sign in sign up
<<
Home , Achiltibuie, Achnashellach, Balnacra, Coigach, Kintail, Leckmelm

Destination Management in Baseline Reports Consultation Exercise Winter, 2019/20

Context Upwards of an estimated c.100,000450,000 tourists visit Wester Ross every year, sustaining local communities through their input to the local economy. However, in the current climate we know that there are concerns that a rise in tourism over the past few years coupled with difficulties in infrastructure investment may not be sustainable. We have to accept that mass tourism is not going away, but we don’t have to accept that tourism management in Wester Ross continues to be reactive; instead of proactive. Together we can change that.

Instigated by the Wester Ross Biosphere, (a community managed UNESCO designation that exists to connect people and nature to inspire a positive future), a steering group was formed of Public Sector representatives, ourselves and Visit Wester Ross with the intention of developing a community-led Destination Management Plan (DMP).

We believe that by working together, across public sector, community and industry we can make small changes so that a culture of managing and planning for tourism development can be fostered. Wester Ross can be a great place to visit and a great place to live.

DMPs are as dull as they are exciting. They consider all aspects of the Visitor Experience, from ensuring everyone has access to basic facilities and infrastructure to planning what exciting activities to get up to on holiday.

The process is being led by Wester Ross Biosphere with staff resources from an EU Northern Periphery and Arctic Program project called SHAPE (Sustainable Heritage Area, Partnerships for ecotourism). Laura Hamlet (), Natasha Hutchison (Lochbroom), Douglas Gibson () and Wanda Girard-Prudon () are the four Wester Ross residents who have been doing the work over the past 12 months of setting up a DMP steering group made up of public sector (for their statutory control over the public realm etc) and the Industry and Community perspectives. They have gathered evidence so that we can have an informed conversation about what the priorities should be over the next few years for tourism development. Much of this has been done on a voluntary basis with some extra financial support from Scottish Natural Heritage, The Council and Highlands and Islands Enterprise to cover some of our costs.

We can’t do this in isolation, we need your help to make sure we have not missed critical information or allowed any major mistakes to creep in. Therefore, we invite you to comment on the baseline report summaries below and attend a Priority Setting Workshop facilitated by Scottish Rural Network on the 14th of January 2020 at Community Hall where we will have an informed discussion and begin to set some achievable priorities for the future of tourism in Wester Ross.

The Reports Destination Management Plans should be based on a sound knowledge and assessment of all the features that relate to the visitor economy. Therefore, reports have been compiled on the following subject areas:

• Access and Transport • Built Environment • Natural and Cultural Heritage • Tourism Facilities • Visitor Services

These will help us to understand what the ‘status quo’ is in Wester Ross. What we have, how many, is it in good repair etc. This will form a baseline that we can use to talk about any issues and monitor our progress against in the future. It will also help us to identify our collective strengths – for example, we know that the council struggles financially but with some collaboration among our third sector, can we find ways to find the necessary investment in areas we identify as priorities? Are some of our challenges solvable if we talk to each other and find out what we’re all good at?

The reports will directly contribute to the two main outcomes identified by the DMP Steering Group:

#1: Wester Ross is being managed as a Sustainable Tourism Destination by a stakeholder partnership

#2: There is a culture in Wester Ross of welcoming visitors and a positive vibe about future tourism

Five priority areas have been identified that we hope these reports will help contribute to;

1) Creating an identity and sense of place in Wester Ross 2) Community Ownership/Buy-in/Empowerment 3) A better-defined destination 4) Get a ‘better idea’ of carrying capacity 5) Business Engagement

Please have a look at the following data summaries and add any comments in the box at the end of each page. We have included our initial thoughts around challenges and opportunities as we identified them through our research. Feel free to add your own opportunities as you think of them too. By working together, we will have a better chance of identifying solutions.

If you would like to read the full reports then we have made these available on our website www.wrb.scot/SHAPE.

Access & Transport Access and transport to and within Wester Ross is a fundamental part of the visitor experience and so auditing and understanding the current situation and development plans is essential to planning the development of the region.

Wester Ross is primarily accessed by road and rail and, to a lesser degree by boat, with serving as the closest major travel hub. The nearest airport is in Inverness, 30 miles east of Garve.

Much of the Wester Ross is inaccessible by motorised vehicle, with most roads following coastal and valley areas. The main trunk road routes are the majority of the A835 in the north and the A87 in the south linking to the , both managed by BEAR . Other main routes - A832, A835 (partial), A890 and A896) are adopted roads (including single track) maintained by .

Self-drive is the most popular method of travel to and within Wester Ross. Over 1/3 of the North Cost 500 route passes through Wester Ross. Traffic volumes from traffic count sites in Wester Ross indicate a 10% rise over the past few years.

A recent study1 has shown that 59% of visitors travel by car while 23% travel by motorhome / campervan, and while just over 60% felt the roads were acceptable to brilliant in condition, 35% felt the road conditions ranged from decent to terrible.

The local authority relies on public reports on potholes/ hazards outwith their quarterly checks on adopted roads. Hazards can be reported here. In 2018, 69% of works raised were completed, with many others repaired as they were identified on site (and thus not recorded). Repairs are prioritised based on level of hazard.

