Falkirk district tourist attractions are looking forward to welcoming visitors back

The impact on tourism across the country has been huge, but what’s the situation for two of Scotland’s top tourist attractions that can be found in our district – the Falkirk Wheel and the Kelpies?

Maureen Campbell, CEO of Falkirk Community Trust which looks after The Helix and the Kelpies, said: “In the past four years, the park has welcomed over 4,500,000 visitors from across the globe.

“As we moved into spring, we were on track to welcome our five millionth visitor in around May time, and we were off to a great start following a strong March.

“However, in line with the rest of the Trust properties and response to government instructions to take precautions in the interest of public health to reduce the spread of Covid-19, we closed the visitor centre at the Helix Park along with the rest of the Trusts venues and services on March 18, 2020.

“To highlight the level of the impact this has had on the Helix alone, as a comparison from April to June 2019, there were 238,425 visitors across the park, the Trust had projected to see 200,000 over the same period this year.

“Based on previous years this would typically have been a 70/30 split between the UK and international visitors. Furthermore, with the excellent weather we have had over the Easter period, it would have been an excellent start to the season.”

She explained that all events up to the end of July have been cancelled and the trust is in the process of reviewing events until the end of the year.

Ms Campbell added: “While the visitor centre and catering units are closed for the time being, the Trust parks do remain open to allow locals to exercise while adhering to government guidance around social distancing and not for tourism.

“Through our social media channels, we have been receiving messages from all over the world with people letting us know they will be back once this crisis is over.

“Just as the local community and our customers are doing, we are also looking to the future as our great teams focus their attention on recovery planning and working with our stakeholders.”

While at the Falkirk Wheel, Catherine Topley, Scottish Canals chief executive, said: “As Scottish Canals generates a significant amount of its budget from The Falkirk Wheel, there has been an impact on Scottish Canals’ income since we observed government’s advice to lockdown on March 23.

“By adhering to official guidance we are doing our part to help prevent the spread of coronavirus, and with the help of Tapestry AV, The Falkirk Wheel has also played its part in thanking our key workers with a special video-mapping, even though the tourist attraction isn’t open to visitors at the moment.

“We are currently planning for an exit to lockdown so that The Falkirk Wheel is ready to re-open and welcome visitors when the Scottish Government advises that it is safe to do so.”