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TOURISM


Changing directions


Scottish tourism is now stronger than ever before


news & jobs at www.leisureopportunities.co.uk Tourism growth to slow in 2011


Organisations downgrade estimates ahead another 'difficult year' By Tom Walker


Three influential reports, published at this year's World Travel Market (WTM), have predicted that growth in the global tourism sector will slow during 2011, following faster than expected recovery during 2010. Figures in the annual WTM Global Trends


MIKE CANTLAY is chair of VisitScotland


S


cottish tourism supports 20,000 businesses and 200,000 jobs and turns more than £11bn a year.


Growth, even through the dog days of 2009, was a brisk 2.3 per cent. But there's no room for complacency.


No one with an interest in tourism can have missed the headlines recently surrounding the change of direction at VisitScotland. We've one of the world's leading marketers at our helm, Malcolm Roughead, and – working in partnership with tourism businesses across Scotland – we're up for the challenges that lie ahead. The only question is how the sector can continue to build on that growth. The answer is three-pronged. First: Perspective. If Scots are aware


of the scale of the tourism sector, they often seem curiously ignorant of its achievements. Tourism is the engine room of the


Scottish economy and has stood in the shadow of other industries for too long. Second: Empowerment. The structure


of Scotland's tourism promotion apparatus has been through an awful lot of changes in recent years. The good news is that where we've ended up is, in my view, the best place we've been. There is now a real dynamic: working


together we're fluid, flexible, inclusive and driven by common purpose. Third: Growth. We're looking for


strategies to sustain growth. They might be short, medium, or long-term. I want us to identify, and plan for,


all three and also want to start a debate within the industry about what they should be.


16 Tourism numbers to the islands will increase


Report, compiled by research company Euromonitor, show that the number of arrivals and air passengers for 2010 will finish around 5 per cent higher than 2009 levels. The report predicts, however, that this growth will slow down going into 2011. As a result, Euromonitor expects the total


number of international arrivals to grow by less than 2 per cent during 2011. Meanwhile the World Travel & Tourism


Council has revised its forecasts for 2010 and 2011. In its report on the global travel and tourism economy, it said real GDP growth is expected to rise by 2 per cent


The reports were published at this year's World Travel market in London


this year – up from the 0.5 per cent forecast earlier in the year. The findings are mirrored by a report


from the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO). In its outlook for 2011, UNWTO has


downgraded its growth estimates for 2011 from 5-6 per cent to 3-4 per cent.


Tourist guide praises 'untamed' Shetlands By Pete Hayman


Lonely Planet has named Scotland's Shetland Islands as one of the world's top visitor destinations for 2011, after praising them as the 'last untamed corner of the UK'. In addition to recommending the islands


to 'adventure travellers', the guide also identifies Glasgow and Edinburgh as a comeback city and artistic destination respectively. Lonely Planet spokesperson Tom Hall said: "This year's picks for Lonely Planet's Best in T


ravel 201 reflect the 1 passion for discovery that our readers have." VisitBritain teams up with Facebook


VisitBritain has joined forces with social networking site Facebook to launch the world's first online league table of popular places created by tourists. The venture, designed with the help of


social media technology company Betapond, encourages visitors to 'check in' using a mobile device every time they reach a notable British location and write


Read Leisure Opportunities online www.leisureopportunities.com/digital


a review of what they find. The informa- tion then automatically updates the list of 'Top 50 UK Places' on VisitBritain's LoveUK website. The new development is based on the


new Facebook Places technology, which lets users 'check in' to Facebook using a mobile phone, tablet or computer to let a user's friends know where they are.


© Cybertrek 2010


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