The rail network connection from Inverness into Wester Ross is at Garve; there are four trains per day (Monday-Saturday) and two trains on Sundays. Stations are located at: Garve, Lochluichart, Achanalt, Achnasheen, , Strathcarron, Attadale, Stromeferry, Duncraig, , Duirinish and Kyle of .

Year-round bus services operate from Inverness to (connecting with the ferry timetable) increasing during the summer months. Citylink also provide a service to . The Westerbus operates from Inverness to Gairloch connecting with an Ullapool service at Braemore Junction on a Monday, Wednesday & Saturday. There are also smaller minibus services, but their advertisement is limited.

Private guided day trips via coach or minibus from Inverness are available during summer to visit places of interest such as Inverewe Gardens, , Torridon and Castle. There are local and long-distance taxi services available. Most of the larger settlements offer at least one provider.

1 SHAPE T2.4 Marketing Report: Centre for Recreation and Tourism Research, West Highland College, UHI 2019

A year-round ferry service seven days per week operates between Ullapool and Stornoway. There is a seasonal service between Glenelg and Skye. There are 76 Jetties, 50 Slipways & 46 Piers across the region for small crafts to access the sea (see map).

There are over 195 miles of core paths ranging from routes worn into natural ground to high specification constructed paths. The Highland Council is not required to carry out new path construction, upgrading works or maintenance of routes but it does have powers to carry out works.

Challenges • The lack of a comprehensive public transport network. Reliance on private vehicles. • The UHI survey previously cited reports that only 9% of visitors used public transport with the most popular options by: bus (37%), ferry (37%) and train (26%). • Growing pressures on public realm infrastructure at a time when local authority spending is being reduced. • Road closures necessitate long diversions • Carparks are overflowing during peak season.

The Visit Wester Ross Tourism Strategy (2018) identified the following additional access/transport related challenges:

• Issues relating to driving etiquette, particularly on single track roads. • The has brought a growing number of motorhomes into the area, which has generated a number of management issues relating to wild camping, wastewater disposal and littering. • North Coast 500 has changed the destination profile of Wester Ross, making it more of a through destination rather than an end destination.

Opportunities • Potential to attract more day and short break visits into the area, especially from Inverness. • NC500 could promote ways in which to explore the route via public transport, as well as a combined ticketing scheme between bus and train. • Our extensive paths network provides great opportunity to capitalise on the bike and e- bike growth market. • It is now an ideal time to develop new and innovative marine initiatives, or adapt existing ones to promote via the Year of Coasts and Waters 2020. • Accessibility of Gairloch will improve in the future following twin tracking of A832. • Community groups/NGOs could partner with the Highland Council to upgrade core-path infrastructure.

Please indicate whether you agree with the above statements on Access & Transport. Note any opportunities or solutions to challenges you can think of. Please let us know what needs improved.

Figure 1: Map of Wester Ross Biosphere area showing Slipways, Jetties and Piers.

Built Environment Visitors spend a large proportion of their time and money in the towns and villages of any destination and so, the quality of the built environment and public spaces are an important part of the visitor experience.

The purpose of this report is to gather and contribute evidence to the DMP on the current status of the Built Environment (including the appearance and upkeep of towns, villages and other settlements and specific features, distinctive architecture, parks and gardens and the public realm) in Wester Ross and the opportunities and challenges it presents.

There are four main villages – Ullapool, Gairloch, and Kyle of Lochalsh – and a large number of smaller settlements and communities scattered across an area which covers over 5200 km2. Outwith the main settlements, Wester Ross’ built environment is characterised by Croft Houses (mostly modernised and grouped together in small ‘townships’), Community Halls, School houses, Post offices and Police stations (often now privately-owned houses). There are several Victorian hotels, with major upgrades planned for Gairloch Hotel. Of particular historical interest are the archaeological remains of Brochs and Castles which, when combined with all of the above, contribute to the character of the built environment.

Visitors were asked what they thought about the appearance of the Built Environment; 54% said it was well maintained (awarded 5 or 6 out of 6) whilst only 2.5% said it looks run down (1-2 out of 6).

Ullapool is built on a grid pattern, and like Plockton, it was deliberately planned. The harbour’s ferry terminal has recently been upgraded. It is a popular destination for cruise ships, yachts and commercial fishing vessels. Coupled with Shore Street, the harbour represents the obvious outdoor public space in the village. Welcome Ullapool, the local tourist group, coordinate hanging baskets and flower planting. There is also much effort put into community Christmas lights. Gairloch’s pattern of settlement is related to the fishing and crofting industries. Newer development has taken place around the key road junction where a range of public services are now located. The obvious public spaces are the ‘Sit-ooterie’, the Gairloch Museum, GALE Centre and Pier. Lochcarron is a linear coastal settlement characterised by its fishing and crofting heritage. Recent development has spread up the hillslope to the north. The local adopt-a-barrel club attend to the upkeep of the built environment by planting flowers each year. The obvious public areas are the Smiddy Hub and the shop. Kyle of Lochalsh has developed around its busy harbour and train station. There has been recent investment in some of the building fronts and the Plock community recreation area. The obvious public spaces are the Plock and the carpark near-by the RNLI lifeboat station. Nearby, there are 8 crofting townships on estate, owned by National Trust for Scotland. Few of the original thatched roof cottages remain.

