Growing Rural Tourism Sustainably

Ensuring Support & Management of a Key Sector

Tourism is a priority sector for Angus, contributing £326 million to local economy and supporting more than 4,029 full-time equivalent jobs. Indeed, rural tourism is of vital importance in areas right across Scotland.

Scotland’s breath-taking natural scenery and rich historical sites rightly attract many visitors and help local economies, but we know that this success is often tempered by increased pressure on communities, services, transport and facilities – particularly in rural areas.

Since 2020, the SNP Scottish Government has provided well over £20 million through the Rural Tourism Infrastructure Fund, providing much needed services to help reduce pressures on communities and manage visitors better. Since its inception, across seven rounds of RTIF, £24.5 million of grant funding has been awarded to 86 projects across rural Scotland and RTIF has helped to leverage more than £20.6 million in additional funding for these rural areas.

This has included the creation of hundreds of seasonal countryside rangers and operations staff posts, to support sustainable and responsible rural tourism. Investment in temporary toilets, car parking and campervan facilities also helped rural areas to welcome back visitors following the COVID pandemic.

Additional Scottish Government funding streams have included the NatureScot Better Places Fund and the Rural Community-Led Local Development (CLLD) Fund. The latter has enhanced motorhome holiday opportunities across the region - supported by Angus Rural Partnership and Angus Tourism Cooperative, in partnership with Angus Council - with the government has also been supporting the growth of agritourism through strategic partnerships, aiming to integrate farming with the tourism sector.

The SNP government's Visitor Levy Act was also passed in July 2024, giving all Scottish Local Authorities the power to tax overnight accommodation if they wish to do so. With the levy, local authorities now have the power to generate revenue specifically for the benefit of the visitor economy.

And, in recognition of the pressure tourism can put on local housing markets and to ensure standards, the Scottish Government took a balanced approach with introducing the licencing of short-term lets in Scotland. The legislation gave councils flexibility to develop licensing schemes that meet local needs, and sits alongside powers for councils to establish short-term let control areas.

We know short-term lets make a positive contribution to Scotland’s tourism industry and local economies, and these measures will allow them to continue doing just that while ensuring this is balanced with the needs of local residents and communities.