Record success for Dunnottar

A historic Mearns landmark welcomed a record number of visitors last year.

Dunnottar Castle, on the outskirts of Stonehaven, attracted 110,272 visitors in 2017.

It is only the second time the 14th Century attraction has broken the 100,000 mark, with the first being 2016.

Castle custodian Jim Wands said the popular venue welcomed tourists from all over the globe.

He said: “The figures for 2017 were 110,272, a 9% increase on 2016 when we broke the 100,000 mark for the first time with 101,040 visitors.

“Scotland seems to be a popular destination for people from all over the world.”

He credited Visitscotland and Visitaberdeen’s overseas advertising for an international tourist boom, with two-thirds of visitors coming from abroad.

“Germans, Italians, Spanish and French are regular visitors, but we are seeing an increase in the numbers of Chinese and Norwegians too,” he added.

“Many of our visitors take the chance to sample some delicious Scottish food at our catering van on the way to the castle and many more go to nearby Stonehaven to explore this lovely little town.”

Numbers have grown steadily in recent years, with 89,383 people making the trip to the castle in 2015.

Mr Wands said he hoped the cruise ship market in Aberdeen in the coming years would bring thousands more people to the area.