Tourism operators meet to discuss Sustainable Tourism in the Park

The Cairngorms National Park Authority’s (CNPA) development of a sustainable tourism strategy for the entire park has taken a further step forward, following a recent gathering of tourism interests.

Around 60 delegates representing private, public, voluntary and community organisations attended a workshop at the Craigendarroch Hotel in Ballater, organised by the CNPA, on Wednesday 27 October.

The event brought together a wide variety of tourism enterprises including accommodation providers, visitor attractions and retail businesses to discuss the initial priorities for tourism in the Park.

The development of a sustainable tourism strategy for the Cairngorms National Park is a stepping stone towards the Park’s ambition to qualify for Europarc’s European Charter for Sustainable Tourism.  The Charter for Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas aims to encourage good practice by identifying those Parks which are meeting agreed requirements for the sustainable development and management of tourism.

The Charter is awarded by the Europarc Federation, an umbrella organisation of over 500 protected areas across 37 countries, and any park or protected area can apply for recognition that they are meeting the requirements of the Charter.

The sustainable tourism strategy and action plan developed for the Cairngorms National Park as a result of workshops like this one and consultation and research amongst the tourism sector, will provide the main basis on which the Charter application is judged.

Speaking after the meeting, Debbie Strang, the CNPA’s Sustainable Tourism Officer said; “The workshop was a great success with lots of very valuable feedback and comments from the industry on what they see as the main issues for tourism in the Park.”