There are 4 play areas, 8 Playgrounds, 6 playing fields and 9 picnic sites in the Wester Ross area (see map below). Garve Community raised funds to build a new playpark themselves. Plockton and

Glenelg have recently installed new play equipment. The playpark in Kyle of Lochalsh is due some maintenance; the community in Ullapool are fundraising for and installing new play equipment. Recreational equipment in is badly in need of upgrade and Torridon’s playpark has been removed. There are also play areas at campsites which vary in condition and quality.

Like playparks, recreational ‘furniture’ such as benches, picnic tables and green spaces have no typical ownership pattern in Wester Ross. Some are provided by The Highland Council, some by Scottish Natural Heritage, some by NGOs and others by community groups/private businesses. Therefore, there is no quick way to find out who owns what and investment/maintenance plans. There is also no coordinated design/look/livery for Wester Ross as might exist in other destinations.

Wester Ross has four large gardens open to the public: Attadale Garden, Inverewe Garden, Garden and Lael Woodland Garden.

Unlike other areas of the UK, Wester Ross settlements do not have a typical High Street or obvious areas of social/communal gathering space. Thus, visitors are not naturally drawn together in the built environment unless there is an event or attraction. Settlements were not built with large tourism volumes in mind and so parking and orientation can be confusing for visitors. There are no major issues with upkeep or appearance, with many communities taking this ‘in-house’. Future adaption of the build environment for tourism will need to take into account strict planning rules to ensure it is in keeping with the unique built heritage and natural landscape of Wester Ross.

Challenges • Few obvious (outdoor) public social areas in villages and countryside • Car parking in crofting areas/countryside isn’t always obvious to visitors. • Climate change will present more flood risks. • Development around villages is constrained by topography and statutory protections. • Development in rural areas can be constrained by landownership and statutory protections. • Parking/visitor orientation in villages and rural areas is limited.

Opportunities • Potential at Ullapool harbour to upgrade facilities and access, including a marina facility. • Business, industrial and tourism development opportunity to the north of Ullapool and close to Morefield Quarry. • The development of a marina is being explored in Gairloch. • Scope exists at Kirkton Woodland (Lochcarron) to develop its recreational potential and a limited number of housing plots. • There is some remaining capacity for business and industrial development at Tullich Industrial Estate to the north of the Lochcarron.

• The accessibility of Lochcarron will improve in the future following the planned upgrade of the A890 between Strathcarron and Balnacra. • Potential for expansion and intensification of use at the village hall site in Lochalsh • The Plock of Kyle is an asset to the community and there are further opportunities to build upon its recreational and tourism potential as well as potential for a limited amount of new housing development. • Village halls are a key element of the fabric of social life in Wester Ross.

Visit Wester Ross’ 2018 Tourism Strategy has suggested introducing some suggested core messages that the area should put out to the rest of the world: • Wester Ross is a large area of distinctive coastal and inland communities. It is big; it is spread out; it has variety. It is worth taking time to explore properly because it has a lot of stories and experiences to share and; • Wester Ross is not an empty wilderness with no facilities. It is an area where you can actively immerse yourself in the scenery and landscapes rather than just passively look at them. It is an area where there is a lot to do and see.

Please indicate whether you agree with the above statements on Built Environment. Note any opportunities or solutions to challenges you can think of. Please let us know what needs improved.

Figure 2: Map of Wester Ross Biosphere area showing Playparks, public recreation grounds and picnic areas

Natural & Cultural Heritage The Natural and Cultural Heritage of Wester Ross plays of fundamental role in the visitor experience and so auditing and understanding the current situation and development plans is essential to planning the development of the region. The purpose of this report is to gather and contribute evidence to the DMP on the current status of Natural and Cultural Heritage in Wester Ross and the opportunities and challenges it presents.

There are 14 types of natural heritage designation in Wester Ross across 161 sites (see map below). Scottish Natural Heritage, The National Trust for Scotland, Scottish Wildlife Trust and John Muir Trust manage and protect estates for the benefit of the public, local communities and/or members.

Scottish Natural Heritage have a landscape character assessment for Wester Ross. To summarise the most significant features of the landscape it picks out, we created this wordcloud (see left). The National Trust for Scotland have a property statement for , West Affric and Falls of Glomach. We did a similar exercise with that document to tease out the main words related to natural and cultural heritage together (see below).

There are 3738 entries on the Historic Environment Record within Wester Ross Biosphere. There are 303 listed buildings, 4 designated landscapes, 3 conservation areas, 1 battlefield and 34 scheduled monuments; of these, 2 (Dun Telve & Dun Troddan Brochs) are Properties in Care (see Cultural heritage maps below).

