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VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping


Postby Tringa » Fri Mar 26, 2021 4:34 pm

I saw this page of the Visit Scotland site -

https://www.visitscotland.com/accommodation/caravan-camping/wild-camping/?fbclid=IwAR1U091LpIENoawyb4Ahj8vJvnKqHzFcygdo1rq-ZWr_2xyZrxW9mk8cmog

Although it contains some good advice

If you scroll down to the section called - Wild Camping Top Tips to Remember you see it includes the following tip

"Vehicles are damaging on grass and soft land; make sure you park on hard ground or a safe metalled area"

It seems an organisation promoting visitors to Scotland doesn't know that wild camping does not include the use of motor vehicles.

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Re: VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

Postby bootsandpaddles » Fri Mar 26, 2021 4:53 pm

Also what they have said about wild camping in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs NP is misleading. Here is a link to the correct information.
https://www.lochlomond-trossachs.org/things-to-do/camping/go-wild/
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Re: VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

Postby gaffr » Fri Mar 26, 2021 5:15 pm

All quite depressing when you hear camping being promoted in this way.
More useful for them to promote places to camp with facilities I.e. Campsites and let folks find there own way into the remoter wild places.
I just wish that this Wild Camping thing had not been introduced by the promoters of
such things. I have just camped where it gets me closer to getting onto a few hills that I wished to visit. I always carry a tent if heading towards a Bothy for many reasons. Forget wild camping and just camp.
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Re: VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

Postby al78 » Fri Mar 26, 2021 6:38 pm

Tringa wrote:It seems an organisation promoting visitors to Scotland doesn't know that wild camping does not include the use of motor vehicles.


It does if it involves driving to a place, parking up, then heading into the wild for 2-3 days. I would think there are plenty of places in Scotland you could do that, the only complication being you might have to let a local authority know so that the vehicle is not assumed to be abandoned.
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Re: VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

Postby Marty_JG » Fri Mar 26, 2021 10:32 pm

Tringa wrote:It seems an organisation promoting visitors to Scotland doesn't know that wild camping does not include the use of motor vehicles.


Most of my wild-camping has seen me drive somewhere and hike from that spot.

The only bad experience I've had wild camping in Scotland was due to the Scottish public transport network: 12 hours to transport me somewhere I could have driven in 2.5 hours.
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Re: VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

Postby gaffr » Sat Mar 27, 2021 7:41 am

Hello... Had not visited the site of Visit Scotland prior to reading and commenting on this post. An upgraded Tourist Board operation now? Funded by tax payers money?
It looks like a polished looking Site on line.
Possibly not wise to go into the so called wild camping area? Best left to Mountaineering Scotland and the folks on the Hill-Walking Forums?
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Re: VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

Postby AyrshireAlps » Sat Mar 27, 2021 9:10 am

How do you get to the start of your walk? Levitate on your awesomeness?.

As rightly said above, public transport to most areas you'd like to head off from ain't happening, Scotland as a whole needs to invest in infrastructure, car parks, Aires, whatever - really needs a public consultation. New found hill lovers ain't going away, we need to embrace, educate and provide, tourism isn't a dirty word.
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Re: VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

Postby bootsandpaddles » Sat Mar 27, 2021 9:14 am

Making the most of all the economic benefits Scotland’s tourism industry has to offer is at the heart of everything we do – and we work closely with individual businesses, public agencies, local authorities and other tourism stakeholders to help achieve this. (Visit Scotland website)

VisitScotland's primary aim is to market Scotland as a tourism destination, which it does through advertising and promotion as well as encouraging press articles on Scotland and what it has to offer the business or consumer visitor. (Wikipedia - yes I know!)

Visit Scotland is all about the bottom line. There doesn't seem to be much thought put into the consequences of huge numbers of people behaving in inappropriate ways: all that matters is that they spend money. Obviously, tourism is of benefit to Scotland's economy but there has to be some sort of balance. And the information must be accurate. Otherwise, local people are just left picking up the pieces, often literally, (litter -ally? :roll: ).
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Re: VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

Postby AyrshireAlps » Sat Mar 27, 2021 10:33 am

Your average nitwit who abandons their rubbish won't be anywhere near VS anyway, there's all sorts of groups on social media that they'll go to.
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Re: VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

Postby WalkWithWallace » Sat Mar 27, 2021 10:48 am

The genie is well out of the bottle now that I can only see a future ban on roadside camping, hope I'm wrong, but the idiots will spoil it for everyone.
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Re: VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

Postby Tringa » Sat Mar 27, 2021 11:08 am

WalkWithWallace wrote:The genie is well out of the bottle now that I can only see a future ban on roadside camping, hope I'm wrong, but the idiots will spoil it for everyone.


I also hope it does not come to this but I would not be surprised. I recall many years ago(around about 40) driving through Argyll and seeing loads of 'No Overnight Camping' signs in laybys; I would not like see that come back.

Quite a few folks believe, quite rightly, they have the right of access to large areas of Scotland and, again quite correctly, this includes wild camping. The problem I see with the 'Wild Camping Top Tips' on the VS site is it gives the impression parking up by the roadside and pitching a tent is wild camping.

Though, I guess, few who are antisocial will bother reading the Visit Scotland site.

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Re: VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

Postby al78 » Sat Mar 27, 2021 11:43 am

bootsandpaddles wrote:VisitScotland's primary aim is to market Scotland as a tourism destination, which it does through advertising and promotion as well as encouraging press articles on Scotland and what it has to offer the business or consumer visitor. (Wikipedia - yes I know!)

Visit Scotland is all about the bottom line. There doesn't seem to be much thought put into the consequences of huge numbers of people behaving in inappropriate ways: all that matters is that they spend money. Obviously, tourism is of benefit to Scotland's economy but there has to be some sort of balance. And the information must be accurate. Otherwise, local people are just left picking up the pieces, often literally, (litter -ally? :roll: ).


It is not clear that wild camping brings much into the economy compared to more traditional forms of tourism like car touring and staying overnight in a hotel/B&B. When I did an overnighter walking the Minigaig I spent very little money in Scotland, it was sleeper train up, walk-camp-walk, an evening meal in Kingussie* then sleeper train home. The 12 day trip a couple of years ago I mixed camping with B&Bs and local public transport so contributed more to the economy then.

*I didn't spend any money during the five hours I had to amuse myself, Kingussie is dead on a Sunday.
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Re: VISIT SCOTLAND aren't helping

Postby davekeiller » Sat Mar 27, 2021 12:50 pm

I think the page is poorly drafted, as it seems to conflate wild camping and roadside camping.
Most of us, for practical reasons, will need to use a car to get to the start point for a trip involving wild camping, however most of us would draw a distinction between parking the car somewhere sensible and walking to somewhere sensible to camp, and pitching up at the side of the road. The VisitScotland website doesn't draw this distinction, and I think it would be helpful to do so.
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