Year of History, Heritage, And Archaeology Brings Visitors to Edinburgh

Scottish tourist attractions had more visitors than ever before in 2017 – with over 30 million visitors passing through their doors throughout the Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology.

The latest figures from the Association of Scottish Visitors Attractions show 77% of visitor sites reporting an increase in the number of visits – helping support the local tourist economy across Edinburgh.

An increase in tourism has also helped create a booming accommodation market with a 13% increase of visitors staying in serviced accommodation and a 17% increase in self-catering in Edinburgh since last year.

Commenting, SNP MSP for Edinburgh Pentlands, Gordon Macdonald said:

“These latest figures are great to see – and show that Edinburgh and Scotland remain favourite destinations for tourists, with our world leading attractions seeing over 30 million visitors during the Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology.

“The £4.6bn being spent on tourist day trips annually is a brilliant contribution to the Scottish economy that we should continue to encourage – while the increase in people staying overnight in our local hotels and guest houses boosts our local economy in Edinburgh.

“Tourists boost our restaurants, pubs and cafes by spending around £995 million on food and drink annually while visiting Scotland – and the whole tourist industry is worth over £6 billion to Scotland, supporting jobs and livelihoods across the town.

“It’s no surprise that visitor numbers continue to rise across Edinburgh and Scotland – attractions such as the Castle and our architecture and museums will always bring people from far and wide to this corner of the country, and these figures are something for all of us to celebrate.”

The full ASVA figures and list of attractions are available here.