Of these records and designations > 1000 are categorised as relating to agricultural activities. > are 700 buildings or houses of varying antiquity. > are 300 ‘hut circles’, around 200 other prehistoric sites (rock shelters, crannogs, souterrain, chambered cairns etc) are listed. > 100 military sites attest to Jacobean and World War histories. Marine related sites including ship-wrecks total > 400. Ecclesiastical heritage is also important with > 150 Historic Environment Record sites. Specific crofting sites contribute > 100 and other industrial heritage (Kelp Burning, Mining, Iron Working, Lime Kilns, Mills, Fishing stations etc) contribute > 100 records. Cemeteries, burial grounds and notable graves/grave stones make up > 60 entries. There are 12 castle sites, many are ruined. More unique cultural heritage includes coffin roads, cruck houses, consumption dykes, early suspension bridges,

brochs (based on the local geology), an aqueduct and one of the earliest habitation sites in Scotland, on the Applecross peninsular.

The main themes gathered from local websites are: Gaelic, Place names, Christianity, First Settlers, Brochs, Bronze Age, Sea Travel, Roads & tracks, Crofting, Genealogy, Diaspora, Clearances, Fishing, Domestic & Civil life, Engineering, World War 1, World War 2, Russian Arctic Convoys and Klondykers.

We asked residents (at two workshops and an online survey) how they would describe the natural & cultural heritage of Wester Ross: 289 words and phrases were collated.

There was a theme about fragility, damaging nature, resources and peace (not just through tourism) and also, personal safety. The cultural heading was dominated by phrases associated with music, particularly around live and traditional music or ceilidh. Crofting, Gaelic, Brochs and Castles were also recognised as important, as was the sense of community. It was notable that few adjectives were offered for Culture and Heritage. In contrast, the themes of Landscape and Views and Wildlife and Nature stimulated many adjectives/descriptions/nouns which can be grouped into the following themes (* = more than one person submitted this word):

DRAMA SPIRITUALIT COUNTRYSIDE FRAGILITY THE BIODIVERSITY Y & & SCALE ELEMENTS WELLBEING Beautiful*** Peaceful** Wild**** Too many…* Trees/woods***** * Fresh air* Untapped Not enough…* *x7 Deer*** Breath Mysterious Regeneration Lacking Lochs*** Otters ** taking** Powerful Valuable* infrastructure* Glens*** Pine Martens** Stunning* Atmospheric Inaccessible* Deforested* Sea/Ocean Birds of prey** Dramatic* “Absolutely Big Conflicts with ** Highland coos* Majestic mind Exposure dogs Rocky** Sealife Amazing blowing” Fresh Air Needs Rainbows* Mushrooms Spectacular “Proud that it Ever changing protecting Waterfalls* Squirrels Impressive is my home” “On the Disappearing Dark Skies* Whales Unparalleled Comforting doorstep” Denuded Rugged* Salmon Heart- Deep Overgrazed Rough* Seals warming Unique Rainy, Cold Eagles Home Wet Sheep Misty Goats Mosaic Sky River Light Weather Beautiful, Wild and Breath-taking Mountains and Woodland are the main features of ‘natural’ Wester Ross as described by residents. Participants stressed that local food and drink is limited or difficult to get. Small-scale distilleries, chocolatiers and scallop diving were highlighted. ‘Fresh’ and ‘Local’ seafood and venison were seen as the two main staples.

When asked to describe favourite memories of a day out in Wester Ross and what made it special, cultural experience really stood out. An analysis of common themes demonstrates that ‘Being active’, ‘Feeling immersed’ in nature, having ‘Cultural experiences’ and ‘Watching wildlife’ are

aspects of recreational time in Wester Ross. This tallies well with Visitor responses to surveys; 98% said landscape and nature and 94% said cultural heritage were important aspects of their experience here.

What makes these aspects special are that they are ‘Different from what you might normally see’ in terms of mountains scenery and the sunsets that are often highly visible on the West Coast. There is a sense that the people here are welcoming, offering lifts and including visitors in their social lives out and about. Wester Ross can be ‘Restorative’, allowing visitors quite time, personal reflection and simplicity. There was a sense that wildlife and history are almost too big to mention – come and see for yourself how obvious our wildlife and heritage are seemed to be the underlying message (right on the doorstep was mentioned).

Wester Ross has a concentration of statutory and non-statutory designations protecting or promoting its natural heritage; this has led to some residents questioning the value of such designations. However, when coupled concerns around damage to the natural environment caused by human behaviour it becomes apparent that there may be an underlying issue of community disempowerment. The landscape is protected in law, but is this adequately understood or enforced?

The tangible cultural heritage of Wester Ross is all around us, but the region is not interpreted coherently for Visitors or indeed to the outside world. There was a sense from some workshop participants that residents do not want to interpret their culture for visitors – that it is too intrusive to do this. Therefore there needs to be careful management of any messages we as a community wish to communicate.

The main messaging which came across from the Sense of Place workshops is that Wester Ross is beautiful, wild, breath-taking and peaceful. It exists in tension, with contrasts between feeling wild and being heavily managed for many centuries; between inaccessible interiors (glens and mountains) and submersion in nature and landscape from the roadside or doorstep; between strong Gaelic cultural tradition and the melting pot of many cultures and between deforestation and woodlands. The main features are Mountains, Trees, Glens and Lochs. It’s special because it’s different – not necessarily what people expect.

