Glasgow attractions top million list

GLASGOW’S Riverside Museum and Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum have been named among seven Scottish tourist attractions which recorded more than one million visitors last year, according to new research.

Edinburgh Castle was the only paid-for attraction on the list and achieved the most visitors, with 1,568,508 people passing through in 2015, making it the most popular overall.

The others, including Glasgow’s Riverside Museum, pictured, as well as the Scottish National Gallery in Edinburgh, are free to visit.

The National Museum of Scotland in the capital was the top free attraction, with 1,567,310 visitors.

The city’s St Giles’ Cathedral and Loch Lomond Shores in Balloch make up the remaining sites to pass the one million mark in the study by Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU).

Researchers at the Moffat Centre for Travel and Tourism Business Development found visits to the top 10 attractions increased by five per cent in 2015, which followed a strong 2014 after Scotland hosted events such as the Commonwealth Games.

The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, the Famous Blacksmiths Shop in Gretna Green and the Helix park in Falkirk were also in the top 10 free attractions, welcoming more than 600,000 people.

Other top paid-for sites included Edinburgh Zoo, Edinburgh Bus Tours and Stirling Castle.

Professor John Lennon, director of the GCU centre, said: “It is a testament to the appeal of Scotland’s offerings that we continue to attract international tourists as well as local visitors to our visitor attractions.”