Video: VisitScotland Launches Responsible Tourism Campaign
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VisitScotland has announced a responsible tourism campaign to ensure the public enjoys the outdoors responsibly as Scotland prepares to emerge from lockdown.
The £124,000 campaign will ask visitors to leave no trace as it looks to counteract some of the issues seen as a result of a new, home grown audience of visitors discovering and enjoying Scotland’s countryside.
It includes a responsible tourism film and script which will be broadcast across radio, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram alongside billboard and outdoor digital screen advertising in all of Scotland’s main cities. This work will be supported by a dedicated responsible tourism page on visitscotland.com, dedicated itineraries created for travel trade and information and advice for the tourism sector on the corporate website.
With more people enjoying the outdoors as the weather improves and the plan for lockdown restrictions to be lifted towards the end of April, VisitScotland’s campaign will reinforce the need for visitors to be aware of the consequences of their visits on the environment, wildlife and communities.
Vicki Miller, Director of marketing and digital at VisitScotland, said: "This campaign is hugely important particularly at this time, as we are all enjoying outdoors more due to restrictions to other sections of the tourism industry. It is imperative that we realise the impact of our visits on these areas and our individual and collective responsibility to care for Scotland.
“We want to protect the stunning landscapes and wildlife that Scotland is famous for and the local communities that are such an important part of our culture. We are asking everyone to help keep Scotland special by ensuring we protect our natural resources by being responsible and respectful when out and about.
“We have a unique opportunity to positively engage audiences to enjoy the outdoors responsibly and come together to develop a Scotland-wide strategic and coordinated approach to help protect what’s there for future visitors and aid the recovery of our rural economy.”
The national tourism organisation’s campaign is part of the Visitor Management Strategy and Steering Group, led by the Scottish Government and VisitScotland and includes three groups with focuses on education and marketing, investment and infrastructure, and prevention, regulation and reassurance.
The education and marketing group is led by 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.
Some of the issues the groups have been addressing since last year include:
• Littering – dropping and leaving litter, leaving camping equipment, broken glass
• Environmental damage and fire hazards – damaging fences and signage; lighting fires in unauthorised locations or in unsafe ways, felling trees, damaging surrounding wildlife and risking spread of wildfires
• Unsafe waste disposal – people not using designated toilets or appropriate facilities and leaving waste outdoors
• Poor preparation – a lack of understanding of rapid weather change and challenging terrains, sometimes resulting in visitors getting into trouble or requiring assistance
• Traffic and inappropriate parking - increased demand on hot spots, parking in passing places or areas that are not safe or block access to land managers or residents
Whilst the activity launched this week and will be visible over the forthcoming weeks and month, the collaborative marketing and communications work across the groups will continue throughout the year as tourism begins to reopen.
Read more information on the visitor management activity and watch the responsible tourism film
