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Days Out Incentive Fund re-opens to drive winter visits

Visitor attractions can take advantage of further opportunities to benefit from the VisitScotland Days Out Incentive Fund – the £4 million Scottish Government-funded initiative created specifically to support our sector.

When the Fund opened originally, the ‘window’ to apply was very limited. Recognising that as a result, some attractions missed out on the chance to submit an application, Phase 2 of the Days Out Incentive Fund opened on Monday, 8 November.

The deadline for applications is Tuesday, 30 November and all eligible attractions across Scotland that haven’t already taken advantage of the funding on offer are encouraged not to miss out on this new opportunity. Information on Phase 2 and details of how to apply can be found here.

Through the Days Out Incentive Fund, subsidies are being made available to attractions, as well as outdoor, adventure and wildlife activities operators, to enable them to offer discounted ticket promotions to drive visitation during the off-season. Successful applicants to Phase 1 of Fund are currently promoting half-price ticket offers to attract visitors through the winter months.

To be eligible to apply for funding, attractions and activities open for business between now and February must have a listing on VisitScotland.com and be signed up to the ‘We’re Good to Go’ COVID-19 industry standard. Businesses have the flexibility to choose which days or weeks they wish to apply the discount within the promotional period, and the channels (online or offline) they use.

VisitScotland has launched a special marketing campaign to promote the Days Out discount offers to consumers. The Great Days Out in Scotland campaign, which runs to mid-February, is designed to encourage people to get out and about during the coming months to make the most of ticket promotions from participating attractions and activity operators. The campaign uses a multi-channel approach across visitscotland.com digital, social, radio & press to drive visits to attractions as part of a day out or a short break.

A dedicated toolkit is available to help successful applicants of Phases 1 and 2 of the Days Out Incentive Fund to promote the special ticket discounts they’re able to offer thanks to the subsidies. The toolkit and advice can be accessed via the visitscotland.org page How Your Business Can Promote the Great Days Out in Scotland campaign, which can be accessed here.