Businesses from across Angus and Dundee have been discussing ways of tapping into the lucrative ancestral tourism market.
With more than 50 million people claiming Scots heritage, ancestral tourism is a booming industry worth in the region of £64 million to the economy each year.
To help firms take advantage of this, a training event providing an introduction to ancestral tourism has been hosted by Tayroots in partnership with VisitScotland .
Tayroots is a joint initiative between Angus and Dundee City councils, with support from the European Regional Development Fund and EventScotland.
The training event in Montrose provided businesses with information and advice on ancestral tourism.
Guest speaker Sheila Faichney, an ancestral tourism marketing officer at Angus Council, said, “Research tells us that family history visitors stay longer and spend more and appreciate knowledgeable hosts who can tell them about our superb local resources.”
Speaking ahead of the event, Gillian Swan, ancestral tourism manager at VisitScotland said, “I’m delighted to have been invited to speak at this event as VisitScotland recognises the importance of this growing market and have recently launched our revamped ancestral welcome scheme.
“More information is available at www.ancestralscotland.com.”