Working “Tay-gether” to put inclusive tourism on the map

A new Tay Country Inclusive Tourism Destination Programme is underway.  

Targeting tourism and events businesses across the Tay and Fife region – Dundee, Angus, Perth & Kinross and Fife Local Authorities – are working with VisitScotland to raise the profile of the area as an inclusive tourism destination.  

Inclusive tourism is a valuable market for Scotland. Sometimes described as “the purple pound” – inclusive tourism refers to the spending power of disabled people and their travel companions and is estimated to contribute £1.69 billion to Scotland’s economy.  

Through our focus on place and destination development, inclusive tourism has been identified as an area for growth, to support a more sustainable, inclusive and resilient visitor economy across the Tay and Fife region. 

Working together

We’ve partnered with AccessAble, a specialist accessibility consultancy, to provide business advice and to support the four local authorities and local tourism destination groups with their inclusive tourism growth plans. This will be the first time we’ve worked with partners at a regional level to build an inclusive destination programme.

This is one of a number of initiatives taking place in the region this year, others include Scotland’s Tay Country travel trade development programme, the development of a regional tourism framework and plans for a regional tourism conference in March 2026. More to come on that.

Find out more about our work on place and destination development, a key focus for us in achieving a year round visitor economy.

About the programme

Working with businesses from the business development stage through to marketing, a series of webinars and in-person practical training events will both introduce businesses to the inclusive tourism market and build on the knowledge of those already engaged with it.

The programme will conclude with businesses having the opportunity to be involved with influencer marketing to showcase the experiences available to all. 

The success of this new programme could set the benchmark for similar programmes rolled out in other regions.  

Drawing on the expertise and guidance from different teams across VisitScotland, the programme has been developed to take businesses on a journey which help them to understand how to welcome visitors with accessibility requirements and develop their inclusive experiences. We hope that more businesses will obtain an AccessAble Access Guide which clearly provides the relevant information that visitors with accessibility needs are looking for. 

To mark the programme, all tourism and events businesses are invited to attend this free webinar, now open for registrations.

REGISTRATE and book your place at the webinars here