money, which is match-funded by its members, to market Perthshire as a premier destination in the UK for nature enthusiasts.
Key to the Trust’s plan is to create a live interactive map. Inspired by the Japanese cherry blossom and New England ‘leaf peeping’ maps, the online map will track the spread of blooming bluebell woods in spring and autumn colours later in the year.
The map will also include locations of key wildlife events, such as the annual red deer ‘rut’, spectacular images of the area and suggested scenic driving routes.
Morag Watson, Manager of the Perth & Kinross Countryside Trust and Convener of Perthshire Big Tree Country, said:
“We are thrilled that the Perthshire Big Tree Country Partnership has received this Growth Fund money to attract more visitors to this very special area.
“With Scotland’s most spectacular trees and woodlands where there are lots of different experiences to discover and enjoy, we are really looking forward to making this hidden gem better known and sharing its delights with a wider audience.
“With the increasing interest in short break holidays, it’s important that we tell the market about the unique and beautiful attractions that we have to offer in Highland and East Perthshire.”
Jim Clarkson, Regional Partnerships Director at VisitScotland said:
“Perthshire boasts some of the most magnificent forests and woodlands anywhere in Europe, and is home to fantastic cultural attractions including The Enchanted Forrest and the Perthshire Amber Festival.”
“We are delighted to support Perthshire Big Tree Country through the VisitScotland Growth Fund, something I am sure will encourage more people to explore this beautiful part of the country.”
The VisitScotland Growth Fund is open to groups of three or more businesses and can support well planned, inspiring and new marketing campaigns.
For more information on the VisitScotland Growth Fund, go to www.visitscotland.org/growthfund
Topics
- Tourism
Categories
- growth fund
- corporate communications
- perthshire
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:
- 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
- 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
- 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
- Customer Experience: we will provide information and inspiration to visitors both locally and globally via their preferred medium of choice
- 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
- Inclusive Tourism: we will strive to make tourism in Scotland inclusive and available to all
- 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.
- According to a recent Deloitte study, the tourism economy supports 270,000 jobs in Scotland in 20,000 diverse businesses. The same study calculates that the tourism economy 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.
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Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design 2016 - 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 begins on 1 January 2016 and ends on 31 December 2016 and will build on the momentum generated by the current 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 Scottish Government, 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 events fund is managed by EventScotland, part of VisitScotland’s Events Directorate.
- Join the conversation at #IAD2016
- Events can join the 2016 Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design Partner Programme throughout the year by visiting http://www.eventscotland.org/YIAD_partner_programme
