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Visit Scotland | Alba
Article published 24/01/2024

Caroline Warburton, Destination Development Director

I’m delighted to share our first Perthshire Regional Update of 2024. This update highlights some of the ways we’ve promoted Perthshire across our channels over the last six months, and how we support the industry to keep up to date with news and opportunities.

Alongside a great year of events and activities, 2023 saw "The Hauntings" at the Black Watch Museum and Castle, the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships Gran Fondo race and The Enchanted Forest, all of which drew visitors from across Scotland, the UK and the world.

Looking ahead to 2024, there are two special openings - the much-anticipated Perth Museum and the Scottish Crannog Centre. Both provide excellent opportunities for us to shine a spotlight on Perth and Kinross and ensure that visitors – new and returning – have Perthshire on their holiday map.

We work closely with partners in the region to share news and information about Perthshire nationally and national opportunities locally. This ensures that tourism businesses subscribed to our e-newsletter, connected via LinkedIn and part of our Facebook group, do not miss out.

Through the Perthshire Tourism Partnership, we've also delivered a number of in-person and online events over 2023, with the aim of helping businesses strengthen their operations and network with others. Join us at the Partnership’s upcoming event "Promoting Perthshire", you can find further details within this update. 

All the very best for a successful 2024.

Caroline

Marketing Perthshire

  • New Perthshire blogs

    Check out some of our new and refreshed blogs on visitscotland.com featuring Perthshire:

  • Email marketing

    Perthshire continues to feature within our email programme to over one million global contacts, across 15 markets and five languages. Each email is designed with seasonality and geographic spread in mind, while promoting responsible tourism.

    Our emails signpost to businesses and places in Perthshire highlighting experiences and travel inspiration.

  • Perth promoted in partnership with Expedia

    Perth is being promoted to UK travellers as part of a campaign with Expedia running until this month.  

    Perth features within a dedicated Scotland campaign webpage on Expedia.co.uk and Hotels.com to inspire visits to the region, including travel, accommodation and experiences. Browse the dedicated webpage on expedia.co.uk 

    In the US, Perth also features as part of the Scotland Expedia landing page. Browse the dedicated webpage on expedia.com.

"Blam to the max" days out in Perthshire

Perth City and Scone Palace featured in our recent marketing activity with ScotRail and Beano to promote sustainable family days out.

Perth featured in the Scottish Daily Express and the Daily Record newspaper and online.

Scone Palace was promoted as part of the activity across social media and digital advertising.

All this promotional activity was designed to captivate our family audience and signpost to a dedicated webpage on visitscotland.com.

Check out totally cool days out in Perth

cartoon characters in front of a large historic building

Perthshire on social (July – December 2023)

4.87 million reach

Number of times Perthshire content reached people on their social channels

410,900 engagements

Reactions, likes, comments, shares and saves of Perthshire posts

Reach of 449,330+

Top performing post by reach on Tick Tok was a stunning video of The Enchanted Forest

Perthshire PR coverage

Our Global PR team works to promote Perthshire and Scotland across key travel and lifestyle media. In the last six months, the team have shared information and press releases to more than 2,500 media contacts in the UK, North America, Germany, France, China, Australia, and the UAE.

The team pitch ideas to media contacts throughout the year, handle enquiries and requests from global media, and attend events such as the World Travel Market in London. 

The team also host press visits across Scotland to generate coverage that truly reflects all the country has to offer.

Perthshire "in the news" highlights

  • media pitch on things to around Halloween, resulting coverage in the Sunday Mail and featuring History and Horror Tours and pumpkin-picking at Broadslap Farm (print reach: 107,415)
  • press trip support for the Enchanted Forest and overnight stay in Pitlochry, which you can read on thetimes.co.uk and in print within the Alba magazine travel section (combined reach: 130,000)
  • in a round-up of gorgeous lakes in the world, shondaland.com featured Loch Tay as one of the most breathtaking lakes in Scotland, also mentioning Taymouth Marina and The Scottish Crannog Centre

 

  • Brigitte, Germany’s most widely read women’s magazine, published a multi-page spread on Scotland and featured vegan hotel, Saorsa 1875, in Pitlochry
  • The West Australian newspaper featured coverage of Scotland’s cities focusing on new openings and unique experience, exploring Perth with a kayaking tour on River Tay and signposting readers to visitscotland.com (print reach: 500,000, online reach: 1.83 million)
  • Fonab Castle Hotel, Blair Athol, Queens Views and Killiecrankie were featured in an article published by Mail Brisbane (circulation: 184,000), the Sunday Telegraph (circulation: 301,000) and Escape Australia, which you can read on escape.com.
  • an article in the South China Morning Post in August 2023, which you can read on scmp.com, featured a journalist visit, writing about the amazing outdoor and accommodation experience at Gleneagles Hotel

Perthshire corporate PR

We announced businesses shortlisted in the Central & East Scottish Thistle Awards in July and revealed the winners at the regional final in September, which included RSPB Loch Leven. 

We issued a regional media release for the return of our travel trade event – Connect – in April 2024 encouraging Perthshire businesses to sign up. 

We issued a media release encouraging local individuals to get involved in the Perthshire Tourism Action Group. Read our appeal for new members of the Perthshire Tourism Action Groups.

We provided supporting quotes for partner media releases on the opening of the "Hauntings" at the Black Watch Castle and Museum, and the news that Perth Museum is set to open on Easter weekend this year

iCentre update

Over the summer we saw the return of more international visitors and welcomed them with news of some exciting milestones ahead for the city including the Perth Museum, the Scottish Crannog Centre and more.

In August, Perth hosted the UCI Cycling World Championship Gran Fondo race, which we provided maps for visitors attending or taking part in this major cycling championship.

You might have noticed that we’ve got some new and different windows displays recently? Since September we’ve been working in partnership with Perthshire Artisans to help showcase the work that 35 Artists produce across the region, supporting the craft community and encouraging our visitors to shop local.

We’ve also recently welcomed along pupils from Morrisons Academy to the Perth iCentre to hear more about what VisitScotland does and to have a go at helping our visitors.

Travel trade - Perthshire

Our intermediary marketing teams undertake an extensive annual programme of activity. This allows us to take Scotland to the world in collaboration with our network of global tour operators and travel agents.

Take a look at some of the highlights from the last six months:

  • Megginch Castle in Perthshire recently attended our travel trade workshop in Edinburgh, facilitating engagement between Scottish suppliers and buyers from Destination Management Companies (DMCs)
  • in August, Fonab Castle in Perthshire was mentioned within our travel trade enewsletter
  • six local businesses from Perthshire joined a staff product presentation webinar (thank you to all the invited speakers who shared their business journey with us: Perth Museum, Auchingarrich Wildlife Park, Errichel, Highland Safaris, Scone Palace, and Murrayshall Hotel)

A maze in the grounds of Scone Palace

Upcoming industry events

Tourism industry events and webinars are a great way to make new connections and reconnect with industry peers, as well as gaining valuable insight and support. Join us for our first industry event of the New Year - Promoting Perthshire.

Come along and hear about valuable market insights and tourism trends and how Perthshire is being promoted to our domestic and international visitors. We have a range of industry speakers and groups who will be sharing their business and destination marketing stories.

  • date - 31 January 2024
  • time - 9.30am for 10am start, finishing at 12.30pm
  • venue - Perth Concert Hall, Perth

This series is hosted and delivered in partnership with VisitScotland and Perth & Kinross Council, on behalf of the Perthshire Tourism Partnership.

Register to attend

banner image with people sittign on a large tree trunk in the forest with the text "promoting Perthshire industry event, 31 January"

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