Showcasing Scotland’s tourism and events leadership

Conversations, opportunities and partnerships

Scotland’s role as a global leader in tourism and events was recognised as we welcomed a number of international delegations visiting Edinburgh for the August Festivals. 

The visits allowed us to share insights into how we deliver for Scotland, including a specific focus on how we support, develop and benefit from our world-leading festivals and events sector.

Throughout August, colleagues from the Industry and Events Directorate, Strategy and Competitive Intelligence, and Marketing met with official tourism organisations, Ministries and cultural delegations who are keen to learn more about Edinburgh’s approach to hosting major events, supporting vibrant cultural programming and creating meaningful opportunities for the visitor economy.

These conversations provide an important platform to showcase Scotland as a welcoming, creative and ambitious destination, while strengthening relationships with markets and partners who look to Edinburgh for inspiration and expertise.

It also provides us with an opportunity to tap into best practice and insights from our counterparts around the world, with a number of follow-up meetings secured to optimise the benefits of these visits.  

Delegation highlights

Working alongside partners such as the Scottish Government, City of Edinburgh Council and Festivals Edinburgh, visits included:

• An Estonian cultural delegation visiting the city to hear more about how Edinburgh organises the world’s largest arts festival and how the city and wider region interact with, and benefit from, its festival offer.
   
• A delegation from Tourism Montréal visited to learn more about our operating model, cross-sector collaboration and the role of events in driving growth. As a follow up to this meeting, Tourism Montreal will share its approach to data, AI and sustainability, building on the value of the exchange for Scotland.
   
• Senior representatives from New Zealand’s Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment,  which has the remit for tourism, visited as part of our ongoing strategic exchange with Tourism New Zealand. The meeting strengthened existing engagement, with a focus on events, regional engagement and tourism investment, and provided an opportunity to discuss New Zealand’s interest in Scotland’s approach to visitor levy considerations and how we're working with the Scottish Government on events.
   
• A delegation of Thai private and public organisations visited to learn more about our strategy, portfolio approach, how we measure success, and our work with the Edinburgh Festivals. The meeting buildings on Thailand’s ongoing engagement with Festivals Edinburgh and their interest in Scotland’s approach to major events and cultural programming.
   
• Attendance at the opening of Chinese Culture Week 2026 in Edinburgh, which celebrated Chinese arts, heritage and international cultural exchange during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The event marked the beginning of a month-long programme of performances, exhibitions, workshops and cultural experiences, and included the signing of a new partnership between the Intercultural Connections Initiative and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society to support future cultural exchange and creative collaboration between Scotland and China.