ASVA recognises excellence in visitor attractions sector

Excellence in the visitor attractions sector in Scotland has been recognised in the 2019 ASVA (Association of Scottish Visitor Attractions) awards, presented at ASVA’s ‘Best Practice Makes Perfect’ conference at the Crieff Hydro Hotel in Perthshire on 7th November.

Glasgow Museums won top prize in the ‘Marketing’ category for their ‘Dippy on Tour: A Natural History Adventure at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum’.

‘Dippy’, The Natural History Museum’s iconic Diplodocus cast, arrived at Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery in January 2019 as part of a UK-wide tour of eight venues in 2018. The marketing strategy developed by Glasgow Museums around Dippy’s arrival aimed to inspire visitors of all ages to undertake natural history adventures, enjoy and gain deeper understanding of nature on their doorstep, and explore the natural history collections in Kelvingrove Museum.

Runners-up in the category were Camera Obscura & World of Illusions for its campaign to position itself as ‘Britain’s most fun attraction’ and Dalkeith Country Park for the launch of the new ‘Sky Maze’ at its Fort Douglas adventure park.

Entries for this award were open to individual attractions, or groups of attractions working together, that could demonstrate good use of marketing channels, disciplines and technology together with effective measurement of results.

Floors Castle and Gardens won the ‘Best Visitor Experience’ award, sponsored by The Royal Yacht Britannia, with Blair Castle and Highland Safaris taking the runners-up spots. Entries in this category were assessed on all aspects of the layout and content of the attraction and on the ‘experience’ offered, in particular the quality of interaction between staff and visitors.

Emma Sweeney, Visitor Services Supervisor at National Trust for Scotland’s The Hill House, was announced as the winner of the ‘Rising Star’ Award. The award honours her significant contribution to The Hill House and the wider Scottish tourism industry. In winning the award, Emma beat off stiff competition from runners-up, Kayleigh Day, Designated Duty Manager, The Real Mary King’s Close, and Lara Peralvo, Development Assistant at Mercat Tours.

ASVA CEO Gordon Morrison said: “Our award winners are all setting a fantastic example by providing a truly world class visitor experience and bringing the ‘wow’ factor to Scottish tourism. Going forward, the future for the visitor attractions sector in Scotland looks very bright with this wonderful pool of talent”.