EventScotland funds four 2018 events taking place in the Highlands and Scottish Borders and Aberdeen

EDINBURGH, Scotland, 2017-Oct-24 — /Travel PR News/ — An outdoor light festival and a mountain bike endurance event are among the events set to benefit from a share of £49,500 from EventScotland, part of VisitScotland’s Events Directorate.

The four events, taking place in the Highlands and Scottish Borders and Aberdeen, have been awarded grants from the latest round of EventScotland’s National Programme Fund to enhance event delivery and develop Scotland’s diverse events portfolio.

Stuart Turner, Head of EventScotland, said:“We are delighted to be supporting these four events through our National Programme Fund. Scotland is the perfect stage for events and our National programme plays a crucial role, not only in maintaining our vibrant and diverse portfolio, but in developing domestic tourism and generating beneficial impacts to all areas of the country. We look forward to working with the organisers to expand their offering, and grow the profile of their events in 2018.”

Aberdeen’s four-day festival of light, SPECTRA (8-11 February) will light up the winter skies with a varied programme of light installations from fire drawings to light projections and sculptures, as well as music and performance. This year’s theme of ‘Play the Night’ will explore innovation, creativity and the benefits of play and will celebrate Scotland’s Year of Young People 2018.

Curated Place and Spectra Creative Director, Andy Brydon said: “We are extremely excited to be working with EventScotland ahead of launching the new music programme for Spectra Festival next February. With their valued support, we are looking forward to continuing the success of the festival and developing the event further by filling the city with a dazzling array of musicians and artists every night.

“The funding will allow us to develop a new and unique offer for the North East, connecting Aberdeen with its Nordic Neighbours by using the city as a canvas to partner Scottish and Scandinavian talent. The whole team is excited for next February when we take Spectra in new and exciting directions.”

In the Scottish Borders, Alchemy Film and Moving Image Festival (3 – 7 May) will return to Hawick for its eighth edition. Attracting some of the most innovative filmmakers from around the world, the experimental film festival will again transform the town into a creative hub as it screens more than 120 films from over 20 different countries.

The remaining two events to receive funding will both take place in the Scottish Highlands. Twenty-four hour mountain bike endurance event, Strathpuffer 24 (20 – 21 January), will see riders test their mettle as they complete laps round the white-knuckle course at Torrachilty Forest, while Groove CairnGorm (23 – 24 February), will treat festival-goers to a thrilling weekend of live music, world-class DJs and snow sports all within the setting of Cairngorm Mountain & Badaguish Outdoor Centre.

National Programme funding supports the strategic development of events which occur outside of Edinburgh and Glasgow, with the aim of driving domestic tourism, delivering economic impact for local communities and generating media profile for Scotland.

Building upon existing event activities, extending marketing reach and enhancing the on-site food and drink offer are just some of the ways national programme funds are often put to use.

EventScotland National Programme Round 36 funded events:

• Strathpuffer 24, 20-21 January, Torrachilty Forest, Contin & Strathpeffer – Awarded £12,000
• SPECTRA 2018, 8 – 11 February, Aberdeen – Awarded £25,000
• Groove CairnGorm, 23 – 24 February, Cairngorm Mountain & Badaguish Outdoor Centre, Aviemore – Awarded £5,000
• Alchemy Film and Moving Image Festival, 3-7 May, Hawick, Scottish Borders – Awarded £7,500

Notes to Editors

EventScotland
EventScotland is working to make Scotland the perfect stage for events. By developing an exciting portfolio of sporting and cultural events EventScotland is helping to raise Scotland’s international profile and boost the economy by attracting more visitors. For further information about EventScotland, its funding programmes and latest event news visit www.EventScotland.org. Follow EventScotland on Twitter @EventScotNews.

EventScotland is a team within VisitScotland’s Events Directorate, the national tourism organisation which markets Scotland as a tourism destination across the world, gives support to the tourism industry and brings sustainable tourism growth to Scotland. For more information about VisitScotland see www.visitscotland.orgor for consumer information on Scotland as a visitor destination see www.visitscotland.com.

VisitScotland

• Follow us on twitter: @visitscotnews
• VisitScotland is Scotland’s national tourism organisation. Its core purpose is to maximise the economic benefit of tourism to Scotland.
• The organisation’s core objective is to contribute to the Tourism 2020 Strategy ambition of growing tourism revenues by £1 billion by 2020.
• This will be supported by seven overarching strategies:
  1. Marketing: we will market Scotland and its outstanding assets to visitors from all parts of the world, including the promotion of Scotland to people living in Scotland to visit different parts of the country
  2. Events: we will support the national events strategy and its delivery, and sustain, develop and promote Scotland’s international profile as one of the world’s foremost events destinations
  3. Internationalisation and International Engagement: we will utilise all our platforms to enable Scottish-based tourism businesses to better understand international opportunities and market to a global audience and we will work within One Scotland Partnerships to optimise the potential of Scotland’s Diaspora and our strategic partners at regional, European and global levels
  4. Customer Experience: we will provide information and inspiration to visitors both locally and globally via their preferred medium of choice
  5. Quality and Sustainability: we will provide support and advice to businesses, with the goal of improving the quality and sustainability of the tourism sector in Scotland. We will provide quality assurance to visitors through our Quality Schemes
  6. Inclusive Tourism: we will strive to make tourism in Scotland inclusive and available to all
  7. Working in Partnership: we will listen to and work with the industry, partners and communities to shape our offering and support
• To ensure everyone can safely enjoy Scotland’s amazing countryside and landscapes, VisitScotland encourages all visitors to fully respect their surroundings by behaving in a responsible and appropriate way.
• VisitScotland works together with tourism businesses to make tourism a success for everyone and ensure the industry continues to grow.
• The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and VisitScotland Information Centres across Scotland.
• Spending by tourists in Scotland generates around £12 billion of economic activity in the wider Scottish supply chain and contributes around £6 billion to Scottish GDP (in basic prices). This represents about 5% of total Scottish GDP
• The Scottish Government is the Managing Authority for the European Structural Funds 2014-20 Programme. For further information visit www.gov.scot or follow @scotgovESIF
• For VisitScotland’s press releases go to http://www.visitscotland.org/media_centre.aspx, tourism statistics and frequently asked questions go to http://www.visitscotland.org/
• Where possible, a Gaelic speaker will be made available for broadcast interviews on request (Far an tèid iarraidh, agus far am bheil sin nar comas, bruidhinnidh neach le Gàidhlig aig agallamh)

SOURCE: VisitScotland

MEDIA CONTACT

Amy Wright

Events PR & Media Manager
Amy.Wright@EventScotland.org
0131 472 2286
07966 002 009

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