Marine Tourism Boost For Fife

Government strategy to maximise on the 10,000 miles of Scottish coastline aims to boost the industry by almost an extra £100 million by 2020.

An action plan to boost the value of Scotland's marine tourism industry by nearly £100m is being launched.
 
The Marine Tourism Symposium met on Friday 20th November, where 120 members of the industry gathered at the Scottish Parliament to hear how the Marine Tourism Strategy Action Plan could increase the value of the industry from £360m to £450m by 2020. The group also aims to increase the value of sailing tourism from £101m to £145m in the next five years.

The five-year strategy, developed by the marine tourism industry with the financial support of Highlands and Islands Enterprise, outlines the potential and opportunity to grow Scotland's revenue by enhancing the world-class marine tourism destination by focusing on three key themes: “Providing Authentic Experiences”, “Improving the Customer Journey” and “Building our Capabilities”.
 
Fife council undertook a review this year identifies 37 points along the coast where marine tourists could visit, highlighting which facilities could be improved upon. 

Alan Rankin of the Scottish Tourism Alliance, Marine Tourism Project Manager, spoke to Kingdom FM news to tell us what Fife has to offer more marine tourists:

Fergus Ewing, Scotland's Tourism Minister, said: 

''The Marine Tourism Action Plan shows how the sector is already collaborating to help bring additional business, jobs and prosperity to communities around the entire coastline of Scotland and along our inland waterways. 

This helps showcase Scotland as a world-class destination and encourages increased participation in sports and recreational activities. The action plan from the Marine Tourism Development Group shows how all sectors in Scotland - public, private and third sector - need to play a role in realising the full potential of our wonderful marine and coastal assets.''

Earlier this year, Scotland was voted the 'World's Best Cruising Ground' in the prestigious Sailing Today Awards - beating the warm weather destinations of Greece, Turkey, Canaries and St Vincent and the Grenadines.