Scotland on tourism in 2012
Introduction This report provides a summary of statistics on tourism in Scotland, including the volume and value of tourism and information on our major markets. It gathers information from a suite of tourism monitors managed by the Insight Department, VisitScotland and from other national statistics and commissioned research. These include: II Great Britain Tourism Survey () 2012 International Passenger Survey (IPS) 2012 Scottish Accommodation Occupancy Survey 2012 Moffat Centre Visitor Attraction Monitor 2012 VisitScotland s GB Day Visits Survey 2012 Scottish Annual Business Survey: Sustainable Tourism by Local Authority Area 2010 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/topics/ Statistics/Browse/Business/SABS/LATables/Tourism-by-LA Northern Ireland Statistical and Research Agency (NISRA) Statistics This report presents statistical insight on the volume and value of domestic and international tourism in Scotland. For the years to 2011 the focus of the statutory tourism monitor for domestic overnight tourism was recording the resident population of the United Kingdom to destinations within the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Since 2011 the scope changed to only cover the resident populations of Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) and trips within these jurisdictions. Northern Ireland data is now collected in a separate survey by Northern Ireland Tourist Board. In this publication, percentage figures may not add up to 100% due to rounding. As with all surveys the data at sub-levels are based on smaller sample sizes and therefore incur a larger margin of statistical error reducing data reliability. More... Further details, and the latest statistics for the year to date, can be found on our website in the Research and Statistics section Picture credits: Scottish Viewpoint / Paul Tomkins / VisitScotland / Thinkstock
Tourism in Scotland In 2012, almost 15 million overnight tourism trips were taken in Scotland, for which visitor expenditure totalled 4.3 billion. III Fact 43% of tourism trips are by Scottish residents 1: Volume and value of tourism in Scotland Country of Residence Trips 2012 (m) % of total Nights 2012 (m) % of total Spend 2012 ( m) % of total Scotland 6.49 42% 18.14 29% 1105 25% England 6.05 40% 24.01 39% 1703 39% Wales 0.22 1% 1.17 2% 84 2% Total GB tourism 12.75 83% 43.32 70% 2891 66% Northern Ireland 0.33 2% 1.15 2% 88 2% Total overseas tourism 2.23 15% 17.5 28% 1401 32% Total 15.31 100% 61.97 100% 4380 100% / NISRA 2: Trends in GB visitors to Scotland Trips (millions) Average nights per trip Average spend per trip ( ) 2010 12.09 3.61 208 2011 13.36 3.41 226 2012 12.75 3.40 227 Definitions 1: A tourist trip is defined as a stay of one or more nights away from home for holidays, visits to friends or relatives, business and conference trips or any other purpose except such as boarding education or semi-permanent employment. 2: Tourist nights are those spent away from home using any type of accommodation or in transit on a tourist trip. 3: Tourist expenditure is spending incurred while away from home on a tourist trip and advance payments for such items as fares and accommodation. For overseas visitors statistics, the cost of travel to the destination is excluded. In this fact sheet, expenditure is in 2012 prices.
Tourism in Scotland (continued) The months of July to September are the most popular for holidays in Scotland amongst both GB and overseas visitors. IV 3: Average length of stay and spend (2012) Length of stay (nights) Spend per trip Spend per night Scotland 2.8 170.26 60.92 England 4.0 281.49 70.93 Wales 5.3 381.82 71.79 All GB 3.4 226.75 66.74 All Overseas 7.8 628.25 80.06 Average - all visitors 4.1 286.52 70.57, IPS 4: Time of visit to Scotland Jan - Mar Apr - Jun Jul - Sep Oct - Dec Domestic holiday trips 13% 28% 34% 25% Domestic business trips 20% 29% 27% 24% Total domestic trips 15% 27% 31% 26% Overseas holiday trips 10% 31% 46% 13% Overseas business trips 18% 32% 23% 28% Total overseas trips 15% 29% 38% 18%, IPS Trip characteristics The average length of a trip by our overseas visitors is around eight nights. Trips by GB visitors tend to be shorter, on average around three nights for people from within Scotland and around four or five nights for people from the rest of GB. The months of July to September are the most popular for holidays in Scotland amongst both GB and overseas visitors.
