Golf Tourism Alliance for north east formed

A NEW public and private partnership has been formed with the aim of boosting the value of golf tourism in the north east - home to the Trump golf resort - by £30 million by 2020.

Hector Emslie of Golfers Scotland will lead the Alliance. Picture: Contributed

The new Golf Tourism Alliance is planning to increase the number of golfing visitors from across the globe to play the wide range of golf facilities available in both Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire.

The alliance has established an interim executive group with representatives of the Aberdeen City and Shire Tourism Partnership, golf clubs, accommodation providers, golf tour operators and the public sector.

Elaine Booth, from ATP, said: “We want Aberdeen City and Shire to be seen as the serious golfing destination we know it to be and maximise the growth potential we have to offer.

“The formation of the alliance will allow the private and public sectors to promote working together on joint business development, with the aim of attracting more golfing visitors to the area.”

A spokeswoman for the alliance said: “The Golf Tourism Alliance has been created following findings from the ‘Future of Golf for Aberdeen City and Shire’ report published earlier this year that highlighted the potential to boost visitor spending from £20 million to over £50 million by 2020.

“To help drive the alliance forward, a Golf Tourism Development Executive has been appointed. The contract will be led by Hector Emslie of Golfers Scotland and his Banchory-based team, Christine Halliday and Andrew Shinie. The two year part time role has been financially supported by Visit Aberdeen, Scottish Enterprise, Aberdeenshire Council and the European Regional Development Fund.”

Mr Emslie said: “The North east offers a magnificent range of value for money courses as well as the best links golf in the world. There is an ever-increasing demand for golf from visitors from all over the UK and overseas so we look forward to offering a range of golf packages; value added breaks and benefits to visiting golfers and club members alike. Our aim is to make Aberdeen City and Shire the first choice golf destination of the future.”

Earlier this year Scottish Golf Trails, launched in 2010 in a bid to increase the region’s share of the lucrative golf tourism sector, announced it was increasing its range of tailored stay and play golf holiday packages to include more golf courses and accommodation providers in Aberdeenshire, Perthshire, Fife, Angus, Moray and the Highlands. Courses that have joined the scheme include Gleneagles, Kingsbarns, Trump International, Castle Stuart and Royal Dornoch.