Christmas vs Hogmanay: who wins in the battle of the December festivities amongst Scots?
Following Christmas, and as we gear up to the New Year celebrations in Scotland, albeit in a rather muted form this year because of restrictions caused by the rise of Omicron, it begs the question – what is more important to most Scots – Christmas or New Year?
It may be a surprise to discover that Christmas was not celebrated in Scotland for around 400 years, from the end of the 17th century to the 1950s. Indeed, for much of that time it was effectively banned - this dates back to the Protestant Reformation, when Christmas was deemed a ‘Catholic feast’, and as such the Kirk deemed that it was not to be celebrated!
Therefore, right up until the 1950s, many Scots worked over Christmas and celebrated their winter holiday at New Year when people gathered for parties, exchanged presents – and this became known as Hogmanay.
Hogmanay remains a ‘very Scottish tradition’ and is synonymous with Scotland the world over. But how to Scots in 2021 feel about Hogmanay and Christmas? Does Hogmanay still take precedence?
In early December, before the latest Covid restrictions which will impact hugely on Hogmanay this year (no mass street parties or gatherings for example), 56 Degree Insight polled a representative sample of 500 Scottish adults and asked them – which do you like better, Christmas or Hogmanay/New Year?
And clearly, things have changed since the 1950s! Two thirds of Scots said that they prefer Christmas (65%) and only one in eight prefer New Year (12%). One in five had no preference (19%) whilst 4% don’t like either.
Not unexpectedly though, there are variations in opinion by certain demographics. As would be expected, families are the group most likely to prefer Christmas (77%) – only 7% of them prefer New Year. However, young Scots adults - those aged 16-24 - are rather more likely to prefer New Year (26%), although even amongst this age group, a larger proportion choose Christmas (49%).
So why do most Scots prefer Christmas? The main reason – mentioned by just under a third is the appeal of Christmas for families and children (31%):
''It is just so magical and wonderful for children and spending time with family”
''It is my most favourite time of year - I love spending time with family and giving gifts”
However for others, preference for Christmas is fuelled as much by a dislike for Hogmanay around two areas – bad memories and often loneliness (10%) and too much of an alcohol focus (8%):
''New year is a very sad time as I think about all the people who are no longer with us”
“Hogmanay can be very lonely”
''Hogmanay is just an excuse for people to get drunk”
Indeed amongst the 19% who prefer Hogmanay (dominated by the under 35s) , the main reasons given relate to parties and drinking:
''Christmas is too long and is getting boring as I get older. Prefer the parties at Hogmanay”
“Hogmanay means a good party, lots to drink and a fresh start to new year”
So, some clear evidence that for most Scots, Christmas celebrations are now more preferred over those that take place a week later – something that would have been much less likely back in the middle of the 20thCentury.
FOOTNOTE:
These findings were reported in the Scotsman on 30th December - accessible here
Launching a new survey for the Coalfields Regeneration Trust
We are delighted to have been commissioned by the Coalfields Regeneration Trust to undertake an important new survey of residents of former coal mining communities across Scotland, exploring a range of areas from the population’s demographics to housing, fuel poverty, health, wellbeing and community cohesion.
At its peak in the early 1900’s the UK’s coalmining industry employed near 1.2 million people but as the industry contracted large numbers of pits closed with a devastating impact on the communities that relied upon them.
The most significant job losses occurred following the miners’ strike in the mid 1980’s and since then mining has come to an end in most parts of the UK. While the mining industry has shed over 250,000 jobs since 1980s, alongside these direct job losses many other jobs have been lost in the communities which once relied so heavily upon this industry.
By the late 1990’s the 5.5 million people living in former coalfield areas continued to face significant challenges including a lack of employment opportunities, high levels of poor health and many people held little or no qualifications.
The Coalfields Regeneration Trust
With this backdrop, the Coalfields Regeneration Trust was established as an independent charity in 1999 with the following mission:
“To create opportunities for social and economic growth, deliver a positive lasting impact and ensure former mining communities are not disadvantaged by the legacy of the past.”
To deliver this mission CRT focused their activities on the delivery of the following goals:
Employment – increasing the number of people in work and creating the conditions for new job opportunities in communities
Skills – growing the confidence, skills and qualification of the coalfield population
Health and wellbeing – improving the health outcomes for the coalfield population and increasing the numbers of people taking part in healthy lifestyle activities.
In Scotland, CRT receive direct grant support from the Scottish Government and work in partnership with government and their agencies to achieve these goals.
Working with partners CRT provide support to Scotland’s coalfield communities in a wide range of ways, from providing voluntary organisations with hands on support to help them to build capacity to the establishment of the ‘Hub’ in Kincardine, Fife, a flexible working space which provides an office and meeting space for the local community.
The Hub, Kincardine
Understanding Scotland’s coalfield communities
To support the planning of their activities in Scotland CRT identified the need to undertake a survey of residents of Scottish coalfield communities which would provide them with insights on the people who live in these areas, how they live and their views on life in these areas.
While data on these topics is available at a national and, to some extent, regional level in Scotland, the existing national surveys such as the Scottish Household Survey and Scottish House Conditions Survey do not provide data at the geographic levels of interest to CRT.
Scotland’s coalfield areas
The 56 Degree Insight team are excited to have the opportunity to work with CRT to design and undertake this new survey which will launch in the new year.
Questionnaire design is underway now; we will be aiming to provide detailed new insights which have not been available before – from details on the population profile such as their economic, health and wellbeing status, to details on housing conditions and more attitudinal measures on topics such as community engagement and satisfaction with local amenities.
Survey fieldwork starts in January 2022 with the report due to be published by CRT in Spring 2022. We look forward to sharing the headline findings with you then.
If you’d like to discuss this research or how we can help you with similar requirements get in touch with Duncan or Jim at 56 Degree Insight.
Click here if you would like to find out more about the Coalfields Regeneration Trust
Coast to coast – developing a cycle route across the South of Scotland
56 Degree Insight have recently been commissioned by South of Scotland Enterprise as part of the wider consultancy team led by Tourism Marketing consultancy Bluebell Scotland to lead on the project development of a proposed Coast 2 Coast Cycle Route. The Glamis Consultancy form the third part of the team, and the 56 Degree Insight role is to undertake key consumer research to help in the planning and development of the route.
A recent study identified cycling as one of several sectors with the greatest economic opportunity and fit with the South of Scotland region and a key recommendation was the development of “Pan-South of Scotland” experiences including a long-distance cycle route from Portpatrick in the west to Eyemouth in the east. Such a route would provide an excellent opportunity to cement the South of Scotland’s reputation as one of the outstanding road cycling destinations in the UK, building on the existing cycling infrastructure, major projects such as 7Stanes Redevelopment, Destination Tweed and the Mountain Biking Innovation Centre and Bike Park and events such as the Tour of Britain, Enduro World Series, Raiders Gravel Festival and UCI world championships in 2023.
