Scottish tourist board opens Cumbrian embassy

Athalie Matthews
Tuesday 06 May 2003 00:00 BST
Comments

Scottish tourism officials have opened an "embassy" in a popular area of the Lake District in an attempt to poach some of Cumbria's 12 million annual visitors.

The Scottish Borders Tourist Board has set up a booth near Keswick, where a lone member of staff has the task of persuading holidaymakers that they should be heading about 50 miles further north up the M6 instead.

The SBTB's Lake District envoy will attempt to sell the charms of the relatively undiscovered Borders country as an equally beautiful yet less crowded alternative.

Fiona Drane, head of marketing at the SBTB, said: "The Lake District is one of a number of popular locations in the UK that can often get a bit too busy for some people's liking during peak periods.

"What the Scottish Borders don't have, however, is the crowds, which means that people who come to us can enjoy the space and serenity of the countryside, towns and villages as they are meant to be experienced. Our booth in Keswick is part of a drive to encourage people to take more short breaks in the Borders and increase the profile of the region."

The initiative follows a failed bid by the SBTB last year to buy back the historic town of Berwick-upon-Tweed from England.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in