THE PERTH area has firmly established itself as a destination for large-scale events after coping with an influx of tens of thousands of visitors in recent weeks.

The latest in a series of large scale events comes on Friday when 8000 Jehovah’s Witnesses make their way to the Fair City for their annual Scottish convention.

With hotels, guest houses and eateries already seeing the benefits of the nearby T in the Park last weekend and the Scottish Game Fair and Elton John concert the weekend before, it is a boom time for the hospitality sector.

A VisitScotland spokeswoman said yesterday, “There have been various large-scale events in and around Perth recently.

“This goes a long way to highlight the area’s ability to host large audiences and they have each proved very successful.

“Whilst at these events, visitors are able to see what the area really has to offer and we hope this will encourage a return visit.

“The recent Elton John concert was very popular as with T in the Park which sells out year after year.

“The area has certainly established itself as a major events destination within Scotland.”

Some 80,000 people per day enjoyed T in the Park in Kinross-shire, with many thousands passing through Perth on their way to and from the festival site.

A further 40,000 went to the Game Fair at Scone Palace and the one-off show by pop legend Elton John at McDiarmid Park.

Final preparations are under way for the Jehovah’s Witnesses convention, at the football ground from tomorrow.

It is the 18th year in a row the convention has been held at St Johnstone’s stadium, providing an annual income for the area of up to £4 million.

Recent figures showed tourism revenues in Perth and Kinross leapt by more than £40m last year, from £373m to £416m in 2008.

Employment in the sector also grew by 6% in the last year, with other annual events such as the Enchanted Forest and Etape Caledonian cycle trials aiding the industry.

Perth and Kinross Council’s enterprise and infrastructure convener, John Kellas, said, “The variety of events and attractions on offer in Perth and Kinross this year has been varied and excellent.

“The Elton John concert at McDiarmid Park was a huge success, bringing in many people from outside the area, and was another great boost to the local economy,” he added.

“It showed that Perth is the perfect venue for large popular events like this, and we hope that more big names can be attracted to the area in future.

“This year’s Etape Caledonia was another great success. The event grew in stature from its inaugural year in 2007 and we hope it could become one of British cycling’s most attractive summer calendar fixtures.

“We will soon release economic impact figures that illustrate the huge benefit the Etape brings to Highland Perthshire.

“Other major annual events such as T in the Park, the Game Fair and the attractive fixture card at Perth Racecourse continued to attract many thousands of visitors to the area from all over the UK and beyond.”

He pledged continued work to keep the area “vibrant and exciting.”