Challenges - Communities appear unaware of funding opportunities and/or lack a coordinated approach to funding applications for projects relating to natural & cultural heritage. - Social & Environmental pressures from tourism are not being given adequate attention.

Opportunities - Update local people on what designations mean in practice & empower them to discourage irresponsible/illegal behaviour appropriately and proactively - Coordinate an approach to interpreting tangible cultural heritage in Wester Ross - Community training in and/or centralised information hub on what is in our own backyard may be of significant benefit. - Communities are keenly aware of the fragility of their landscape and way of life – they are concerned about responsible land-use and responsible tourism and therefore are likely to rally behind any common-sense campaigns. - Local food and drink have a huge potential to grow in popularity and provide income streams for local communities.

- Wester Ross Biosphere could act as coordinating body to draw down funding for a community- based project to develop digital infrastructure and support centralisation of information.

Please indicate whether you agree with the above statements on Natural & Cultural Heritage. Note any opportunities or solutions to challenges you can think of. Please let us know what needs improved.

Tourism Facilities The purpose of this report is to gather evidence for the DMP on the current status of Tourism Facilities (including accommodation, catering, attractions, activities, events and retail relevant to tourists) in Wester Ross and the opportunities and challenges they present. It will also demonstrate a matrix tool for the assessment of touristic potential of selected visitor attractions.

Accommodation businesses within the Wester Ross Biosphere range from seasonal B&B in an owner’s house to professional letting agencies covering > a dozen self-catering properties each. Some businesses fall into multiple categories.

There are at least 1,207 accommodation units within the Wester Ross Biosphere, possibly around 900 individual businesses, and over 10, 000 bed spaces per night during the tourist season (April-October). Accommodation units and bed spaces were classified in six categories: camping and caravanning sites (C&C), guest houses / bed and breakfasts (GH/B&B), hostels, hotels and self-catering properties (SC).

Accommodation units Bed spaces by by Category Category

C&C 2% C&C 25% 18% GH/B&B 1% GH/B&B 47% 3% Hostel Hostel 12% Hotel Hotel 3% 76% 13% SC SC

At least 1/3 of the accommodation businesses are advertised via an external website such as Airbnb etc. Bed spaces are concentrated in the largest villages, although the disparity is starker as Ullapool and Gairloch can clearly host more visitors than all other locations, with 21% of bed spaces for Ullapool and 18% for Gairloch. These are followed by Lochcarron (7%), Achiltibuie, Kyle and Plockton (all with 6%). Although large campsites contribute to this, a calculation excluding campsites shows that both Ullapool and Gairloch can accommodate many more visitors than other villages. The accommodation sector has an important role in the management of visitors.

Either by informally making recommendations to their guests or by publicly advertising on their websites, accommodation providers can direct tourists towards restaurants, attractions, activities or events. Businesses therefore influence the flow of tourists and could potentially divert guests to certain locations over others.

There are 122 food and drink Food & Drink by Category outlets in Wester Ross.

Brewery / Distillery The concentration of these is higher in the largest settlements 2% Cafe 9% 3% with 21% located in Ullapool, 4% Delicatessen 15% in Gairloch, 11% in Kyle of 36% Ice-cream Lochalsh and 8% in Lochcarron. Restaurant Coigach, Lochbroom, Gairloch 44% 1% Smokehouse and Ewe reveal a high 1% Sweets concentration of the offering in Take-away the northern part of WRB.

Visitor attractions were considered and defined as either natural or man-made, ‘managed’, and static with three main features:

• Parking Space • Road Signage • Interpretation

Additional features that define enhanced attractions are: an exhibition, toilet, shop or café. Attractions could therefore be landmarks, castles, gardens, museums, some beaches and reserves, provided they are officially managed.

We set up a matrix tool to assess attractions’ management and thereby their touristic potential. Based on management features, we created categories of attractions reflecting the level of management. This does not grade attraction quality, only a relative assessment of facilities and potential for development.

Categories

- Top attraction: All management features Nature & Environment - Attraction plus: Trio + 3 additional features Museum - Attraction: Trio + 2 additional features Beach - Attractionnette plus: Trio + 1 additional feature Castle & Monuments - Attractionnette: Trio Gardens - Less than attractionnette 2 or less features Information office Others

Using this criteria, we recorded a total of 48 attractions within the Wester Ross Biosphere area. Identified as top attractions were Kyle Line Museum, Attadale Gardens , Inverewe Gardens, Eilean Donan Castle and , but almost half of all attractions are classified as

‘attractionettes’ which demonstrates potential for development. A small portion of sites are undeveloped (viewpoints and beaches, along with Strome Castle).

The audit recorded 76 activity providers. Most of these businesses are located within the Biosphere area. 14 offer multiple activities. We classified activities into fifteen categories:

# % # Activity Providers Activity Providers % Arts 4 4 Kayaking 13 14 Boat hire 3 3 Marine 16 17 Cycling 9 10 Outdoors 4 4 Equestrian 2 2 Retreats 1 1 Fishing 6 6 Sailing 4 4 Golf 3 3 Sporting 8 9 Guiding 15 16 Wildlife watching 1 1 Indoors 4 4

Clubs (9) were counted separately as the activities (i.e. shinty, sailing, rowing) offered are more directed at locals than tourists. Figure 3: Map of activity providers' by business address.