Tourism in Scotland (continued) 5: Monthly accommodation occupancy 2012 Hotel (% room occupancy) Self catering (% unit occupancy) Touring Caravan & Camping Park (% pitch occupancy) Guest House & Bed / breakfast (% room occupancy) Hostel (% bed occupancy) January 45% 19% N/A 19% 17% February 55% 28% N/A 28% 26% March 58% 25% N/A 28% 29% April 63% 44% 29% 42% 42% May 72% 49% 40% 56% 48% V June 76% 62% 51% 63% 55% July 74% 66% 52% 63% 56% August 79% 69% 54% 68% 63% September 78% 58% 39% 58% 50% October 70% 44% 18% 42% 40% November 60% 27% N/A 24% 24% December 49% 25% N/A 19% 24% Annual average 65% 43% 41% 43% 40% Scottish Accommodation Occupancy Survey Occupancy survey The Scottish Accommodation Occupancy Survey depends on the participation of Scottish tourism businesses. Businesses which provide VisitScotland with their occupancy data benefit from monthly reports on occupancy for their sector and region. If you would like to participate, please contact research@visitscotland.com
Tourism in Scotland (continued) 6: Visitor attractions The Visitor Attraction Monitor is solely owned and distributed by Glasgow Caledonian University Moffat Centre. If you are interested in participating in the accompanying survey or subscribing to the publication, please email mma4@gcal.ac.uk VI Attractions with Free Admission Visits % 2012 / 2011 Attractions with Paid Admission National Museum of Scotland 1,893,521 29.1 Edinburgh Castle 1,230,177-5.6 Loch Lomond Shores 1,125,496 2.6 Edinburgh Zoo 810,937 51.4 Visits % 2012 / 2011 Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum 1,037,594 5.7 Edinburgh Bus Tours 511,421-7.7 Riverside Museum 1,008,092-5.7 Stirling Castle 401,843-7.3 Scottish National Gallery 961,311 3.9 Robert Burns Birthplace Museum 343,786-22.7 St Giles Cathedral 904,411 6.2 Royal Yacht Britannia 300,665 6.2 Gretna Green Famous Blacksmith s Shop 722,269-0.2 Urquhart Castle 296,498-6.1 Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh 704,642-8.5 Scotch Whisky Heritage Centre 270,572-5.9 Gallery of Modern Art 595,977-2.1 Scottish Seabird Centre 267,549-3.5 National War Museum 492,743-2.3 Culzean Castle and Country Park 163,078-4.5 Listings only include attractions which permitted publication of visits figures. Note: 5 operators indicated they did not allow figures for publication Moffat Centre (2013): Scottish Visitor Attraction Monitor Report 2012, Caledonian Business School, Glasgow Caledonian University, Glasgow, GB 7: National Parks Over 1 million trips were made by GB residents to Scotland s National Parks, accounting for 8% of total overnight tourism trips in Scotland and 7% of total visitor expenditure. Trips Nights Spend m % m % m % Cairngorms 0.593 55 2.01 58 109 53 Loch Lomond and Trossachs 0.482 45 1.47 42 95 47 All National Parks 1.075 100 3.48 100 204 100 All Scotland 12.752 8 43.32 8 2,891 7 More information The Visitor Attraction Monitor is produced by the Moffat Centre at Glasgow Caledonian University www.moffatcentre.com The Association of Scottish Visitor Attractions www.asva.co.uk
GB tourism People from within GB account for the majority of tourism in Scotland. 8: The tourism economy and tourism related employment 2008-2010 9: Volume and value of tourism from GB VII Sustainable Tourism* 2008 2009 2010 Employees (000s) 175.8 172.6 163.6 Gross value added at Basic Prices ( bn) 2.59 2.77 2.88 Total Economy 2008 2009 2010 Employees (000s) 1743.2 1681.3 1606 Gross value added at Basic Prices ( bn) 102.55 94.12 96.25 Scottish Annual Business Survey * The definition of sustainable tourism represents the SIC07 industry classifications for tourism used within the Scottish Governments growth sector. Trips Nights Spend m % m % m % Holidays 8.72 68% 32.04 74% 2063 71% Business 2.15 17% 5.4 12% 537 19% VFR 1.48 12% 5 12% 234 8% Other 0.4 3% 0.88 2% 57 2% Total 12.75 100% 43.32 100% 2891 100% GB tourism People from within GB account for the majority of tourism volume and value in Scotland. The following pages provide some key facts about our domestic visitors. Detailed information on their trips to Scotland and their experience of visiting here can be found in the Research and Statistics section on 12.8 million tourism trips in 2012
GB tourism (continued) 10: Categories of spend by GB tourists 11: Accommodation used by GB tourists Leisure Tourism All Tourism Hotel / Motel / Guest House 42% 5,407,000 Accommodation 34% 31% Eating/Drinking out 18% 19% Travel 17% 24% Friends / Relatives Self catering / Rented 35% 11% 4,436,000 1,405,000 VIII Shopping 17% 15% Entertainment 6% 5% Package trip 6% 4% Other items 2% 2% Touring Caravan and Camping Bed and Breakfast Other Trips (percentage) 6% 5% 1% 721,000 679,000 104,000 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 12: GB tourists transport to Scotland 5% by regular bus/coach 3% by coach tour 5% other 8% by plane 15% by train 64% by car Accommodation A key element of people s experience of Scotland is where they stay and therefore the quality of facilities and service have a major bearing on our visitor satisfaction.