Bluebell Scotland, led by Neen Kelly have been appointed to project manage the development stage of the C2C Cycle Route and part of this requirement is to ensure suitably robust consumer market research is undertaken to ensure the proposed route development aligns with market demand and to undertake an economic impact assessment of the potential of the route on the region. 56 Degree Insight will be conducting extensive consumer research in the early part of 2022 to guide the development and working closely with Colin Smith from the Glamis Consultancy to measure the potential economic and wider socio-cultural impacts of the route.
This represents another Scottish outdoor activities-based research study for the 56 Degree Insight team. In 2020, we undertook a major survey of the potential for adventure tourism in the North East of Scotland for ONE North East and VisitAberdeenshire, and a recent project looking at the potential for the development of the Whithorn Way walking route (also working with Glamis Consultancy). We have also just completed a major study for Wild Scotland and Sail Scotland on the potential for outdoor activity tourism in Scotland.
If you want to discuss any of these studies, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Helping CalMac navigate to a new normal
A lifeline service during a time of crisis
It’s now over a year and a half since Scotland went into its first full lockdown to reduce the spread of the Covid 19 pandemic. Throughout this period our client Caledonian MacBrayne (CalMac) has continued to provide an essential lifeline ferry service to residents of islands on the west of Scotland.
During the first lockdown which began in March 2020, CalMac reduced its timetable to an essential lifeline service for use by only those who really needed to travel such as NHS workers and those responsible for the delivery of essentials such as food. Their timetable reduced to less than 30% of its normal capacity and at the height of the lockdown passenger numbers dropped to less than 5% of normal volumes.
During this period CalMac also introduced many other changes to ensure that the vulnerable island communities they served were protected from infection. This included a move from cash to card only payments, a limited food offering and a requirement for passengers to wear face coverings in all inside areas. Also, to ensure that physical distancing requirements could be met, some passenger areas were reconfigured, capacity was less than in ‘normal times’ and a change of rules was made on some routes to allow passengers to remain in their vehicles during the crossing.
While there was a degree of easing for some time during summer 2020, restrictions were reintroduced in full in late 2020 when Scotland entering a second full lockdown. This second lockdown remained in place until April 2021 when the ‘stay at home’ rule was firstly changed to ‘stay local’ and by the end of the month non-essential travel beyond home local authority areas was allowed again.
While at this point CalMac were able to resume their summer timetable, ongoing physical distancing requirements until early August meant that capacity levels remained below normal, and passengers were asked to continue to book travel in advance and build in extra time when arriving at ‘turn up and go’ routes.
While some uncertainty continues, easing has since continued with most remaining major restrictions lifted in August when the country moved to ‘beyond level 0’. However, on writing some guidance impacting travel remains in place, most notably advice to work from home whenever possible and a requirement to wear face coverings on public transport.
Getting back to normal?
While the first lockdown seemed a temporary change for all of us, the second lockdown, and the likelihood that some restrictions are likely to be retained for a long time to come, is leading to many businesses re-examining their operations in the knowledge that behavioural change among consumers may be long lasting as our working and home lives continue to readjust.
CalMac is no different so they are looking to gain a clear understanding of the requirements of their customers. While various surveys and external sources such as our Scottish Tourism Index have provided them with an understanding of the needs of tourists and how these may impact upon the leisure side of the business, CalMac identified the need to better understand the views and changing requirements of commuters and islanders as we emerged from the pandemic.
A survey of non-leisure passengers to inform future strategy
Given this context we were delighted to be commissioned in spring 2021 to support CalMac in the collection and analysis of insights which would help provide them with this understanding of their non-leisure market.
The survey is very much a partnership, we have provided input on the initial questionnaire design, CalMac administer the online survey (promoting it via channels seen by regular customers such as social media) and we then undertake the data analysis and reporting of findings.
To date three waves of surveying have been undertaken to track changing passenger behaviours and aspirations as the restrictions were eased over the summer of 2021.
Across the 3 waves of surveying conducted so far, over 1,100 passengers have provided their input, including details on their usage of CalMac before the pandemic, currently and expectations for the future and their feedback on changes required to improve services now and in future. This feedback ranges from comments relating to the ongoing Covid 19 related protections to more ‘business as usual’ feedback on matters such as timetabling and ticketing.
Results are reported to CalMac quickly after the fieldwork completes allowing them to stay in touch with passenger needs around current topics such as capacity, reliability and the on board catering offer, as well as longer term subjects such as changes in commuting, leisure or shopping behaviours.
If you would like to find out more about the surveys we do in the transport sector or relating to the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic please get in touch.
Helping address the housing crisis in Badenoch and Strathspey
Introduction
Recently, 56 Degree Insight have been working with local organisations and Chambers of Commerce in various parts of Scotland to understand the scale of the housing shortage in some parts of the country which is limiting economic sustainability and growth in these areas. Work undertaken in the first area covered - Badenoch and Strathspey - has just been completed, and a Housing Summit took place in Aviemore today and the press release reproduced below from Cairngorm Business Partnership provides further details and the response from the Scottish Government Ministers involved:
Kate Forbes, Highland MSP and Cabinet Secretary for Housing address Cairngorms housing Summit
Business leaders, public sector and community representatives came together today to discuss the housing crisis in Badenoch & Strathspey with Kate Forbes, Highland MSP who is also Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Economy and Shona Robison, MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Housing and Local Government.
The summit at Macdonald Aviemore Resort and led by the Cairngorms Business Partnership brought together some of the significant employers in the area and leaders from Highland Council, Cairngorms National Park Authority, Highland Housing Alliance, Communities Housing Trust, Government Officials, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and representatives of the local community.
The summit discussed work underway to help people, who want to live in, work in and care for the area, find homes.
Ms Robison, who opened the summit, commented “Good quality, affordable housing is essential to help attract and retain people in Scotland’s remote and rural communities. As part of our £3.4 billion Affordable Housing Supply Programme we have delivered more than 6,000 affordable homes in rural and island communities between 2016-17 and 2020/21.
Building on this, we are now working to deliver 110,000 affordable homes across Scotland by 2032, of which 10% will be in our remote, rural and island communities. This will be backed by a Remote, Rural & Islands Housing Action Plan – we now want to engage with community organisations and those in the public and private sector to ensure it delivers for people in these areas.”
The results of a recent business housing demand survey, conducted by 56 Degree insight, were released at the summit. The results found that:
two in three businesses state the lack of affordable housing has inhibited their ability to recruit new staff (68%)
39% indicated that this was having a ‘major impact’ on their business.
over half of the businesses (59%) expected the issues to worsen if no action was taken.
the meeting heard that, right now, there are 180 vacancies in Badenoch and Strathspey listed on the Indeed website alone. Survey results suggest that around 50 of these will not be filled due to a shortage of suitable homes.
