VisitScotland Launches Responsible Tourism Campaign

VisitScotland has launched a responsible tourism campaign to raise awareness of the importance of exploring the outdoors responsibly.

The focus is on asking people to leave no trace of their visit and protect Scotland’s stunning countryside. Visitors are asked to think about the impact of their visit - for now and for future generations.

With more people enjoying the outdoors as the weather improves and the plan for lockdown restrictions to be lifted towards the end of April, the campaign asks visitors to protect our countryside, respect local communities, wildlife and landscapes but still enjoy the beautiful natural resources we have across the country. 

Some of the issues the campaign aims to tackle include: 

• Littering – dropping and leaving litter, leaving camping equipment, broken glass  
• Environmental damage and fire hazards – damaging fences and signage; lighting fires in unauthorised locations or in unsafe ways, felling trees, damaging surrounding wildlife and risking spread of wildfires 
• Unsafe waste disposal – people not using designated toilets or appropriate facilities and leaving waste outdoors  
• Poor preparation – a lack of understanding of rapid weather change and challenging terrains, sometimes resulting in visitors getting into trouble or requiring assistance  
• Traffic and inappropriate parking - increased demand on hot spots, parking in passing places or areas that are not safe or block access to land managers or residents 

The campaign includes a film, billboard and outdoor digital screen advertising in all of Scotland’s main cities and a dedicated responsible tourism page.