By Roland Smyth

SCOTLAND’S tourism sector is facing one of its most challenging times as it looks to re-establish itself beyond the pandemic. Recovering from the damage of Covid is one thing but other hurdles, including climate change and mounting concerns about over-tourism, also pose a threat to its future growth.

Prior to the pandemic Scotland’s tourism industry welcomed 3.5 million international and nearly 14m domestic overnight visitors from within the UK, generating £11.5 billion in spending. The sector represented 8.4% of Scotland’s companies and supported around 230,000 jobs.

A survey in late 2020 by the Scottish Tourism Emergency Response Group reported that over half of all tourism businesses had lost up to £50,000 since the Covid crisis began with more than six per cent losing more than £1million. More than three-quarters of tourism employers said they were forced to furlough staff or make redundancies in this period.

Despite the success of the UK vaccination programme, numerous events including the Military Tattoo and The Enchanted Forest have once again been cancelled this year while major annual occasions such as the Edinburgh Fringe Festival have been substantially scaled down.

Along with these pandemic-related issues, Scottish tourism must also address climate change. While the huge growth in overseas visitors from the likes of China and the US has enriched Scotland’s economy, the increased flights to bring them here have significant environmental consequences.

While the Scottish Government’s decision in April 2019 to scrap its pledge to cut Air Passenger Duty may have had a positive impact on CO2 emissions, it adds to the woes to the global airline industry and makes it even tougher to grow visitor numbers in future.

The size and scale of these current challenges will require radical thinking in how Scotland’s tourism industry can realign itself for the future with wide-ranging discussions and debate across the sector.

We need to look at innovative means of promoting alternatives to air travel tourism, including more focus on rail accessibility for both our UK domestic market and, through closer collaboration with the Channel Tunnel Rail Link, with European markets.

We must also address concerns about over-tourism which at times has put a strain on areas such as Edinburgh city centre and parts of the Highlands. This includes spreading major events around the calendar to quieter periods of the year and investing in tourist-related infrastructure in regions of Scotland, such as Inverclyde, Kintyre and Bute, which have not yet benefitted proportionately from the growth of visitors.

There are also new opportunities to grasp, including the rise of the digital corporate nomad, employees who combine working with personal travel. This provides a great platform for hotels that are able to pivot their offering to appeal to both corporate and leisure demand.

Scotland’s tourism sector will undoubtedly recover from Covid as the global desire to travel and enjoy new experiences grows stronger than ever.

We are however entering an era of sustainable and transformational tourism where businesses must adapt but can also benefit immensely by engaging in the inevitable process of change.

Roland Smyth is Head of Scottish Hotels & Leisure group at law firm CMS