The survey was commissioned by Highland Council and the Cairngorms Business Partnership. The Scottish Government, the National Park Authority and the Highland Council have undertaken to take the results into account when assessing housing needs analysis for Badenoch and Strathspey and therefore funding and allocations for public sector supported housing.
The summit also discussed an innovative scheme being led by the Cairngorms Business Partnership (CBP) to improve the prospects for local employees looking to rent homes in Badenoch and Strathspey. In a pilot partnership with Highland Council and the Highland Housing Alliance (HHA,) with support from Highlands and Islands Enterprise, the CBP will establish a not for profit, business led, organisation that will offer rent void guarantees to HHA and in return properties will be allocated based on local employment needs. The initial pilot for 4 homes in Aviemore is expected to be available for occupation in summer 2022.
Commenting on the scheme, Mark Tate, chief executive of the Cairngorms Business Partnership, commented “The lack of affordable homes for people who want to work in, live in and care for the National Park, has long been a problem. This past summer it has severely impacted business recovery. This pilot clearly demonstrates that businesses are prepared to make a contribution to help alleviate the problem and ensure new mid market rent housing is available for people working locally. We very much see all of the work we are discussing here today as work that we can replicate across the National Park and can be useful for many rural communities beyond that”.
Convener of Highland Council, local councillor and Aviemore resident, Bill Lobban added “The biggest issue facing our community is the provision of affordable housing. Our economy is almost exclusively tourism based so we do need accommodation for tourists but we also desperately need homes for the local people who live and work here many of whom serve the tourists who come here in their droves. There has to be a balance and currently that balance has shifted far too far away from the provision of affordable housing and we must redress that balance as a matter of urgency.”
Finally the summit heard, from the Communities Housing Trust who have been commissioned by the CBP with support from HIE, about a longer term ambition to develop a community of around 80 homes from short term seasonal worker accommodation to homes for people to build, buy, buy to rent and rent of varying sizes built around a community of local people; fitting for a National Park delivering economic, community and environmental sustainability. This scheme has the ambition of keeping at least 80% of those homes for local employees and people who want to live, work and care for the area in perpetuity.
There then followed a positive discussion about how these schemes can be improved further and a commitment from all parties to build on these solutions in a way that allows them to be scaled and replicated across the National Park and further.
Xander McDade, Convener of the Cairngorms National Park Authority, said: “The availability of affordable housing is an issue of profound importance to the communities and businesses of the National Park, something which is again coming across loud and clear from our consultation on the next Park Partnership Plan. Having recently increased the affordable housing requirement to 45% in key settlements, we welcome today’s announcements and look forward to working with partners on substantially increasing affordable housing as set out in the draft National Park Partnership Plan.”
Closing the meeting Ms Forbes commented “I am delighted that the Housing Minister, Shona Robison, is spending time with businesses to seek to resolve this major issue.There are tools at our disposal, in terms of building and securing more housing, but we need to make sure it is the right kind of housing for those who are most in need.”
l'esperienza di viaggio - 56 Degree Insight and The Italian Job!
Introduction
For the first time in almost two years, the 56 Degree Insight team – Duncan and Jim – have been travelling! Over the last six months, we have been working with International Destination Branding guru, Tom Buncle of Yellow RailRoad to help in the development of a destination brand identity for the Province of Belluno, an hour or two north of Venice in the eastern Dolomites. Our end client – La Provincia di Belluno – wanted us to present the results of the major survey of potential visitors to an audience made up of tourism businesses and operators. So, the three of us enjoyed a very memorable trip to this stunning area last week.
Tom, Jim and Duncan in Cortina
We thought we’d share some ramblings and thoughts from our trip. Below, we turn the focus on pre-trip COVID protocols, the nature of proving your vaccination certification in Italy, the Bellunese tourism experience itself, car rental woes – oh and the small matter of a passport gone missing, presumed stolen, on arrival!
Pre-trip COVID tests
The Covid related requirements around international travel were foremost in our minds when we were deciding on whether or not we would be able travel to Italy – while we were keen to be there in person, the prospect of 10 days in a quarantine hotel on return was a non starter. However, as the UK and Italian travel rules began to be relaxed, the trip became a viable option - but the various forms to be completed and tests to be arranged before we could travel were still daunting prospects. All of this was made doubly difficult as we needed to look out for changes in requirements both in terms of the Scottish and Italian governments.
To travel to Italy we first had to undertake a lateral flow Covid test no more than 48 hours prior to our flight – while there is an option for the test to be posted to your home to self administer, we choose to get tested at Edinburgh Airport the day before we were due to fly. The process was slick and within 20 minutes of our nasal swabbing we were sitting having a coffee awaiting the test results. These arrived within an hour (negative!) allowing us to complete our EU Passenger Locator Form also needed for the flight the next day. While the Passenger Locator Form required us to give full details on our travel plans, hotel booked and passport details, it wasn’t overly onerous and on submission we were able to print the document ready for checks on departure and arrival.
Also, given the short nature of our trip, although we hadn’t yet left the Scotland, we still had to think about the forms to be completed and test requirements for our journey back home a few days later. Firstly while there was no longer any need to complete a Covid test while in Italy, a self administered lateral flow test was required to be taken within 2 days of our return to Scotland, all to booked in advance of our travel. We also completed what we could of the UK Passenger Locator Form – to be submitted while in Italy within 48 hours of our arrival home.
Ready to fly
With tests and forms completed, we were ready to fly. Our flight was around lunchtime on Sunday but given the additional requirements we played it safe and agreed to meet up at the airport in plenty of time. It felt a little strange to be at the airport for the first time in many months but things felt reassuringly familiar and we were pleased to see full adherence to mask wearing and social distancing.
Our flight was with Ryanair but (perhaps surprisingly) the check in process was friendly and efficient and we were soon passing through security – also efficient and organised.
A coffee and sandwich later we were boarding our flight to Treviso, and as it was only around a third full we had plenty of space to spread out. Indeed, as we thought about it, with every passenger on board Covid tested within the previous day or so, it was probably one of the safest places we could be!
Around 2 hours later we were passing over the snow covered Alps and approaching Treviso airport, just north of Venice. Our positive experiences of flying continued on arrival – on time and an only slightly longer queue for us non EU residents ☹. And our bag was one of the first off the belt!
Car Rental woes
Our first destination was Cortina, in the heart of the eastern Dolomites, around 2 hours north of the airport so first stop after passport control was the car hire desk. An upgrade for a small additional charge was offered but declined and low and behold the larger car was given to us anyway!