GB tourism (continued) 13: Activities done by GB holiday visitors 2012 30% of GB visitors to Scotland have children in their household. IX General sightseeing Short walks (less than 2 miles / 1 hour) Just relaxed Visited castles / stately homes and other historic sites Visited museums, art galleries / heritage centres 39% 17% 20% 14% 14% 67% of GB holiday visitors are in the ABC1 socio-economic groups 14: Demographics of GB holiday visitors to Scotland Shopping Watched for wildlife (birds, dolphins, otters etc.) or visiting wildlife attraction / nature reserve Explored Scottish beaches 5% 6% 7% 15% age 65+ 18% age 55-64 10% age 16-24 17% age 25-34 Longer walks / hiking (minimum 2 miles / 1 hour) 14% 23% age 45-54 18% age 35-44 % of survey respondents 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
GB tourism (continued) Tourism in Scotland 15: Top Activities on day trips Activity number of trips (m) % of total day trips X Visiting friends or family 33 23% Going out for a meal 16 11% Undertaking outdoor activities 12 8% Going on a night out 12 8% General day out 9 6% Total day trips 142 100% Visit GB Day Visits Survey 142 million tourism day trips were taken in Scotland in 2012; with a total spend of 4.7 billion. Average spend per day trip was 33. Year of Creative Scotland 2012 The Year of Creative Scotland campaign aimed to promote and celebrate Scotland as a culturally vibrant and creative nation to the people of Scotland and our visitors. Promotion: to raise the profile of Scotland nationally and internationally as a creatively vibrant country and a world class cultural tourism destination. Celebration: support events and programmes to celebrate the contribution of Scotland s places and people in making us a leading creative nation. Participation: inspire the people of Scotland and our visitors to participate in the arts, with particular emphasis on removing barriers to participation. Collaboration: encourage collaborative working between the creative and tourism sectors. The Year of Creative Scotland was supported by 6.5 million of Creative Scotland National Lottery funding. Over 100 projects were supported via the Year of Creative Scotland investment programmes. When asked how they would rate Scotland as a destination for holidays or short breaks that might involve any kind of creative or cultural activities over 70% of UK respondents rated Scotland positively. 96% of international respondents said they gained a positive impression of Scotland as a great place to enjoy cultural events, festivals and activities from the VisitScotland website.
Overseas tourism 16: Volume and value of tourism from overseas 17: Origin of overseas tourists Trips Nights Spend Trips Nights Spend (m) % (m) % m % (000s) (%) (000s) (%) ( m) (%) Holiday 1.15 52% 7.55 43% 748 53% USA 324 15% 2880 16% 274 20% VFR 0.60 27% 5.90 34% 287 20% Germany 281 13% 1977 11% 143 10% Business 0.38 17% 1.83 10% 245 18% France 174 8% 1243 7% 108 8% Other 0.05 2% 1.73 10% 96 7% Netherlands 150 7% 946 5% 77 6% XI Study 0.04 2% 0.47 3% 25 2% Irish Republic 149 7% 604 3% 54 4% Total IPS 2.23 100% 17.50 100% 1,401 100% Australia 127 6% 1335 8% 98 7% Spain 114 5% 1124 6% 70 5% Norway 112 5% 524 3% 63 5% Italy 99 4% 796 5% 72 5% Canada 90 4% 1046 6% 78 6% Rest of World 605 27% 5022 29% 363 26% Overseas tourism Total 2,225 100% 17498 100% 1401 100% IPS Overseas residents account for around 15% of the total number of tourism trips taken in Scotland but 33% of total visitor spend, underlining the value of attracting these visitors. USA, Germany France and Ireland are long-time major markets for Scotland while over the last 5 years growth has been seen in non-euro markets such as Norway and Switzerland.
Overseas tourism (continued) 18: Accommodation used by overseas tourists (2012) Fact Overseas visitors provide 33% of spend from 15% of trips Hotel / Guest House Friends / Relatives Bed and Breakfast Hostel / School / University 45% 25% 11% 7% XII IPS Self Catering / Rented Accommodation Touring Caravan and Camping % of trips Other % of survey respondents 5% 1% 6% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 19: Overseas tourists transport to reach GB 12% by Sea/tunnel 88% by Air 35% 40% 45% London Olympics 2012 24,000 international Prime Games visitors (those whose visit to the UK was primarily to visit, work at, or participate in the London 2012 Olympics or Paralympics) stayed at least one night in Scotland, spending a total of 8 million. These visitors stayed an average of 6 nights and spent 350 per trip on average (Source: VisitBritain). Over 400,000 people turned out to see the Olympic flame as it travelled through Scotland, visiting iconic sites such as Callanish standing stones on Lewis (Source: EventScotland) 19,000 GB visitors attended a cultural Olympiad event, the London 2012 Festival or another official Olympic-related event (Source: ). IPS
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