A major event to promote marine tourism and how to maximise its potential takes place in North Ayrshire next month.

Organised by Sail Scotland, North Ayrshire Council is proud to be supporting the Scotland Marine Tourism conference which takes place at Waterside Hotel in West Kilbride on Tuesday 19 March.

The event is part of the national Scottish Tourism Month Programme which takes place in March to bring the sector together to shine a light on the amazing opportunities we have here in Scotland.

The conference on 19 March will focus on the marine tourism sector and is a unique opportunity for the whole industry, not just Sail Scotland members, to come together, learn, and network with others.

Speakers on the day include:

  • Fiona Hyslop MSP – Cabinet Secretary for Transport
  • Gavin McDonagh – Chairman of Sail Scotland and MD of Holt Leisure Group
  • Rob Dickson – Director of Industry and Destination Development, VisitScotland
  • Joshua Ryan-Saha – Director of Traveltech for Scotland
  • Daniel Steel – CEO, Sail Scotland
  • Sinead Sheridan – Marine Planning and Policy Officer for NatureScot
  • And more to be announced……

Councillor Tony Gurney, Cabinet member for Green Environment and Economy, said: “We are delighted to be supporting the conference and look forward to what promises to be a really informative and interesting day.

“Tourism is hugely significant sector here in North Ayrshire. Each year, we welcome approximately 1.4m visitors to North Ayrshire with the tourism and visitor economy supporting 3400 jobs.

“Marine tourism is a big part of that and we are always looking to maximise the offering we have along our coastlines. Meeting and networking with prominent stakeholders will only help us develop ideas as we move forward to develop the Ayrshire Growth Deal Marine Tourism Programme and exciting marine projects at Cumbrae and Arran.”

The event will focus on the strategic importance of marine tourism and sustainable and responsible consumer behaviour, and the importance of continued investment in marketing, infrastructure and product development.

The organisers are still finalising and adding to the programme, but with limited tickets, and with the event having sold out in the past, they are advising booking early to come along to join the debate and hear from the line-up of expert speakers.

Tickets are available from: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/scotlands-marine-tourism-conference-2024-tickets-806644785267?aff=ebdsoporgprofile