A few more forms were completed and we were handed the keys to an almost new Citroen C5 Hybrid (but ironically in the week of COP26 with an instruction not to recharge the vehicle and to only use petrol!). It was a lovely looking vehicle but, in addition to the expected challenges of getting used to a left hand drive, Jim (our designated driver) also had the stress of getting used to very unfamiliar automatic controls and a slightly bewildering array of hi-tec buttons and lights. At this point, a little bit of instruction from the hire car company on basics such as how to start the engine, reverse etc., would have been of great assistance but they’d closed up for the evening so we were left to figure it for ourselves!
How many consultants does it take to start a car engine jokes aside, 20 minutes later we were finally on the road, heading from the relatively flat plains of the Treviso area towards the Province of Belluno and the mountains. Once the basic controls were mastered the car proved to be comfortable, even on the hair pin bends when we reached the Dolomites – although we never did have time to work out what all of the flashing lights and controls did.
Bellunese - where exactly is it and what’s it like?
‘Bellunese’ is a region in the east of the Dolomites mountain range, less well known or developed for tourism than other areas to the west such as Bolzano. It does includes two relatively well known destinations – Cortina d'Ampezzoa to the North West of the area – perhaps best known as a luxurious ski resort, and due to host the 2026 Winter Olympics – and the Tre Cime, three iconic, stunningly scenic peaks (in English, the Three Peaks). But other parts of the region are relatively undiscovered - despite their stunning beauty. Even the provincial capital, the city of Belluno itself had a grandeur and charm that often belied its industrial heritage.
As we travelled north from Treviso to Cortina the landscape transitioned from plains and Proseco vineyards to stunning mountain scenery. And the architecture and building styles changed too - from Venetian and Mediterranean shuttered villas, to rustic Italian townhouses to the alpine lodges and chalets of Cortina and the north.
Earlier in 2021 we had conducted survey of over 2,000 residents of Italy, Germany and the UK, testing their reactions to a number of aspects of the Bellunese destination ‘proposition’. It was exciting to finally be able experience these elements first hand from the breathtaking scenery and historic buildings to the aspects which made the destination different- from the distinctive local gastronomy to the genuine, warmth of welcome we received from locals in an area where tourism is not as commercial as other destinations.
By travelling out on the Sunday, and with the Monday a Bank Holiday, we had a bit of time to experience the area before our day of presentations – packing in some sightseeing by car and a wee ramble in the hills (not quite making it to Tre Cime as the weather had closed in with the first snow of the year). It must be said that the food and drink was a particular highlight from the local take on Gnocchi to the mountain vegetables and local wines, beers and spirits! We didn’t have a bad meal - in fact, it is probably the best we’ve all eaten in a long time - the pappardelle pasta with a ragu of wild boar was particularly flavoursome!! We were also impressed by area’s infrastructure – from the flawlessly, smooth mountain roads (freshly resurfaced for the Giro d Italia) to the network of cable cars connecting mountain ranges and resorts.
While Monday was fun day we finished the evening with an early night as, on the Tuesday we were due to deliver a series of presentations and workshop to a mix of audiences from the Bellunese tourism industry, in the historic setting of the town hall in the provincial capital Belluno.
While Tom impressed us with his Italian language skills and was able to flip from Italian to English in discussions, and Jim introduced his session in some well rehearsed Italian – we were relieved to be supported throughout by Catie Burlando – integral to the team developing the destination brand and a very capable translator. Ably assisted by Catie, Jim presented the results of our research to the audience in the morning and then led by Duncan, we ran a data workshop in the afternoon – giving some non researchers the tools they needed to get as much value as possible from the data tables which accompanied our survey debrief (a potentially challenging topic to enthuse about but it felt like with the assistance of Catie and some shortbread and Tunnocks products we’d brought from Scotland, we managed to keep everyone enthused and engaged!)
A hard day’s work - but so rewarding to see our research and insights being received with such enthusiasm.
Travelling around Belluno with COVID restrictions
Of course after such a long and sustained period of staying at home and rarely venturing much beyond our local areas, we were extremely conscious of the potential risk of either catching or transmitting Covid 19 when travelling around. However, throughout the experience from travelling to and from the UK to the highest standards of safety and precautions everywhere we visited whilst in Italy, we always felt safe.
Almost without exception face coverings were worn – always indoors and often outdoors and we were impressed by the ‘Green Card scheme’ requiring proof of vaccine status on entry to any indoor venue including bars, restaurants and all public spaces. The QR codes displayed by our NHS Scotland apps worked seamlessly with the Italian scheme – quickly scanned and accepted everywhere we went (and with none of the technical glitches we’ve heard about on the equivalent UK Government app).
So, it is fair to say we felt safe throughout our time in Italy, reassured by the measures in place and the respect which the local people gave to the need for continued precautions.
In Summary
All in all, we returned home much more confident about the possibilities of safe overseas travel than we would ever have expected. Certainly Italy offers the levels of diligence and a COVID checking infrastructure which inspires high levels of confidence. And as for Bellunese itself - what an absolutely stunning part of the world. Mountain scenery that would be difficult to surpass anywhere, but supported by so many other positives - wonderfully welcoming people, proud of their area and delighted you have chosen to visit, a fascinating culture and heritage that offers so much of interest, and some of the best gastronomy experienced anywhere. We will return - for a much longer break - with our families. This is Northern Italy at its very best - no mean accolade!
But what about the lost passport?
In this tail of our travels, there does remain an elephant in the room – let Jim explain in his own words…..
“For me, there was an added dimension which brought first and foremost some extreme stress, then some inconvenience and then a realisation that I’d benefit from an extra 24 hours in another part of Northern Italy!
It all began on arrival at Treviso Airport. Having cleared passport control and picked up our baggage within 5 short minutes we were at the rental car desk – a short 50 metre walk. When I was asked for my passport ID by the hire car assistant, I quickly realised that my passport. was not in its usual holder. Initially I thought it must be in a pocket or a bag but panic set in as I realised it was no longer on my person.
I quickly retraced steps back to the baggage hall – no passport.
The lost and found office and local police were incredibly helpfully – even allowing access to the restricted baggage hall to search thoroughly - but still, no passport.
An hour later, and by now I realised there were two possible explanations – 1) I had dropped it and it had been picked up by someone still to hand it in or 2) It had been stolen
There was little more we could do there and then at the airport, so armed with the telephone numbers needed to stay in contact with the airport authorities, we decided to head for the hire car and Cortina – still in hope that it would be handed in that evening. But with no positive news that evening or indeed the following morning, I realised that I would have to apply for a new passport. This was a big decision because as soon as an application is made for an emergency passport, the missing one is declared null and void and cannot be used. I needed to be sure it wouldn’t turn up before I went down that route!
Reassuringly for anyone who finds themselves in this situation in the future, the UK Government website provides very clear advice and guidance on what to do in these circumstances. The online application took around 45 minutes to complete and Duncan took a photo of a suitably glum Jim on a plain background in the hotel in Cortina to support my application! The website indicated that the process would take two working days to complete before the passport could be picked up - and in Italy, there are two options - either the British Embassy in Rome or the British Consulate in Milan. If neither location was convenient enough to make picking it up in person practical, it could also be couriered –although this would add at least once more day to the process.
