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Visit Scotland | Alba
Article published 06/02/2023

Introduction from Annique Armstrong, Interim Regional Director

Annique Armstrong

Welcome to the first regional update of the year. In this update, we look back at our key activity in the last quarter of 2022. Our industry continues to adjust to tough new financial circumstances and it is clear that these will continue to impact in the year ahead.

But there is much to build on and we remain committed to doing what we can to support the industry, whether that’s bringing people to Scotland, offering support and guidance to businesses, or creating opportunities for growth and investment.  

Our marketing, funding and business support activities are all aimed at building on these shoots of recovery to support the responsible growth of our industry.  

It has been a busy period in the South of Scotland – from the launch of our film guide to our support for the South of Scotland’s inclusion in the Lonely Planet Best of Travel Guide for 2023 and much more.  

Find out more in this regional update on how all our work is helping to support the ambitions of the national tourism strategy, Scotland Outlook 2030, for Scotland to be a world leader in 21st century tourism. 

Hear from the staff at our iCentres

What's been published on visitscotland.org?

Here's an overview of some of the new and updated content on visitscotland.org which features the South of Scotland:

 

Yoga instructor in Kelso town square

Yoga instructor in Kelso town square

cycling championships banner

World cycling championships banner

Corporate PR - latest activity

  • "Set in Scotland" film guide

    Our press release about the launch of our Set in Scotland film guide gained media coverage across the region, including in the Border Telegraph and the Galloway Gazette.

    The 52-page guide features more than 150 films which have been shot entirely or partially in Scotland. The guide is available in our iCentres across the country and can be downloaded from visitscotland.com.

  • Lonely Planet accolade

    We worked with partners to promote the South of Scotland’s inclusion in Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel list for 2023.

    The story was covered extensively by the national and regional press, including BBC online and Director of Industry & Destination Development, Rob Dickson, was interviewed for BBC Radio Scotland and the Bauer network. 

  • Op-ed from Annique Armstrong

    An opinion editorial from Annique Armstrong was issued to regional media at the end of the year, highlighting the tourism industry’s resilience during these challenging operating times. This was covered in the Border Telegraph. 

  • Scotland's UNESCO Trail

    We promoted Scotland’s UNESCO Trail – which includes the Galloway and Southern Ayrshire UNESCO Biosphere – receiving an international award in recognition of its sustainable development.

    By now, you’ve probably heard of Scotland’s UNESCO trail. It encourages visitors to experience our UNESCO designations, which includes six orld heritage sites, two biosphere reserves, two global geoparks and three creative cities. You can visit the website to find out more about the UNESCO designations.

New and updated blogs featuring the South of Scotland

A couple on holiday in the South of Scotland

Couple take pictures on holiday in the South of Scotland

Inspire your visitors and refresh your website and social media by sharing our blogs. We create new blogs regularly which feature on visitscotland.com. We've included the South of Scotland in these latest articles:

Global PR Highlights

South of Scotland on our social media (Oct - Dec)

3.43 million

Social reach for the South of Scotland

176,000

Number of reactions, likes, comments, shares and saves for Dumfries & Galloway

387,000

Top performing post featured Scott’s View

Year of Stories 2022

Year of Stories

The year of stories launch image

The end of 2022 has closed the book on the Year of Stories, however there’s a wealth of resources and information on VisitScotland.org to continue the legacy of the Year.

In case you missed it, Dumfries & Galloway-based Mostly Ghostly featured within a story on new initiatives and campaigns created by tour operators and attractions across Scotland. Take a look.

Regional marketing highlights

Great days out campaign image

Great Days Out in Scotland

Our regional marketing teams are working closely with Historic Environment Scotland, ASVA and Scotrail, to offer discounted rail travel and entry to participating attractions across the south of Scotland. Running until the end of March, you can still view the toolkit for more information on how you can submit an offer.

Coast to Coast Cycle Route

VisitScotland has been supporting the South of Scotland Destination Alliance, South of Scotland Enterprise, Sustrans and the two local authorities across the south on the development of the new coast to coast cycle route between Portpatrick and Eyemouth, which is due for launch later this year.

Scotland’s UNESCO Trail

We had a successful end to the year for Scotland’s UNESCO Trail, forming part of a well-received Parliamentary Reception in December attended by representatives from a number of designations and MSPs.

Strong engagement from paid media activity in the UK, France and Germany, which included activity with Wanderlust and the Trail has so far won two awards - Fondazione Santagata Award for sustainable development projects and the UK - Wanderlust Sustainability Award.

The final phase of paid media activity, across publishing, partnerships and PR, runs between January and March.

Related links