Visitors enjoy Glencoe's scenic splendour
James Bond is credited with helping boost visitor numbers to one of Scotland’s finest mountain landscapes last year.
Glencoe saw an increase of more than 40 per cent visiting its impressive scenery, thanks in part to scenes in Daniel Craig’s depiction of Bond in Skyfall.
The area was the most markedly successful during the Year of Natural Scotland, with outdoor attractions gaining 8 per cent more visits than the previous 12 months.
Scottish Natural Heritage said 114,298 people visited Glencoe, up 41.7 per cent on 2012. A spokesperson said: “This beautiful location played a starring role in the climax to Skyfall. More than 60 films have used Scotland’s landscapes as an impressive backdrop, including the Harry Potter series and three other James Bond films.”
SNH estimates the value to the Scottish economy of outdoor recreation is £2.7bn, with Scottish adults making 360 million visits to the outdoors in 2013.
Ian Ross, SNH chairman, said: “Scotland’s nature and landscape is a huge attraction for visitors, making an important contribution to our economy.
“The Year of Natural Scotland campaign was all about getting people, from home and abroad, enjoying Scotland’s nature and reaping the associated physical and mental benefits.
“The celebrations, together with some fine weather and James Bond’s homecoming in the film Skyfall, appear to have had a very positive influence on many people and helped promote our outstanding natural environment.”
Mike Cantlay, chairman of VisitScotland said: “We enjoyed some fabulous weather last summer which resulted in a lot of people getting out and about to our stunning beaches, landscapes and parks, making the most of the Year of Natural Scotland.
“These ‘natural’ attractions are not recorded in this list, but are of course an integral part of the allure of Scotland.”
Projects included numerous events and festivals and a trio of free-to-use apps, such as View from the Train which informed travellers about the natural heritage along some of Scotland’s main rail routes.
Scotland’s Big 5 campaign encouraged people to head out to national nature reserves and other special sites in search of our fantastic wildlife; and new social media channels enabled people young and old to share their outdoor experiences.