Given our return flights were within the two day period I immediately realised that I would have to make new plans for my return trip. I would travel the 5-6 hours to Milan after we had completed our work assignment – and, with emergency passport in hand, I would fly home from there.
It has to be said that I was hugely impressed by the efficiency of the whole process – again reassuring if you ever find yourself in this situation. A mere 4 hours after submitting the application I received a reassuring email stating that my application was successful and an emergency passport would be ready for pick-up the following day – I would get a phone call from someone at the Consulate to confirm arrangements. And sure enough, first thing the following morning, I received a phone call from the incredibly helpful and empathetic Carmela from the Consulate and arrangements were quickly made for pick up of the passport from the consulate the following day.
I was then able to book train travel to Milan and importantly, source a flight back to Edinburgh for the following evening direct from Bergamo to Edinburgh. Initial stress relieved I now had the bonus of 24 hours in Milan to savour (every cloud and all that!).
After accompanying Duncan back to Treviso in the rental car the following morning, I got the airport bus into Treviso then travelled by train to Venice Mestre where I picked up the fast train to Milan. Train travel is always excellent in Italy and I was able to upgrade to 1st class for the princely sum of an extra 6 euros – so was able to travel the 2.5 hours to Milan in some comfort (just what rail travel should be like!).
I arrived in rain soaked Milan on time and was like a drowned rat when I arrived at the Consulate to meet my very helpful new friend Carmela who presented me with my new passport which I then guarded with my life! I no longer have it though - an emergency transport is for one journey only and must be handed into passport control on arrival in the UK.
Job done I checked into my hotel and used the rest of the evening to catch up with work. But Thursday was such a beautiful sunny day, I had to make the most of the 8 hours I had available to enjoy this wonderful city.
Travel home - from Bergamo - was seamless with the emergency passport and since getting home, I have already submitted my application for a new permanent one.
It goes without saying that although losing a passport abroad will always be extremely stressful for anyone,, based on my experience, it is reassuring to know that the process to obtain an emergency passport is so efficient and speedy.
Addendum - 8th November, a week later, and a call from Slovenia from an elderly chap saying that he has just discovered he has my passport!! Apparently he was given it by passport control on arrival in Treviso and hadn’t noticed it wasn’t his own passport until today! That would explain why the airport ‘Lost and Found’ only had one passport in their offices - a Slovenian one!
So the Italian passport controller didn’t give me back my passport in the slew of other documentation we had to show - the Passenger Locator Form, proof of vaccination - and I hadn’t noticed. Instead, he gave it to a random Slovenian, presumably behind me in the queue!! Kristen, the Slovenian in question, was very apologetic on the phone - though it wasn’t his fault and as It’s null and void now anyway there was no point in him returning it to me. More positively, I was able to give him the numbers for the Treviso Lost and Found office and the local airport police to hopefully reunite him with his own passport. Mystery solved - and the moral of this story - double check you get all of your documents back when you pas through passport control!”
Judging in the Scottish Local Retailer of the Year Awards
The 56 Degree Insight team were delighted to be one of the sponsors and judges in the 2021 Scottish Local Retailer of the Year Awards - the SLR Awards 2021.
For almost 20 years the SLR Awards have been recognising and rewarding excellence in the Scottish local retailing sector. Following such a challenging year, it was more important than ever that the fantastic work of local retailers across Scotland was celebrated - they have played a fundamental role at the heart of communities the length and breadth of the country and their heroic efforts deserved to be celebrated.
The Awards were hosted online yesterday evening -: a Virtual Festival of Excellence and we were delighted to announce the winners of the ‘New Store Retailer of the Year’ and ‘Refit of the Year’ categories:
New Store Retailer of the Year: Premier Racetrack Crowwood
Refit of the Year: Spar Falkirk
There’s no question that 2020 was a year full of challenges unlike any we have ever seen before, but no sector rose to those challenges quite so emphatically as the local retailing sector. The SLR Awards 2021 have provided a forum to pay homage to an incredible industry sector that shone brightest in the toughest of times. The whole Awards Show is a celebration of everything that’s good about Scottish Local Retail - you can watch it on the link below and read about it on the dedicated website here
Our participation in the SLR Awards is part of a wider involvement in food and drink research and insights where we work with a number of partners. We will again be Insights Partner for the Scottish Retail Food and Drinks Awards 2022 - and will be sharing insights around consumer food and drink purchasing behaviours and trends over the coming months. Please get in touch to find out more
COP26 is here – "our last best hope to get our act together"
The COP26 summit is almost upon us, kicking off in Glasgow on Sunday.
The importance of the talks cannot be understated. The event has been described by the US climate envoy John Kerry as the world’s ‘last best hope’ to get its act together and to commit to the changes needed if we are to have any chance of reducing global carbon emissions by the amounts required to slow the rate of global warming.
Results published from the surveys we’ve worked on suggest that, on the face of it, most of the population in Scotland recognise the significance of the twin challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss. The Scotland’s People and Nature survey undertaken for NatureScot found that back in 2014, 39% of the population agreed strongly that they were concerned about the effects of climate change on Scotland’s natural environment and 42% agreed strongly that they were concerned about the loss of native animals and plants in Scotland. However by the start of 2020 these percentages had increased significantly to 60% very concerned about climate change and 57% very concerned about bio-diversity loss.
Our research undertaken earlier this year for Zero Waste Scotland suggests that levels of concern about environment issues have grown further during the pandemic with 46% of Scots claiming to have become more concerned over this period.
Also, as a business we’ve noticed a change in the importance attached to environmental protection by our clients. Since we launched two and half years ago we’ve moved from a situation where only clients with a direct remit related to the natural environment wanted to understand public attitudes and behaviours about this topic, to one where the subject is of importance to nearly all of our clients (from transport and tourism operators, to food manufacturers and utility companies) and at least touched upon in the majority of the studies we undertake.
It’s encouraging to see the increased importance being given to protecting the natural environment by both the population and business community, but will this concern translate to credible actions that make it difference, or is it all just ‘blah, blah, blah’?
We know from many of the studies we’ve worked on over a number of years that a significant ‘value-action gap’ exists between the values that individuals hold (e.g. feeling concerned about climate change) and the actions that they take. Often mandated and/or easier to do behaviours such as curbside recycling are the only actions undertaken regularly while other activities which cost more or are harder to do tend to be put off as something to do sometime in the future.
Knowledge of the relative impacts of different activities and the benefits of different possible pro-environmental actions can also make it difficult for consumers to know what actions they should be taking. Our knowledge of the potential benefits of more responsible consumption is a case in point. Around 80% of our carbon footprint in Scotland comes from our consumption habits (i.e. the stuff we buy!) yet our recent survey for Zero Waste Scotland showed that only around a fifth of the population were aware of this fact.
There are many challenges ahead but we hope that we can play a small part by helping our clients to ensure that they have the insights needed to help consumers to ‘bridge the gap’ between their values and actions, by providing an understanding of the barriers that make it harder to change behaviours, how products and pricing can be designed so that right choices are also the easier ones, and how communications can be improved to provide greater clarity on the right steps to take.
If you’d like to hear more about the work we are undertaking in this area or discuss how we can help please get in touch.
Understanding the State of Play in the Scottish Performing Arts sector
The performing arts sector is one of the sectors most severely impacted by the Covid-19 crisis with theatres forced to close their doors for months and many of the (often freelance) workforce unable to continue working.
As the sector started to re-open this summer we were delighted to be commissioned by the Federation of Scottish Theatre (FST) to work with them on their ‘State of Play’ sector research study.
This national study will provide FST with the vital feedback it needs to hear from the sector as they work together to rebuild and recover. Specifically, the research will provide new information on the health of the sector at this critical time, covering a wide range of topics including equality and diversity, climate action, policies and working practices, the impacts of Covid 19 and aspirations for the future.
The results will be used to inform a new Scottish Theatre and Dance strategy which FST is leading the development of, as well as providing insights to support their wider decision making and advocacy work. The study will also establish measures which can be used as a baseline to measure changes in future, with surveying repeated periodically to obtain an update from the sector.
Fieldwork has just completed - this involved two separate online surveys, one targeted at organisations in the sector and the other completed by individuals working in the sector. We are delighted with the response received and are now working with FST to analyse, interpret and report the findings. Look out for more updates in the near future.
If you’d like to find out more about this study or other research we are undertaking in the arts and culture sectors please get in touch.
Assisting Anglian Water to help their customers to love every drop
As an essential service which homes and businesses can’t live without, customer service is essential in the water sector. Yet, the services delivered by water companies are taken for granted by most of us and our interactions with water companies tend to be few and far between.
Indeed, if asked to provide our opinion on our water company it’s likely that many of us might opt for the Don’t Know option or gravitate towards the middle of the scale if presented with the classic Net Promoter Score rating question. Feelings of indifference are common when it comes to water and many of us don’t have a full appreciation of the full scope of services provided by and supported by our water company.
However, although levels of customer engagement tend to be low, given the critical nature of the services they provide, water companies can’t afford to ignore customer experience. In England and Wales the regulator, Ofwat, measures household customer’s levels of satisfaction using C-MeX (Customer Measure of Experience). The results of the surveys which feed into this measure are taken very seriously by all of the water companies, not least because those companies which perform above average are rewarded financially while those performing below par are penalised.
During the last year we’ve been delighted to be working with Anglian Water to help them to tackle the issues of low customer engagement with the sector and to identify the best ways for them to boost levels of customer satisfaction.Recognising how many people take the water that comes through their tap for granted, Anglian Water have an ambition to change how people think and feel about their brand, moving from a position where people have little or no interest to one where the organisation and its work feels more relevant to them and their communities. The advertisement below is an example of how they are seeking to do this with the key message that “Water is our business, but there is so much more we do for the people, communities and environment we look after.”
During the last year we’ve helped Anglian Water to gain valuable insights from a range of data sources available to them including their quarterly brand and communications tracking and the data available from the Ofwat surveys which drive the all-important C-MeX score.
Our work is supporting Anglian Water by making the most of the data collected from these existing surveys, helping them to move from a position of simply tracking satisfaction and communication metrics to one where they have a clearer understanding of the actions needed to become more meaningful to and appreciated by customers.
If you’d like to find out more about our work in utilities, brand and communications or customer experience research please get in touch.
Understanding how housing challenges in the Highlands are impacting rural businesses
There’s been a great deal of news coverage recently regarding the significant challenges facing businesses across the UK when it comes to the recruitment and retention of staff. Businesses in a whole range of sectors are facing a ‘perfect storm’ of factors including reduced access to labour following our departure from the European Union and changing patterns of demand caused by Covid 19.
However, in addition to these challenges, As reported in our blog on 3rd August, the April to June 2021 Cairngorms Business Barometer found that many business based in this area were also experiencing recruitment and retention challenges because of a lack of housing for their employees to live in.
Our survey and anecdotal evidence gained from conversations with businesses suggests that with increasing house prices (partly driven by the number of houses becoming second homes or holiday accommodation), this issue is becoming increasingly urgent for employers in many parts of rural Scotland, affecting a wide range of sectors from tourism businesses to food and drink producers.
Indeed, it is feared that this issue could significantly constrain the potential growth of many businesses in areas such as the Cairngorms or even threaten the survival of some.
To better understand this issue we were commissioned last month by Cairngorms Business Partnership to undertake new research to understand the scale of the issue amongst business in the Badenoch and Strathspey area and we are delighted to announce that we have also just been commissioned to undertake a similar study in Lochaber on behalf of Lochaber Chamber of Commerce.
In both areas we will soon be launching surveys of businesses which will collect evidence to ensure we can determine the scale of the issue currently, details of the sectors, skills and roles most affected plus an understanding of how the issues is impacting businesses.
By collecting this evidence we hope that these studies will play a key role in future decisions on housing provision in the Highlands, helping business to survive and grow sustainably.
If you’d like to find out more about these studies or how we can support your with your research needs – including surveys of businesses get in touch.
Scotland gets back on track
Back in October 2019, 56 Degree Insight undertook an extensive baseline study for one of our ad agency partners, Leith, on behalf of the cross-operator “Scotland’s Railway” brand to obtain a strategic measure of the health and reputation of the various operators working under the new branding and to better understand attitudes, opinions and behaviours in terms of rail usage in Scotland. This provided a measurement in advance of the communications campaign undertaken in late 2019 which focused on raising awareness of the new brand and ultimately to drive more usage of the various railway operators in Scotland and following the first wave of communications, we undertook an evaluation of its impact amongst a similar audience of consumers as a starting point to tracking reputation and interest in the Scotland’s Railway branding. This campaign was intended to run every few months during 2020 to track these opinions and interest in Scotland’s Railway and its reputation amongst the Scottish audience, however, as with most things, this was halted by the Coronavirus pandemic.
The good news however is that the Scotland’s Railway campaign work was revived in the summer of 2021 as we emerged from the pandemic. During early August this year, we undertook a ‘new baseline’ survey in advance of the new campaign which was launched in mid August. Following this, we are in the process of analysing a second wave of consumer research to track the impact of the campaign across the Scottish population. Further campaigns are planned – the campaign on the link below is launching soon and focuses on the ‘green credentials’ of Scotland’s Railway and is being broadcast in advance of and during the COP 26 summit in Glasgow in early November. Again, we will be tracking the success of this as well as further campaigns over the coming months.
