Press release -
Raven about Edinburgh's spooky past
Edelweiss, one of Switzerland’s leading leisure travel airlines has today launched two weekly flights, bringing a mix of leisure and business travellers from Zurich to Edinburgh.
To promote this, VisitScotland, in partnership with Marketing Edinburgh and Edelweiss, have organised a VIP media trip with participants including a Swiss magician, a stylist/TV host with Scottish roots and a number of other Swiss journalists from leading publications.
Vincent Raven, a famous Swiss magician was in the German I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here! and will use his time in Edinburgh to explore the mystic and haunted places of Edinburgh. The eerie cobbled streets of Edinburgh’s old town boast a dark history and there’s a wide range of attractions and tours which make the most of Auld Reekie’s fascinating past. In 2013, Edinburgh was voted the UK’s spookiest city.
This new seasonal scheduled flight is the first time Edelweiss has flown to Edinburgh from Zurich and will operate between 12 May and 20 October 2014. The route is expected to carry around 8,000 passengers during the scheduled summer period.
In 2013, Swiss tourists in Scotland spent a total of £31m, had an average spend of £632 per trip and the average length of stay was 5.8 days. Visitor research shows that Swiss travellers are relatively high spenders in comparison with other nationalities, they have a strong desire to explore Scotland’s wonderful landscapes and a rising interest in golf. With an estimated 8,000 further passengers, the Scottish economy will be flying high as a result.
The VIP media trip begins on Friday 16 May, as Karl Kistler, Edelweiss Chief Executive Officer, personally flies the inaugural flight from Zurich to Edinburgh Airport. The trip takes in a tour of Edinburgh Castle, a morning of culture and history at the Scottish National Gallery and National Museum of Scotland and an evening of ghosts, magic and mystery at The Real Mary King’s Close.
VisitScotland Chairman Mike Cantlay said:
“This new route is yet another glowing endorsement of Scotland’s appeal throughout the world as a high quality tourism destination.
The flights will capitalise on the growing demand from Switzerland for links to Scottish golf courses and major events like the Edinburgh festivals, the Commonwealth Games, The Ryder Cup and Homecoming 2014.
As another financial hub, Edinburgh is perfectly placed to build on the business links which will be afforded by this new connection with Zurich. This will ensure Scotland continues to attract both the leisure and business market in 2014 and beyond.”
Karl Kistler, Edelweiss Chief Executive Officer said:
“We are very excited to add Edinburgh to our network. Our two weekly flights throughout the summer season from May until October will carry approximately 8,000 passengers to Scotland and will have a significant impact on incoming tourism from Switzerland and other connecting markets.”
John Donnelly, Marketing Edinburgh Chief Executive said:
“This new service from the heart of Europe is incredibly good news for Edinburgh. Momentum is building up to what will be an incredble summer for Scotland and an exciting time for the city. We’re delighted to welcome our new business and leisure visitors to Scotland’s Capital”.
-ENDS-
For further information contact:
Jack Gorman
Corporate Press Officer
Tel: 0131 472 2283
Out of hours media enquiries: 07699 766986
Topics
- Tourism
Categories
- corporate communications
- international 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
