Capital's tourist attractions boosted by visitor numbers

THE Capital's tourism attractions have recorded a surge in visitor numbers, with some reporting their best ever year.

Latest data from national tourism agency VisitScotland shows that the average attraction saw 1.3 per cent more customers than in the same period of last year.

And the increase was even bigger in the main summer months, with June and July 8.4 per cent ahead of last year.

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Some attractions are reporting their best ever summer, with the Homecoming Scotland events said to have helped give numbers a boost.

Edinburgh Castle, Camera Obscura and the Scotch Whisky Experience are among those to have seen numbers boom well ahead of last year.

Sinead Feltoe, regional director of VisitScotland, said: "Undoubtedly the current economic climate is having an impact on tourism, just as it has impacted on every other sector of industry but there is cautious optimism about this year's performance.

"The feedback we are getting from across the tourism industry shows that more people seem to be staying in Scotland on holiday this year and also those south of the border are looking at Scotland as a viable holiday destination because it's a 'different' country.

"The almost parity of the pound and the euro makes Scotland an even greater value for money destination for our European guests. And all evidence supports that Edinburgh is attracting visitors from home and abroad."

Among the attractions with the biggest growth was Camera Obscura, which saw visitors rise by nearly a third in July compared to a year earlier, while every month has been record-breaking since September 2008. In the year-to-date it is 18 per cent up on last year.

The Scotch Whisky Experience is also 14 per cent ahead of last year, while Edinburgh Castle is up by eight per cent.

Hotels are also reporting a strong summer, with the average revenue per available room – a key sign of demand – up 3.4 per cent in the four weeks to July 25 at 71.38.

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It comes after Edinburgh Airport saw its fourth successive month of year-on-year growth in July, with passenger numbers up 5.2 per cent on July 2008.

And the Fringe has said that its ticket sales are up by more than a fifth on 2007.

Cllr Tom Buchanan, the city's economic development leader, said: "As has been recognised in a number of recent surveys, Edinburgh is considered to be one the must see cities in the world and, encouragingly, these figures confirm that, despite challenging economic conditions, we are still able to attract high visitor numbers."