OUTLANDER has been cited as helping bring a "phenomenal" boost to tourism in Scotland as new figures show an increase in visits.
Malcolm Roughead, Visitscotland chief executive, said the interest in film and television series locations like Outlander, shot and set in Scotland, has helped the rise in summer visitor numbers last year.
Read more: SNP MP Martyn Day celebrates the Outlander effect on tourism in his constituency
He said: "We knew anecdotally that tourism businesses across Scotland had a good summer in 2017, but it is absolutely phenomenal to see just how much growth there was compared to the same period in 2016 with overseas visits up by 14.6 per cent and domestic visits up by 10 per cent from July to September.
“Such exceptional increases across visits and spend can be attributed to a myriad of different factors which have worked together to create a perfect blend for Scottish tourism.
"Key influences include increased capacity on air routes from countries all across the world, favourable exchange rates and of course the Outlander effect which has had a huge impact with many coming to experience the land that inspired the popular books and TV series."
Read more: SNP MP Martyn Day celebrates the Outlander effect on tourism in his constituency
The head of the national tourism agency went on: "More than that, we are noticing a real uplift in the staycation market with less people flying out of the UK for the first time in a number of years, meaning many are simply getting out and about exploring their own country.
"This is a real testament to the hard work of our tourism industry which is constantly innovating and investing to ensure visitors receive not only a quality experience, but a memorable one.
Pioneering partnerships have been at the heart of Visitscotland marketing activity including key collaborations with TripAdvisor, booking.com and E4, ensuring we reach more potential visitors globally in new and exciting ways.
Read more: SNP MP Martyn Day celebrates the Outlander effect on tourism in his constituency
Mr Roughead said: "Our focus on digital marketing and unique PR campaigns including an ambitious YouTube influencer campaign has been very successful, with Scotland punching above its weight on a global platform.
“Tourism is the heartbeat of the Scottish economy, causing a ripple effect which touches every industry and community, creating employment and economic growth.
"We will continue to work hard to ensure the sector remains a priority for Scotland for many years to come."
Read more: SNP MP Martyn Day celebrates the Outlander effect on tourism in his constituency
Overseas figures from Office of National Statistics show 11.6m UK visits and domestic tourism statistics of 3.5m visits from the Great Britain Tourism Survey from July to September last year.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel