The Cycle Tourism Opportunity

Mike DennisonProject Manager, Cycle Tourism Forum

@Mikeydennison

What is Cycle Tourism?

What is Cycle Tourism?Road Cycling Mountain Biking

Cycle Touring

Trail Centres, Forest Trails,Mtb races / events e.g.

Downhill, XC

Cyclocross,Mtb

Orienteering

Supported off-road touring

Traditional cycle touring E.g. LEJOG,

Coast 2 Coast. Usually multi-day and self-

supported

Supported road touring

Cycling on public roads e.g. Sunday club run,

Sportives, long single-day tours, races & events

Leisure / pleasure ‘coffee shop’ cycling!

Value of Cycle Tourism to the Scottish Economy

Value of Cycle Tourism: £363m (TS 2013)Of which:

Direct expenditure by leisure cyclists £228m

Direct expenditure by mountain bikers £47m

Economic Impact of the NCN in Scotland £375m (Sustrans 2014)

Value of Golf to Scottish Economy: £1 billion (KPMG 2013)

Cycle Tourism across Europe as a whole: £35.5 billion

Country of origin (Estimate):Scottish based 40%Rest of UK 37%International 23%

Annual usage estimate / km of all NCN route types in Scotland from 2010 until 2014

It’s a robust and fast growing sector!

Cycle Tourism

100k trips x 7.7 days x £46 / day = £35m

(of which £18 / day is accommodation)

12.5m trips x 1 day x £15 / day = £187mSingle day

(x120)

Multi day

(x1)

Expenditure by Leisure Cyclists in Scotland (estimate TS 2013)

Value of Cycle Tourism to Scottish Economy

Market Value£s

Number of cycling trips

Trip length(Days)

Spend per day(£s)= x x

Our Cycling VisitorDecision making hierarchy

Where cycling is the primary purpose for a

trip to Scotland

Where cycling is just one of a number of activities undertaken during a trip

to Scotland Type of cycling – Road / Tour,

Leisure, Mountain biking.

Destination: RoutesScenery, Cultural / Natural Heritage.

Itinerary building:Cycling friendly service providers…

hire, accommodation, transport links etc.

Destination: Scenery, Cultural / Natural Heritage,

visitor attractions

Service provision:‘A cycling package’

Bike hire, nature and severity of routes, narrative which

includes places of interest etc.

Development of appropriate products and marketing materials for each audience

A 46 mile section from Oban to Fort William

340,000 trips are made on the route each year.

78% of trips are Cycle Tourism related.

56% of Route users used local accommodation.

This contributed £361, 330 to the economy.

This sustains 8.6 FTE jobs.

Route Case StudyNCN 78, Oban to Fort William

Business Case StudyNCN 78, Oban to Fort William

A 70% increase In revenue from bike passengers

on the ferry in 2 years.

‘More and more cyclists and walkers are using the ferry every year…I’d definitely like to think about buying a second boat’Dougie Robertson, Owner.

Event Case StudyThe Etape Loch Ness 2015

Annual mass participation event in its second year

£740,000 positive economic impact for Highland region.

3,328 participants.

68% of participants were from outside the Highlands region.

40% aged 40-49 yrs. 25% aged 50-59yrs. 22% aged 30-39 yrs.

77% male, 23% female

92% of participants said they would take part in the event again.

Event featured in 148 articles generating £1.1m of PR coverage.

Realising the opportunity…• Product development– Recognising regional USPs / assets

• The Hebridean Way – Cycling (& walking)• Other recreational cycling trails E.g. Lews Castle Trails• Natural history and cultural heritage

– Identifying barriers to participation & creating solutions• Collaborative marketing of the cycling product(s)– VisitScotland.com– Joint funding E.g. VisitScotland Growth fund– Tour operators– Partners E.g. CalMac

Create an industry lead Cycling (and walking?) Interest Group

Collaborative Case StudyBlack Isle Bicycles

• A ‘flying’ bike hire operator.• Full service:

– Delivery / collection– Guiding– Range of bikes (Inc. E Bikes)

• Website.• Routes, featuring:

– Visitor attractions– Service providers

• Start up funding from Costal Communities fund

• Community operated.• sustainable!

Resources• TIS Guide to Leisure Cycling• TIS Guide to Mountain Biking• Leisure Cycling crib sheet for VisitScotland VICs• Highlands & Islands Enterprise Webinar series

– Leisure Cycling• Existing resources– Cicerone, ‘Cycling in the Hebrides’– 3rd party cycling websites E.g. Map my ride.

The Tour of The Isles – Ride with GPX

SUMMARYFinishing with the Video

Example - The Caledonia Way

• Example of a video which showcases Scotland's natural history and heritage, in the context of a cycling journey along NCN 78 from Cambletown to Inverness.

• I will bring the final version on a disc, but you can view a late draft of it at https://vimeo.com/139277721 use the Password 123

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