The key facts
- VisitScotland promotes tourism as a 'force for good' that benefits local residents
- Edinburgh will host the Tour de France Grand Départ — the northernmost start in the race's history
- Rally Scotland in Aberdeenshire will be the first WRC round in the UK since 2019
Scotland's tourism board has outlined its plans for 2027
Tourism in Scotland is being treated as a 'force for good': that is how the tourism board has framed its position Jill Walker, Marketing Director at VisitScotland, speaking to Euronews Travel at the World Travel Market exhibition in London. According to her, it is important that tourism benefits not only visitors but also local residents. The board has no target type of tourist: 'There are no people we wouldn't want to see,' Walker said, adding that the country has destinations for families, young professionals and older travellers.
A request to visitors: the shoulder season and a slower pace
The tourism board's only request to visitors is to come in the shoulder season, travel responsibly and, where possible, stay longer. The bet for 2027 is on immersive experiences: examples include staying in a working bookshop in the town of Wigtown (Dumfries and Galloway region), learning sheep shearing, lodging beside highland cattle pastures and cooking cullen skink soup made from smoked haddock and potatoes. According to the publication, the Dumfries and Galloway region has recently entered the top 25 of the National Geographic Best of the World 2027 ranking and became the only British destination on that list.
Sporting events and new attractions
2027 will also be a historic year for Scotland in sport. Edinburgh will host the Grand Départ of the Tour de France cycling race — the northernmost start in the race's history. In September and October 2027, the first Rally Scotland will take place in Aberdeenshire: as Euronews notes, this will be the first round of the World Rally Championship held in the United Kingdom since 2019. For those less interested in sport, the relatively new Perth Museum and the Inverness Castle Experience are mentioned, the latter opened to visitors in February this year after a multi-million-pound conversion of a former prison and sheriff court building into an interactive attraction. The piece is promotional in nature: it is the tourism board's account of its own plans, not an independent assessment; specific details of the events, such as dates and routes, are not disclosed in the publication.
