Urgent Message to all Concerned with Tourism in the Western Isles

2008 has been a wonderful year for some accommodation providers in the Western Isles and for others it has been the worst. For some time now Enjoy Hebrides has been researching this in great detail and our initial findings were alarming. We discovered that those businesses which spent time and money promoting their businesses online and offline were reaping great benefits whereas those who were still relying upon the Tourist Board, Visit Hebrides and Visit Scotland, were suffering. With this in mind we decided to research the search engines in more detail as the Internet is, by general consensus, becoming increasingly important to all business especially tourism.

Today we completed our initial research on the search engine Google and we were astonished to discover that we are being seriously let down by those who get paid large amounts of OUR money to promote the islands. I would go so far as to say this matter should be brought to the attention of our MP, MSP, Council and everybody concerned with tourism in the Western Isles of Scotland. With this in mind it is up to all those who get this email to forward it to everybody they know who may be interested or who may be able to apply pressure to those bodies failing us to get to work FAST. We can only sort this by working together.

Here are the cold, cold, very cold, FACTS:

1. The Internet continues to grow at a ridiculous rate.
2. More people rely upon the Internet for information.
3. The amount of Internet sales increases every year
4. Tourism, hotel and accommodation bookings are one of the areas which has seen a dramatic increase in sales.

HOLD ONTO YOUR HATS:
5. 50% fewer searches are made in relation to our islands than were made in 2004.

So what does this actually mean?

Well it is clear that the number of Internet searches made on Google had halved in the last 4 years and this can only be as a result of "lack of awareness". It is especially alarming when we have seen renewed interest in the islands through exposure on TV (Grand Designs, Castaway Revisted etc.). However there has been a distinctive lack of action on the parts of the Tourist Board, Visit Hebrides & Visit Scotland.

Yes they have tried, yes they have produced some very expensive video which reminds me of their superb "nude surfers" gaff. Unfortunately all of their marketing has failed so badly that they are actually going backwards! Yes a MASSIVE 50% reduction within ONLY 4 years.

Enjoy Hebrides has been aware of the failings of those who get paid large amounts of YOUR cash to promote these islands and that is why we set up. We were alarmed by the ease at which we are dominating the search engines but this should not be so. If the official bodies were doing their jobs properly there should have been an INCREASE in searches at a similar rate to elsewhere. We should not have found it easy to dominate the search engines because they should have done it YEARS AGO.

Please pass this information around to as many people as possible as soon as possible.

The only way the tourism industry in the Western Isles can move forward is if we DO IT OURSELVES and get rid of the idiots destroying one of our most important industries.

This message has been added to the Tartan Gems blog where you can add a comment: http://www.tartangems.co.uk/archives/2008/08/13/urgent-message-to-all-concerned-with-tourism-in-the-western-isles/

Many thanks

Enjoy Hebrides(Proudly unofficial promoters of the Hebrides)

Isle of Harris Self Catering Accommodation

Well I have decided to start a blog about the wonderful Isle of Harris which is an incredible little island in the Outer Hebrides which are found a few miles off the west coast of mainland Scotland. I have called the blog Isle of Harris Self Catering as I wish to write about some of the amazing self catering accommodation available here. Over the last few years tourism has really become a vital part of the Harris local economy and lots and lots of money has been invested in new accommodation.

Some of the self catering accommodation on the Isle of Harris is absolutely astounding both in design of the building and the quaility of a the accommodation. Some are based around the blackhouse type of building which is a thick walled very low stone built single storey cottage type of building often thatched.

Other types of self catering accommodation on Harris is a typical stone built crofthouse which is usually a two storey house with, again, very thick stone walls. These buildings are usually painted white and look lovely against the green landscape or, at the height of summer, when the machair is awash with a multitude of wild flowers.

In later posts I will look at the self catering accommodation currently available in greater detail. I will also be taking a virtual tour of the Isle of Harris itself. The Isle of Harris is a truly wonderful place to take a vacation. Typically a Hebridean vacation (so called because you are taking your vacation in the Outer Hebrides) is extremely relaxing but, more recently, many people are visiting the islands to indulge in their favorite sports with surfing becoming extremely popular due to the excellent conditions here for that sport.