This audit counted a total of 248 events within the Wester Ross Biosphere area, which is assumed to be a conservative estimate. Events were classified in 16 categories to reflect the content of the offering.

Events by Category Map of Events (Cluster View)

Events % Arts & Crafts 17 7 Ceilidh 8 3 Community 13 5 Concert 68 27 Cultural Heritage 5 2 Culture & Environnent 13 5 Dance 1 0 Environment 76 31 Festival 8 3 Reading key Games 5 2 Environment Highland Games / Gathering 6 2 Concerts Marketing 1 0 Community Markets 7 3 Sports Sports 13 5 Arts & Crafts Theatre 6 2 Culture & Wellness / Retreats 1 0 Environment Total 248 100 Others

78% of events take place in the tourist season starting in April and ending in October.

A sustainable destination requires a healthy and diverse economy, therefore all businesses are indirectly linked to tourism. However, for the purposes of this report, we focussed on businesses directly linked to tourism.

The arts and crafts sector is the main source of tourism retail; comprised of at least 78 artists or crafters. These outlets often include a café, and they are mostly located in Ullapool (26%), Lochcarron (24%) and Gairloch (12%). There are at least 32 shops throughout Wester Ross, where visitors can get groceries and something to eat, but there are also some small specialised retail businesses such as a flower shop, a tree nursery or bookshops.

105 further businesses can be classified as follows: Trades & Services by Category

Beauty & Wellness 4% Building, plumbing etc 8% 14% Business Services 28% 15% Catering Forestry & Gardening 5% 4% 4%13% IT 5% Miscellaneous

Challenges • Seasonality • Lack of local housing for staff – difficulty to retain skilled local workers in the area • Lack of events/ facilities information for planning purposes • Lack of collaboration • Lack of local statistics (on businesses, opening hours etc and bed spaces available) Opportunities • Untapped cultural heritage for attractions and activities • Strong natural heritage sector with attractions, activities, events • Generation of year-round tourism at times where there is a greater capacity • Potential to build upon existing local events portfolio, particularly extreme sporting events • Food & Drink where there is a growing infrastructure of distinctive local producers and a strong base of award-winning food and drink providers • Product clusters such as slow adventure packages • Generate revenues by charging for facilities • Attractionnettes could be developed into Attractions

Please indicate whether you agree with the above statements on Tourism Facilities. Note any opportunities or solutions to challenges you can think of. Please let us know what needs improved.

Visitor Services The purpose of this report is to gather evidence to the DMP on the current status of Visitor Services (including marketing, information provision, signposting, car-parking & charging and toilets) in Wester Ross and the opportunities and challenges they present.

The main information about tourism in Wester Ross is provided by the regional tourism association Visit Wester Ross which disseminates information through its website and Facebook page. The website provides service/facilities info, an events calendar, general information on attractions, food & drink, accommodation, etc. They provide trails other publications.

Local tourist groups offer information on their websites (Welcome Ullapool, Visit Plockton, Achiltibuie Tourist Association, GALE, Destination Lochcarron, Visit Torridon, two different websites for the Applecross peninsula, the Lochalsh and Isle of Skye tourist guide as well as the Glenelg Arnisdale tourist information tourist guide).

The North Coast 500 and VisitScotland put the most resource into advertising the North Highlands online, and Wester Ross is given its own space. However, agreement on a map of Wester Ross is not evident.

Wester Ross is mentioned in numerous guides and is the subject of a number of books however there is no dedicated visitor guide for Wester Ross. Wild Wester Ross, Hills of Wester Ross and Wester Ross Rocks are three local publications on the natural heritage.

Dedicated information outlets include the Ullapool iCentre, the Gairloch GALE centre, the Tourist Information Centre in Kyle and Community Centre. There is also a Visitor Centre in Plockton and one at NNR. Most identified WRB attractions include interpretation panels (44 out of 48). Local tourist maps are produced for Gairloch and Ullapool by Codair.

Signposting is present for most of the attractions we counted (73%). Visit Scotland allows brown signs for Tourist Destinations that encompass facilities such as shops or accommodation. A number of businesses also have their own independent signs of all shapes and sizes. Many public footpaths are also signed by green and white signs made by ScotWays. Wester Ross Coastal Trail signs are to be replaced by NC500 ones by March 2020.

We counted 63 car parks and 132 lay-bys in WRB (see map below). To our knowledge , no place in Wester Ross charges for parking.

We identified at least 21 public toilets (see map below, Arnisdale is not shown as the OS data is out of date at time of acquisition). There is in general no charge, but some facilities encourage donations from users. The Highland Council offer a comfort scheme and the map can be found here.

There are 13 camping and caravanning sites offering chemical Figure 4:Map of Chemical Waste Disposal waste disposal facilities. However, it is not certain that all are Facilities

able to allow non-resident vans to use them. Tourist behaviour in that regard can also be problematic with the recurring issue of illegal disposal of chemical waste. It is considered special waste in Scotland and can be therefore punished by up to five years imprisonment.

