Country sports can play even more vital part in our tourist industry
work together in common cause. Country sports play an important part in Scotland’s tourism industry as well as rural communities and economies. They do, however, attract mixed emotions and opinions. Critics deride them as being elitist while at the opposite end of the spectrum those who participate and enjoy them year on year see them as being truly world class.
Whatever your personal opinion on country sports what is clearly evident is the widespread benefit of people and organisations pulling together. Country sports have been supported by a public/private partnership that has been going for 12 years. Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Visit Scotland and Scottish Natural Heritage joined forces with deer management, shooting, fishing and land based business groups to gather data on the industry and assess how to develop its role as a major player in Scotland’s tourism offering.
Substantial research has been undertaken over the years and throws light on the truly international market country sports command and how many of the participants enjoy much more that Scotland has to offer such as its historic buildings and castles, golf, whisky and shopping. Country Sports trips are now in excess of 270,000 per year with visitor nights resulting from these trips are 910,000. Furthermore, the research shows that scenery tops the list for visitors and the contribution of country sports to conservation is recognised.
The Scottish Country Sports Tourism Group (SCSTG) aims to build on this information by making country sports more readily available, catering for a wide range of budgets. The high end headline grabbing sports, such as driven grouse or salmon fishing in some of Scotland’s best known rivers is certainly not the whole story. The group’s work benefits from the expert sporting knowledge of the industry groups involved and the tourism and research methodology of the public bodies. A useful combining of forces has enabled the group to grow from strength to strength.
The SCSTG website www. countrysportsscotland.com promotes many different sports throughout the year, hind shooting in the winter months, loch fishing from spring to autumn or a day’s walked up shooting are all sports that do not command a huge financial investment. What they do require is easy booking access, sympathetic and geographically convenient accommodation and well informed managers who can help you access exactly the sport that suits you. This is where the SCSTG steps in, running courses for managers and those who make the days sport possible on the ground. The website acts as a portal for booking a full range of sport and we work with VisitScotland to promote the Welcome Fieldsports and Welcome Angler schemes for accommodation providers.
Many of the sports are undertaken in the most beautiful and remote parts of Scotland, providing the visitor with a unique insight into Scottish life and often bringing economic activity and employment into areas where it is much needed. The visitors show their appreciation by returning year after year and by the very nature of the sports the majority of these visits are in the low season, the tourism industry couldn’t ask for better customers. As we prepare for Scottish Tourism Week, the experience of the country sports industry working in long-term partnership with public bodies has been a success that Scotland can learn from and celebrate.