Adventure and collaboration, keys to Scotland’s tourism strategy

The pandemic’s effect on adventure tourism in Scotland and emerging global trends within the sector will be explored as part of an online inaugural Adventure Tourism Week.

VisitScotland, in partnership with Wild Scotland and Sail Scotland, is running a five-day programme of live webinars to explore Covid-19’s effect on adventure tourism in Scotland and emerging global trends.

The webinars are aimed at the active, wildlife and marine tourism sectors, and will feature expert speakers from Scotland and beyond providing insights into the multi-million-pound adventure tourism industry and the importance of the domestic market.

Marine tourism in Scotland is valued at £411m with sailing accounting for £131m.

“The commercial sailing charter and holiday sectors have been severely impacted by the pandemic,” says Alan Rankin, Sail Scotland chief executive. “This event will provide a positive stepping-stone for future planning, provide a much-needed confidence boost to businesses and help focus attention on the sector that can be at the very heart of tourism recovery in Scotland.”

“With wellness and outdoor pursuits, such as cycling, walking and wild swimming, becoming a focus for many during and post lockdown, adventure travel has been identified as an area for potential growth in the domestic market,” says Malcolm Roughead, chief executive of VisitScotland.

“Adventure Tourism Week is an opportunity for the industry to hear from leading experts on trends and areas where businesses can collaborate and adapt in a sustainable way as we navigate through the pandemic.”

Last year, GB residents took 290,000 overnight visits to Scotland where adventure sports were part of the trip, contributing £112m in spend.

The virtual event will run from 16-20 November, register online.