Garden blooms as Gateway drives up visitor numbers

THE multi-million-pound John Hope Gateway has been hailed a huge success after first-year figures showed it had helped boost visitor numbers at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh by a third.

The 16 million centre was officially opened by the Queen earlier this year. It had been open to the public since October 2009, however, and it seems the Gateway has been a big draw for visitors.

Twelve months after opening the Gateway, the number of visitors to the garden has increased to 600,000 people.

Catering and hospitality turnover across the site has more than doubled in the past 12 months to almost 2 million, with the Gateway Restaurant serving almost 80,000 people in its first year.

The garden has also seen a threefold increase in bookings for events such as weddings and conferences and a 200 per cent rise in sales at its shop, now housed in the Gateway.

Highlights for the Gateway in its first year include hosting the launch of the International Year of Biodiversity and briefings on environmental and conservation issues, hosting delegates from around the world for the International Board of the Flora of China project, and staging a number of exhibitions, including the Wych Elm, and From Another Kingdom - the Amazing World of Fungi, which is still running.

The John Hope Gateway Centre - named after the eminent 18th century teacher and botanist who was RBGE's Regius Keeper from 1761 to 1786 - was also named Best Unusual Venue in Scotland at the Scottish Event Awards.

Alan Bennell, head of visitor services at RBGE, said: "In the John Hope Gateway, the RBGE has what peers and public alike are acclaiming as the finest welcome to a major botanic garden anywhere in the world.

"The great challenge now is to lure even more visitors, both local citizens and from across the globe, to come to the garden to explore its fabulous plant collections and to experience the John Hope Gateway and all that it has to offer."

Paul Mitchell, operations manager for Sodexo Prestige Scotland, which operate the restaurants and cafes at RBGE, said: "The Gateway Centre has been an outstanding success in its first year of operation and has firmly established itself as a leading visitor attraction."