Our natural assets have earned us countless accolades and global acclaim and, as we have seen with the success of the BBC Wild Isles series, continue to captivate and inspire visitors. However, with this abundance of nature comes a shared sense of responsibility to respect and protect it for future generations to enjoy.

Since 2021, VisitScotland and a network of partners have been working together to develop a strategic, collaborative approach to visitor management in Scotland. This was borne out of growing concern about an increase in irresponsible behaviour in several places during the pandemic as more people holidayed at home, including water-related incidents and fatalities, human-caused wildfires, and disturbance of wildlife by dogs.

The coalition aims to help readdress the balance between visitors and communities, while protecting and preserving our natural surroundings. This has largely involved inspiring and educating visitors and residents on how to enjoy the outdoors responsibly across our collective marketing, press and social media activity.

VisitScotland’s 2022 campaign, Keep Scotland Unspoiled, built on this further, tackling key issues such as water safety, campfires and parking, and working with some of the country’s top content creators to get these important messages to a younger audience. The campaign delivered 120 million opportunities to see or hear content, 12 million video views and 3.8 million engagements on social media.

Our partners amplified this with their own campaigns. Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park’s water safety Facebook content received 600,000 views alone. Meanwhile, Ramblers Scotland’s videos produced with young people achieved over two million views. Combined with on-the-ground measures, including the recruitment of seasonal rangers funded by the Scottish Government and use of real-time data to monitor and predict visitor numbers at key sites, this had a cumulative impact.

Forestry and Land Scotland reported 23 per cent decrease in campfires at Roseisle Forest, Moray, there was 28 per cent increase in the number of ranger boat patrols at Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park, and Cairngorms National Park saw a 27 per cent increase in dogs on leads.

As we look ahead to this year, a great deal of work is already underway. The Rural Tourism Infrastructure Fund which VisitScotland manages on behalf of the Scottish Government continues to improve visitor experiences in rural areas, most recently supporting footpath improvements at the Old Man of Storr on Skye and a new car park in Dornoch on the North Coast 500.

Footpath improvements have recently been made near the Old Man of Storr on the Isle of Skye (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Scottish Government funding is supporting the recruitment of seasonal rangers and campaigns are in place by partners including NatureScot, Traffic Scotland, and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service aimed at helping people enjoy Scotland safely and responsibly. VisitScotland’s Keep Scotland Unspoiled campaign will be back with a focus on fires and disposable BBQs, camping and wildlife disturbance, with an expansion of social media and influencer activity.

However, we can’t do this alone. Whether Scotland is your home, or you are visiting we all have a shared responsibility to care for our landscapes and wildlife and, in doing so, improve everyone’s experience of the outdoors. Let’s keep Scotland special, enjoy it responsibly.

Malcolm Roughead is VisitScotland's chief executive and chair of Scotland’s Visitor Management Steering Group

Scotland's countryside is famous for its beauty but irresponsible behaviour is raising concerns that must be addressed – Malcolm Roughead

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