It is a genuine pleasure to be working closely with colleagues at Leith as well as everyone in the client group at Scotland’s Railway which comprises representatives from the likes of Network Rail, ScotRail and all of the other Train Operating Companies that have an operating footprint in Scotland. Our aim is that the insight gleaned from the research will help provide the tools to develop rail travel to, from and within Scotland – to help establish greener, sustainable growth and a continued performance improvement in the image and service provided within the rail sector.
Take a couple of minutes to watch the ad below and let us know what you think of the campaign.
It’s blast off for 2021 European Space Agency brand tracking project!
At 56 Degree Insight we love all of our clients but working with the European Space Agency is an especially ‘out of this world’ experience! We’ve just been commissioned for the second year running to analyse and report on the results of their huge 22 country annual brand tracking study which explores what people across Europe know about the ESA, how they feel about the brand and their attitudes towards the organisation’s work. Fittingly the 2022 fieldwork is getting under way during World Space Week which starts today and will celebrate the accomplishments and contribution of women to the space sector and sciences.
Not all of our brand and comms work is extra terrestrial of course - if you’d like to find out more about our other work in this area, visit the Brand & Comms pages on this website, or just contact either of us directly for a chat.
And yes, now it’s time to cue the ‘what a pair of space cadets’ jibes!!
Realising the potential of the outdoor tourism sector in Scotland
There is increasing recognition of the value of the outdoors to the Scottish tourism economy and the role it plays in supporting sustainable economic growth by creating employment, sustaining tourism spend and enhancing the profile of Scotland through the promotion of its natural landscape and scenery. The Outdoors Scotland Tourism Strategy is an initiative led by Wild Scotland and Sail Scotland to champion a collaborative approach for the sector to drive Scotland forward as a leading outdoors tourism destination for sustainable, and environmentally focussed marine, outdoor and wildlife activities.
During August, 56 Degree Insight along with partner agencies BTS, White Stag Tourism and Lochaber Chamber of Commerce were excited to be commissioned by Wild Scotland and Sail Scotland to develop an Outdoors Tourism Strategy for Scotland. The Project aim is to set in motion the full realisation of the potential of the Scotland’s Outdoor Tourism sector and to identify the way forward and precise actions to support the sectors funding, marketing and development plans.
The 56 Degree Insight role is to explore the potential of Outdoors Tourism amongst potential visitors, and to that end, we have just completed a major survey of over 1,500 consumers across the UK where outdoor activities are the main motivation for a Scottish holiday. Not only will the results from this survey help to scale the size of the potential market for each of 25-30 specific activities, we will also develop profiles for each of these activities – specifically those people with a keen interest in visiting Scotland for that purpose – from their demographics to their interests, holiday attitudes and behaviours and specifically what they would be seeking from such a holiday in Scotland.
The results will feed into industry consultations and workshops and into the development of a market-driven Outdoors Scotland Strategy and Action Plan to help realise the potential of this sector by identifying key actions for growth and sustainable development.
Further details of the project are available here
Shining a light on energy consumers during a time of crisis
Britain’s domestic energy market is in crisis. With soaring wholesale gas prices, many consumers face the prospect of significant increases in their energy bills and,
on writing, 6 energy firms have gone out of business this month and dozens more are on the brink of collapse.
56 Degree Insight have just completed a study for one of the larger energy companies to obtain detailed feedback from consumers who have recently gone through the process of being assigned to a new supplier when their current company goes bust – a process managed by the regulator Ofgen which is known as “supplier of last resort”.
Our research used a mix of methods with a survey of several hundred customers using an online survey method followed by programme of qualitative ‘Zoom’ interviews with consumers. We explored all of the areas which concern customers when their supplier fails - from worries about continuity of supply to price increases and loosing credit accrued, to the best ways to keep customers informed during this difficult time. We hope that our recommendations will help our client to make this process as painless as possible as the sector continues to react to the current crisis.
If you’d like to find out more about our experience working in the energy and utilities sector or how we can help your business to improve customer experience please get in touch.
Cairngorms Business Barometer goes LIVE!
This week we were delighted to complete our first wave of the Cairngorms Business Barometer – a quarterly survey of businesses located in the Cairngorms National Park which we have been commissioned to undertaken by Cairngorms Business Partnership (CBP). The survey provides CBP, their partners and the businesses that take part with information on business performance, confidence and barriers to growth. Particularly vital insights at this critical time.
Just over 100 businesses took part and the key results from the Quarter 2 survey have received coverage in the local press. As described in the article, we found that business confidence for the summer months is now higher than at any stage since before the pandemic. However, businesses told us that a number of barriers continue to restrain growth – most notably the burdens of bureaucracy and rising administration costs. Also for some businesses a shortage of local, affordable housing is making it difficult for them to recruit and retain staff.
We look forward to continuing to work with CBP on future waves of the Barometer: get in touch if you’d like to find out more about the approach or if you are a business based in the Cairngorms and would like to take part in the next wave.
COVID-19 Impacts: Supporting the arts sector’s recovery from COVID 19
Results from the third fieldwork wave of a survey of the Scottish population we conducted for Creative Scotland were published this week. The research provides an up to date picture on how the population is feeling about returning to arts events and venues as the sector reopens, with a focus on key areas of interest such as levels of comfort attending different types of venue, social distancing requirements, requirements for Covid testing and other potential protective measures.
The findings show that the desire to attend cultural events and venues remains strong with audiences keen to return – this is especially the case in relation to live music, cinema, comedy and theatre. 3 in 5 of the population would be comfortable with the option of 1 metre distancing (a significant increase since 2020) and over half support the idea of cultural events only being available to people who have just obtained a negative Covid test.
A summary of results and the full report are available on the Creative Scotland here
56 Degree Insight appointed to undertake a major study to guide the destination brand development of Bellunese in Northern Italy’s spectacular Dolomites
High above the Piave river on a narrow spit of land sits the old town of Belluno, capital of the province of the same name and the southern gateway to the popular area of the Dolomites. The small town itself offers its visitors a magnificent panorama and, above all, the unmistakable atmosphere of a mountain town in the Alps. The province of Belluno also has a lot to offer to its travellers, especially to sports fans: from skiing and hiking paradises to water sports on the lakes: just the right thing for all those who appreciate a relaxing holiday in the alpine world of Italy
— Italian travel website, www.zainoo.com
The Province of Belluno – Bellunese is in a spectacular setting in the Dolomites to the north of Venice. As a destination, it has much to offer, however it is relatively unknown compared with competitor destinations in the Italian Alps, the Italian Lakes and the Tyrol. In many ways, it is an area without a clear identity which is rarely highlighted in wider editorials about the Dolomites or indeed the Veneto region. And yet, when you dig deeper, it is an area of immense natural beauty with historic and interesting towns and villages as well as a majestic capital in Belluno itself.