There are currently 5 charging points for electric vehicles within the Biosphere area: two in Ullapool, one in Gairloch, one in Torridon and one in .

We observed that some facilities are presented as disabled accessible but can still be unadapted. The reviews show that doors or angles can be in the way of accessible toilets, or that level access can still be over rough ground and therefore not very practical for wheelchair users.

Number of Accommodation by Accessibility Feature

"PARTIALLY SUITABLE FOR PERSONS WITH LIMITED … 15 "SUITABLE FOR PERSONS WITH LIMITED MOBILITY" 14 ACCESS GUIDE 9 LEVEL ACCESS TO BAR 6 LEVEL ACCESS TO ENTRANCE 37 LEVEL ACCESS TO 1+ BEDROOM 35 WET ROOM 17 TOILET 20 PARKING SPACE 50

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

Number of Attractions by Accessibility Feature

BRITISH SIGN LANGUAGE 1 BRAILLE 2 HEARING LOOP 3 LARGE PRINT 2 ASSISTANCE DOGS SUPPORT 2 POWERED SCOOTER / WHEELCHAIR 2 PARKING SPACE 12 LEVEL ACCESS 17 TOILET 12

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18

A few examples of very accessible accommodation are the Torridon Hotel, Bay House near Ullapool or Eagle Rock in Applecross. Although many attractions based on natural topographical features are currently inaccessible to some visitors, a few such as Beinn Eighe, Knockan Crag or Slattadale have facilities and paths for all abilities. The most accessible attractions are Inverewe and Attadale Gardens, both offering disabled parking, level access, accessible toilets, powered scooter/wheelchair hire, but also large print interpretation, braille and hearing loops.

In Wester Ross, our regional train stations have very different levels of accessibility. Some of them are completely inaccessible to wheelchairs, and most of others have rough ground despite a level access which makes public transport travels challenging for disabled users.

Map of Railway Stations and Accessibility

Challenges • Visitor information provision (winter, accessibility) • Lack of chemical toilet disposals • Accessibility of tourism facilities and services • Lack of local statistics • Impacts of visitor behaviour and growing numbers creating pollution / littering or erosion (roads, paths), traffic. • Visitor volumes can become unmanageable and facilities sometimes have to close at least temporarily (toilets in Kinlochewe and Beinn Eighe visitor centre) • Variable wi-fi and broadband connectivity Opportunities • Room for improvement of disabled access to accommodation, particularly near by to attractions which have good disabled access. • Generate revenues by charging for facilities. • Centralisation of events/ information provision to reduce effort, particularly helpful to communities who do not have an up to date website

Please indicate whether you agree with the above statements on Tourism Facilities. Note any opportunities or solutions to challenges you can think of. Please let us know what needs improved.

Figure 5: Map of Wester Ross Biosphere area showing laybys and carparks

Figure 6: Map of Wester Ross Biosphere area showing locations of public toilets

Carrying Capacity This refers to the maximum number of visitors who can visit a place or site without causing damage, within the confines of its limits of acceptable change. This can be environmental damage but also social damage as resident’s (and visitor’s) wellbeing is affected. Economic damage then follows on.

Two methodologies have been identified as potentially applicable to Wester Ross. Those of Megerle & Pietsch (2019)i and the National Trust (NT) at the Giant’s Causeway and Carrick a Rede.

Carrying capacities will generally report a series of potential figures or ‘bands’. The scope for NT’s capacity investigations is geographically bound and will lead to the outcome that evidence-based benchmarks and baseline levels for visitor carrying capacities will be ascertained. Full details of the methodology are beyond the scope of this report but can be made available if required. The main elements are as follows:

Physical - Conduct parking & traffic surveys and Socio-Cultural – Resident survey including a collect data to inform feasibility study into off- survey sent to 87 K homes to understand site remote park and ride facility. Including resident’s experiences of tourism observational surveys relating to internal demand for facilities like WCs, catering etc. Ecological Phase – Includes; 1 Habitat Survey, Experiential – Visitor Surveys to cavass Visitor’s Before and After Control Impact (BACI) Study, expectations vs experiences and requirements. Invertebrate Assemblage Monitoring, Air Residents’ engagement to understand Sense of Quality Monitoring, Land/Path Condition place. Survey, Habitat mapping, Invertebrate survey & Land/path condition survey.

Mergerle & Pietsch were particularly concerned with predicting problems associated with promoting ‘Geological sites’ as tourism attractions and so to help inform a plan for sustainable tourism across a whole Destination, they identified six criteria to assess: accessibility, safety, legal protection, carrying capacity, proximity to other geosites and interpretation potential. Land managers (who had a good over-view and understanding of each Geosite) decided whether each aspect should receive a green, amber or red grade. This semi-quantitative method relies on the assessor having a good over-view of issues across the region. Assessments within a site and across the region are relative to each other and should be baselined and checked periodically for any changes. Assessment of the six criteria leads to an over-all grade for each site.

A combination of these two methodologies could lead to a good understanding of the carrying capacity of Wester Ross the Destination, but also of sites within it.

