Fairy Pools get a new bigger car park... and tourists get bigger fee
IT’S a stunning location, magical even, casting a spell on even judges from publisher Mills & Boon who declared it the most romantic place in the UK.
Little wonder then that the world famous The Fairy Pools in Glen Brittle on Skye attract such interest from visitors, perhaps looking for that perfect picture or just to roam hand in hand.
But with popularity comes a cost. Not just in the volumes going there – more than 100,000 are thought to head to the stunning natural attraction each year – but in complaints from residents “trapped” in their homes because the old 30-space car park could not cope, leading to vehicles being parked on verges and in passing places.
The answer, a new 130-space car park and toilets are being built after receiving over £650,000 of public funding – including £300,000 from the Scottish Government.
Now, though, it has emerged that cars are being charged £5, minibuses £15 and motorbikes £3 to park at the site, which is owned by Minginish Community Hall Association (MCHA).
It says the cash will help maintain the new facilities and paths.
And it means two £12-an-hour car park attendants are also being sought by the Outdoor Access Trust for Scotland, which manages the site.
The advert states: “Applicants should be good communicators and motivated to work with the public at one of Skye’s tourist hot spots.”
The attendants will also help with traffic flow.
Tourism Secretary Fiona Hyslop said recently on a visit to Skye that she was determined to take action where needed to ensure growth in tourism is sustainable.
She said: “When I visited Skye last November, I met local groups to hear firsthand about the challenges caused by the increasing visitor numbers to the iconic tourist sites that the island has to offer.
“The Scottish Government is determined to take action where needed, in partnership with local communities, to ensure growth in tourism is sustainable.”
The pools – a series of vivid green and blue pools and waterfalls – were named last year as having one of the best places in the world to swim, and on a list that included more exotic dips like The Great Barrier Reef in Australia.
The pools were placed among the best 36 swims in the world by Travel magazine – and the only place north of the Border to make the list.
Of the pools, Travel said: “At the foot of Skye’s brooding Cuillin mountains, the river fizzes into a string of petite, shoulder-depth, crystal-clear ponds.
“You don’t have to ask why they’re called the Fairy Pools.
“They’re an easy half-hour hike along gently ascending hillside from the nearest car park – and the remote setting means you may get them all to yourself.”
But the pools have become so popular that police, locals, Highland Council and other agencies have for years been looking at ways of alleviating traffic problems there.
Yet that doesn’t mean tourists are not welcome – just that they will have to pay their way.
Recently more than 150 Skye firms signed a letter saying the isle was “open for business” hitting back at “sensationalist” stories of overcrowding which they say threaten the “unpredictable” tourist trade.