Argyll & Isles tourism businesses are being encouraged to take advantage of more visitors opting to travel later in the year.
VisitScotland’s latest insights show Scotland is increasingly popular with both international and domestic visitors as the clocks go back and the days get shorter.
October to December 2022 had the most visits from overseas recorded for the period in Scotland, according to figures from The International Passenger (IPS) tourism statistics for Scotland (since 2002 when this began being recorded). This is a 1 per cent increase on pre-pandemic levels in 2019, with 850,000 international visits from October – December 2022. The same period (October to December 2022) also had the highest number of trips of the year for domestic overnight visitors, at 3.8 million. The final quarter of the year also had the highest level of spend at £999 million.
There are positive indications for October-December this year with the most recent insights suggest a greater percentage of those planning a UK overnight trip during the period intend to choose Scotland in 2023, than in 2022.
The National Tourism Organisation is encouraging businesses in Argyll & Isles to align with VisitScotland marketing activity, focusing on landscapes and wildlife in October.
Short walks and hiking are popular activities with visitors to Argyll and the Isles, with top attractions including Staffa National Nature Reserve, below, and Aros Park on Mull.
VisitScotland regional director David Adams McGilp said: “Argyll and the Isles is a fantastic place to visit all year round and the spectacular colours and nature in autumn and winter can be truly breathtaking. Our marketing aims to connect with visitors, drawing on their emotions and showing them what a visit to Argyll’s dramatic scenery and wildlife can feel like year-round.”
Wild About Argyll’s CEO Cathy Craig said: “Virtuoso, which gathers data and insights from the world’s top travel advisors and vendors, recently named Argyll and the Isles one of the ‘hottest’ destinations for the 2023 festive season. We received feedback from our members who really reaped the benefits of our winter marketing activity last year, so we definitely would encourage all our members to engage in autumn winter promotions.”