We have already completed some of the elements of the National Trust methodology. Informal discussions with the Beinn Eighe Reserve Manager indicate that pressure points are already recognised, even if not quantified specifically. This may also be true of other landowners in Wester Ross. Therefore, adapting the methods of Megerle & Pietsch could allow landowners to easily monitor pressure points and help inform a collaborative and annually updated DMP. If this was coordinated centrally, the outcome would be that there is a ‘helicopter view’ of Wester Ross available to help plan where to direct tourism through marketing campaigns, allowing hot spots to recover, targeting investment and spreading the load.

Business Survey Destination Management Plans should give high priority to the performance and impact of tourism businesses and so they should be based on a clear understanding of their needs. Many surveys in other destinations have found that businesses often give as much priority to maintaining the appearance, environment and visitor appeal of a destination as they do to its promotion.

We approached 30 businesses who had expressed an interest in the DMP process on our Facebook page for face to face interviews. These ranged from a single person business, to several hotels employing a significant number of people, a community trust, and a hardware store. Geographically, these ranged from Kishorn to North of Ullapool. Altogether, 16 businesses participated. In addition, Visit Scotland have produced two reports for us, tailored to Wester Ross thanks to more than 100 business responses from our region to their barometer survey.

Businesses interviewed employ between one and eight full time employees (and up to 30 seasonally), and many were open nearly 12 months of the year.

UK customers were the largest source of custom, with a wide mix of European countries forming the backbone of the balance. Several remarked on an increase in visitors from the Far East.

Several businesses have plans to develop where possible, although several were limited by space and staffing issues. Funding was rarely mentioned as a problem. “Staffing” was cited as the main issue – low population, lack of commitment by young staff, and very limited staff accommodation being the main problems.

The only training support businesses identified as lacking is in marketing using Social Media as a delivery tool but time to undergo this training was often limited.

A few businesses commented that they felt the current “Brexit” issues were a barrier to their development, as was negativity expressed by some social and traditional media sources towards the North Coast 500.

Businesses feel that Wester Ross is well supported and served via current marketing and promotion. However, almost all indicated that infrastructure needs attention, specifically: litter, waste management, road conditions, and driver education with regard to motorhomes. Comparatively, when Visitors were asked what one aspect they would chose to improve in the area the majority said Public Toilets and Roads. When asked if information on how to drive our roads is adequate, the vast majority said it is.

The majority of the businesses interviewed regarded themselves as being in “Wester Ross” a few on the periphery preferred North West Highlands/ Ross-shire. Of the ones who favour Wester Ross, all expressed pride in it.

All businesses felt that tourism in its current form is sustainable with the caveat that investment in infrastructure and visitor education is necessary. This is entirely in keeping with recent research from colleagues in the John Muir Trust and the survey we conducted with 105 Wester Ross residents.

Recommendations (all reports) 1. Encourage community to report pot holes 2. Lower carbon emissions by promoting and enhancing existing parking areas along with the construction of new ones at key sites. 3. Connect public transport services to carparks to reduce traffic issues identified by residents of the area and previously described in this report. 4. Create and resource an interface between communities and agencies in terms of roads maintenance/spending plans. This will facilitate planning and consultation, as well as assist in drawing down funding for such projects. 5. Use our extensive path and sea access network to develop ‘slow tourism’ initiatives/ self-guided itineraries around cycling, walking, kayaking etc 6. Lobby for investment in public realm infrastructure. 7. Develop/promote social recreation areas in all villages – whether this is village halls, marinas, community owned areas like woodlands etc 8. Protect the distinctive built environment of Wester Ross through sensitive development in collaboration with community who have a deeper insight and planners who have a broader view 9. Enhance green networks in and between villages/townships 10. Training is offered to local people to help increase awareness of the practical meaning of Natural and Cultural heritage designations and generate ideas on how to prevent/mitigate irresponsible behaviour 11. That Sense of Place work and Visitor and Resident opinions surveys are repeated periodically to monitor for changes and the Destination Management Plan is updated accordingly. This will also allow impact assessment to ensure the DMP is working effectively. 12. That a co-ordinator, or manager is nominated and resourced to maintain an over-view of carrying capacity issues at keys sites across Wester Ross in order to monitor for any issues and update the Destination Management Plan appropriately. This could be as simple as generating a form for landowners to complete each year and taking a ‘helicopter view’ of the whole area based on results. 13. A traffic study is conducted following the methods of the National Trust to understand visitor journeys and a holistic overview 14. Research seasonality thoroughly, as a consequent yet unidentified number of businesses are not operating in the winter months between October and April. 15. Strive towards better online publicity as it is probably the principal information source for visitors. If we cannot find a business, then it must be also hard for visitors to find it. 16. Produce more studies to capture missing data or explore other important aspects such as seasonality which could not be entirely studied here. 17. Achieve more collaboration between our scattered village communities to gather information and retain visitors in the area.

i Megerle, H. & Pietsch, D. (2019) Geotopschutz als Stiefkind des Naturschutze: Geoparks im Spannungsfeld von Schutz und Nutzung in Naturschutz und Landscaftsplanung 51 (04)