Bellunese needs clearer branding and an identity to help the area stand out against competitors in Northern Italy and further afield. International destination branding expert, Tom Buncle, from Yellow Railroad has been appointed by the Province of Belluno to develop a distinctive and compelling brand for the region and the 56 Degree Insight team are excited to have been appointed to undertake research amongst past and potential visitors to identify the levers which could make Bellunese stand out from the crowd. We’ll be working closely with Tom to help guide the development of the new destination brand.
The timing is crucial: the enforced break in tourism caused by Coronavirus has caused many people to re-evaluate what they are looking for from holidays and destinations – in particular, a willingness to try new destinations ‘off the beaten track’, away from the crowds and which offer a largely outdoor experience. These changing motivations may open up lots of possibility for the Province of Belluno given its tourism product and landscape.
But to realise this potential, there is a real need to better understand how existing visitors to Bellunese feel as well as what might attract potential visitors to the area – what are their perceptions and awareness, and what would motivate them, especially post-COVID. The 56 Degree Insight team are interviewing over 2,000 potential visitors to the region across Italy, Germany and the United Kingdom in parallel with qualitative research amongst visitors and the trade. This will help to establish how Bellunese is viewed in its key markets so that a compelling brand strategy can be developed to guide Bellunese’s tourism marketing and to inform the future development of local tourism products and experiences.
This is a hugely exciting piece of international tourism destination research for the 56 Degree Insight team – particularly challenging with all of the restrictions caused by the pandemic in Italy, Germany and the UK. But we are delighted to play our part in helping this stunning region of northern Italy in its development as a tourism destination.
The latest Scottish Tourism Index shows the challenges ahead to ensure staycations can provide hope for Scottish tourism in 2021the Scottish tourism industry with the much needed boost it needs in 202
Just over a year since we first went into lockdown in Scotland, how is the Scottish population feeling about holidays and tourism in 2021? During 2020, we launched the Scottish Tourism Index and tracked the feelings of the Scottish population through the first lockdown and the initial easing of restrictions. How have things changed one year on?
When COVID-19 lockdown began on 23rd March 2020 in Scotland, little did any of us know how long we would be living under the restrictions of the pandemic. Back in that first lockdown period, we realised that there was a real need for information to help the Scottish tourism industry – how were Scots residents feeling about the prospect of holidays when lockdown restrictions eased, what were their concerns and would they overcome them to take a holiday? If so, where – and would the potential of a Scottish staycation appeal, especially among those more likely to take summer holidays abroad?
We launched the Scottish Tourism Index, and ran the survey across four months of 2020 – firstly in early May, when lockdown was at its toughest, to gauge opinion, then we repeated the survey a month later in early June when our pathway out had been mapped by the Scottish Government. We continued to track opinions and likely behaviours in early July, a week before the official re-opening of Scottish tourism, and then undertook a final wave for 2020 at the end of August. In this wave, we took more of a retrospective – looking back at the holidays that had been taken over the previous 6 weeks, their nature and characteristics, and the extent to which they lived up to expectations.
At that stage, we were hopeful that with possible vaccines on the horizon and case numbers relatively low, we hoped that we might not need to run the Scottish Tourism Index again. However, as we all now know, as we moved into winter, transmissions increased and the emergence of new variants have cause a second major ‘stay at home’ lockdown since the festive period. The vaccination programme does provide grounds for optimism however, and as the restrictions begin to be eased again, we felt it was important to run a fifth wave of the Scottish Tourism Index to see how Scots were feeling about holidays this year.
In this report we examine how Scots feel about travelling and holidays generally, and specifically their intentions for 2021, focusing on their likelihood to take a Scottish staycation. What might it look like, when and where are they considering and what is important to them? We also revisit the potential impacts of incoming tourism on local communities – again, comparing with last year.
The results are presented below from Wave 5, and he headline findings are summarised below:
Whilst there is room for some optimism, the latest Scottish Tourism Index demonstrates that there are a number of challenges ahead to ensure home-base holidays (staycations) can provide the tourism industry with the much needed boost it needs in 2021
Over a fifth of Scots are simply not thinking about holidays yet (22%) and 27% feel that holidays are something they won’t be planning for some time. These groups remained concerned about risks of transmission and would like to wait until the vaccine rollout and declining cases reach a level where they feel completely safe.
However, the remaining half of the population are more positive about taking a holiday this year – indeed 1 in 8 (12%) are desperate for a holiday and will take one as soon as they can. Members of this group feel they need to travel, to escape from the difficulties of the last 12 months.
Almost half (46%) of Scots are very likely or definite about taking a home holiday this year – and a further 24% are fairly likely – 7 in 10 Scots overall. This compares with around two in five likely to go elsewhere in the UK (42%), three in ten into Europe (29%) and 11% further afield.
However the uncertainty of what will be possible this year means that only a small proportion of Scots have already booked a 2021 staycation (5%) while a larger percentage (32%) are just at the planning or consideration stages.
When asked to rate the importance of a different factors if they were to take a Scottish staycation high standards of hygiene and cleanliness were rated most highly. Mitigations to aid social distancing remain important but notably less so than in the summer of 2020. More important in 2021 were reassurances that there would be a range of places open to visit and where it would be possible to eat and drink.
While 17% of Scottish staycations are expected to be taken before the end of June, a larger percentage (51%) are expected to take place between July and the end of September, and 14% in the last quarter. Reflecting the uncertainty amongst consumers, 18% of those planning a trip are unsure of when.
As in 2020, rural locations continue to hold greatest appeal with the Highlands leading the way, followed by Argyll, Edinburgh & Lothians, Aberdeenshire, Ayrshire & Arran and Perthshire.
Also reflecting demand in 2020, self-catering accommodation continues to be the most popular for holidays planned for 2021 with 47% intending to stay in this type of accommodation. Small hotels are likely to be used by 44%, guesthouses/B&Bs by 33% and large hotels by 30% - and all other types of accommodation by less than 15% in each case.
Underlying these percentages there are shifts in accommodation preferences compared with pre-COVID. Self-catering in particular now has much greater appeal (+25% swing) as do campervans (+11%).
In terms of activities undertaken on holidays, 33% of Scots are more likely to consider visiting the natural outdoors on a Scottish holiday post-COVID-19, and a similar percentage are more likely to seek rest and relaxation. More active pursuits such as walking and cycling are also more popular with +26% appeal. In contrast indoor activities such as visits to arts and cultural venues and shopping for gifts and souvenirs will still have reduced appeal.
Considering Scottish community attitudes to the re-opening of tourism, although a degree of reticence remains (23% would at most only want small numbers of visitors), compared to 2020 there is a more relaxed attitude towards visitors generally with almost half (48%) pf the population feeling comfortable and ready to welcome visitors.
READ MORE HERE……