Helping visitors enjoy Scotland responsibly
We’ve come together with organisations across Scotland to develop a Scotland-wide strategic and coordinated approach to Visitor Management. We want to inspire and educate ‘novice’ outdoor adventurers and visitors in how to enjoy the outdoors responsibly across marketing, media and social media.
Being a responsible visitor and respecting and protecting our environment and communities makes for a better experience for everyone.
Our collective ambition is for everyone to have the skills and knowledge to be able to enjoy the outdoors responsibly. This will in turn, enable them to aid the recovery of our rural economy.
That’s where you come in...
What can you do to get involved?
We want to work with businesses, destinations, and communities to ensure that visitors and locals can have a fantastic experience, whilst respecting and protecting our environment and communities.
We need you to help spread the message and share content with your visitors / communities, helping them to enjoy the outdoors responsibly. The more we talk about it; the more people will hear about it.
You can start by using #RespectProtectEnjoy across your social media channels. And remember to use #VisitScotland to make your posts more discoverable and add our handle @VisitScotland to your tweets for us to see them.
We also have many tools for you to take inspiration from and be part of the activity. There are films, images, content and more – available for you to communicate widely across your social and marketing.
In this section, you can find out more about:
Keep Scotland Unspoiled
Spring 2022 sees us launch our new campaign ‘Keep Scotland Unspoiled’. This campaign aims to call out the bad behaviour we don’t want to see and the ‘spoilers’ behind the scenes. Key themes include camping, water safety, wildlife, Scottish Outdoor Access Code / littering.
Target audience
We’ll use social media to reach younger audiences, using humour to convey our key messaging and ensure we're setting a more positive tone around the need to behave responsibly when visiting destinations.
To do this we’ll work with influencers to give this approach authenticity and we’ll use channels that will give us the best reach and engage this audience – with TikTok a key channel. This will give you fantastic content to share and engage your visitors – or perhaps attract some new ones.
For those a wee bit older and our international audience, we’ll use visitor and residents' love of Scotland, or memory of the last time they visited, to create ambassadors for visitor management.
We’ll take an emotional approach that celebrates what makes Scotland so special and calls upon visitors to protect it. And we’ll celebrate the incredible sights, sounds, moments, and magic our followers expect from us – and ask for their help to protect them.
Campaign activity
Activity will include a mix of radio, YouTube, social media and publishing through media partnerships – all targeted to reach and engage these key audiences.
SPOILER ALERT! Here’s the four films available for you to share with your visitors…
Digital Media Library
The easiest way for you to get behind the new campaign is to share imagery and content that can enhance your marketing material.
We can help by giving you access to a range of pictures of Scotland and campaign resources such as videos and infographics, which you can download and use free of charge.
Take a look at our responsible tourism collection within our Digital Media Library. Simply register to our Digital Media Library for free, login and search "responsible tourism" to access the assets.
Share content from VisitScotland.com
We have a range of content ideas to support your business and to inspire potential visitors to plan a responsible break to Scotland.
Find everything from how a visitor can plan and enjoy a responsible trip, to outdoor access guidelines and responsible travel trade itineraries, all available for you to share with your visitors.
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Sustainable and responsible tourism in Scotland
We provide visitors with information on what responsible travel means to Scotland and how they can plan and enjoy a responsible trip. From becoming an eco-tourist to helping keep our beaches clean to understanding the environmental impacts of tourism – take a look at the sustainable travel section of VisitScotland.com. It's a useful source of information for your visitors.
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Safety outdoors in Scotland
Take a look at this handy guide for getting outdoors in Scotland. It has all the essential outdoor safety topics visitors need to know – what to wear outdoors in Scotland, health and safety tips, and advice for specific seasons too.
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Getting around Scotland
Transport has a big impact on how sustainable visitors are. Scotland's public transport options are great for travelling around the country, even to our most remote locations. Take a look at the information we have on the different travel options for your visitors.
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Responsible travel trade itineraries
Take a look at our regional itineraries, which suggest a variety of green experiences. This includes exploring a city with an electric bike, taking a tour on an electric vehicle or eating delicious and sustainable local produce. We will help you build trips that will give your clients the feel-good factor of helping protect the environment while still enjoying outstanding travel experiences.
Get sociable
Social media is a quick way to reach your audience and potential customers with messaging. Remember to use #RespectProtectEnjoy across your social media activity.
On your social channels, share messages of support, compassion and community spirit – consider what might resonate best with your audience.
Last year, we partnered with social media influencers The Hebridean Baker and On the Road Again Travels to produce inspirational information to reach a wider audience across social media and TikTok. The use of influencers enabled authentic messaging to reach new audiences.
Our plan is to work with an even wider pull of influencers providing films that cover our key messages, in an engaging way. You’ll start to see them from early April right through to the summer.
Make sure you follow our channels so that you can share our content directly or tag us in a post that you put up:
Consumer |
Corporate |
Twitter: @VisitScotland |
Twitter: @VisitScotNews |
Facebook: @visitscotland |
Facebook: regional groups |
Instagram: @visitscotland |
LinkedIn: @VisitScotland |
YouTube: Youtube.com/VisitScotland |
YouTube: VisitScotland Connect |
View our six top tips for social media to help you build your social media presence and reach more potential customers visiting Scotland.
Videos to share
People now watch more video than ever before. Using video in your marketing is a great way to reach and talk to your customers.
The good news is, we have a range of films that you can use.
Responsible motorhome, caravan and camping trips
Campers, campervan and motorhome rental operators attract adventure-seeking visitors and encourage them to explore Scotland and support local businesses. The vast majority are responsible individuals who love the countryside and the communities they are visiting.
Share our films which provide a guide to responsible motorhome / caravan and camping trips, encouraging everyone to enjoy Scotland’s countryside and communities responsibly.
Step forward and tread lightly. Scotland is Calling
Our ‘Tread Lightly’ film encourages visitors to “tread lightly” when visiting Scotland. It celebrates that visitors can feel good exploring Scotland, knowing about the steps we’re taking to deliver a sustainable experience… but with an ask. An ask that visitors also play their part to #RespectProtectEnjoy Scotland; to choose a path that treads lightly on Scotland and protects our natural assets. You can share this film with your visitors.
Let's keep Scotland special
Another film that you may find hits the right spot for your visitors is ‘Let’s keep Scotland special’. The film encourages those that live in and visit Scotland to make the most of our outdoors, but to take responsibility for caring for it. And you can easily access it from YouTube to share with your visitors.
Visitor Promise | Scotland's responsible tourism promise
We’re asking visitors to show their commitment to preserving Scotland’s natural assets and beauty for now and generations to come. The Responsible Tourism Promise asks visitors to make just a few simple ‘promises’ on how they’ll enjoy Scotland, responsibly.
My promise – pass it on #RespectProtectEnjoy
Visitors are asked to commit to their promise and share it with others, using #RespectProtectEnjoy on Twitter and encouraging friends and family to do the same and get involved.
You can encourage your audience to make their own promise, which covers:
- I promise to care for Scotland's nature.
- I promise to care for Scotland's communities.
- I promise to care for Scotland and the world's tomorrow.
How to share the guidance with visitors
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1
Download the Visitor Promise
We've provided a PDF version of the Visitor Promise in English or Gaelic for you to download.
Visitor Promise| How to enjoy Scotland responsibly
Published May 2021
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2
Print and display
Print and display at your business for visitors to see.
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3
Promote
Get sociable, join the conversation and share the message of enjoying Scotland responsibly across your social media or on your website.
Share the hashtag #RespectProtectEnjoy.
Visitor Promise in Gaelic | How to enjoy Scotland Responsibly
Published May 2021
Partnership approach
VisitScotland, along with partner organisations Cairngorms Business Partnership, Cairngorms National Park Authority, Forestry & Land Scotland, Keep Scotland Beautiful, Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park, Lochaber Chamber, National Park Authorities, NatureScot, Scottish Tourism Alliance (STA), Wild Scotland and Zero Waste Scotland, have come together to educate outdoor adventurers and visitors.
We’re committed to protecting the natural assets which are vital to Scotland’s iconic identity through our marketing, advice, partnerships and the actions of our staff.
To maintain our stunning landscapes, we must ensure we protect, respect and enjoy our countryside, towns and cities responsibly by asking people to leave no physical trace of their visit.
Join us.
Results and thank you!
A huge thanks to everyone that got involved in our marketing campaigns encouraging responsible visitors – from let’s keep Scotland special to tread lightly, you’ve helped us share the message that we all have a duty of care to protect the natural, social and cultural assets which make Scotland so special.
Working together we can continue this momentum and ensure enhanced experience for our visitors, a better time for communities, better seasonal and regional spread and an all-round happier place for everyone.
Some campaign results since launching in 2021
205.5 million
reached through social media activity
2.5 million
TikTok views from paid influencer campaigns
At least 83%
of Scottish adults saw campaign activity at least once
at least 57%
saw campaign activity more than three times
73% of Scots
agree that the adverts / clips motivated them to be more responsible when touring Scotland
Our partner feedback showed:
90% decrease
in campfires in Glenmore Forest Park
46% decrease
in the number of fires requiring extinguishing compared to 2020
30% increase
in campers in permitted areas compared with 2019
97% of campers
booked a permit area in advance
Increase of 121%
in Ranger interactions with the public, compared to 2020
Useful links
The Scottish Outdoor Access Code
https://www.outdooraccess-scotland.scot/When you are enjoying the outdoors, you must follow the Scottish Outdoor Access Code. Get more information on what it is, where you can go and what you can do.
Know before you go
https://www.outdooraccess-scotland.scotResources to promote responsible access and the Scottish Outdoor Access Code.
Know the Code
https://young.scot/campaigns/national/knowthecode12 short animations to promote the Scottish Outdoor Access Code have been created using a co-design approach with young people (via Young Scot) to help engage this target audience as effectively as possible. Each video covers a specific theme or topic within the SOAC.
Scotland is Stunning
https://m.youtube.comZero Waste Scotland launched a campaign highlighting the country’s natural beauty and wildlife, urging visitors not to spoil it by littering. The campaign was backed by Scottish Government and Keep Scotland Beautiful.
Water Safety Scotland
https://watersafetyscotland.org.uk/Water Safety Scotland uses the Water Safety Code. This code was developed by their members and represents the key information needed to help keep people safe around water. There are two versions: the full original version and a pictorial version.