Miles Briggs, Lothian Tory MSP, is congratulating the National Museum of Scotland on being named as Scotland’s most popular visitor attraction of 2016. Figures from the Association of Scottish Visitor Attractions (ASVA) show that, in total, 1.81 million people visited the Edinburgh museum in 2016, an increase of 15.5% on 2015 and a statistic that topples Edinburgh Castle from its position as Scotland's most visited attraction. Visitors numbers for the castle continue to go from strength to strength though with a total of 1.77 million people visited the Castle this year, up 13.4% on 2015.
To mark the success of Scotland's National Museum, Miles has tabled a congratulatory motion in Parliament on the subject today.
Commenting this morning Miles said:
“I congratulate the National Museum of Scotland on welcoming so many people through its doors in 2016. The National Museum is a world class collection which offers something for all age groups and the recent investment in the site and creation of new galleries has clearly been a success.
“More generally, 2016 saw the National Museums of Scotland attract their highest-ever visitor numbers across all their sites with nearly 2.7 million visits.
“I pay tribute to all those working in the museums sector and in iconic attractions like Edinburgh Castle for the hard work they undertake each and every day to provide visitors with such a good experience.”
To read the full text of Miles' motion, please see below.
Motion Number: S5M-04297
Lodged By: Miles Briggs
Date Lodged: 28/02/2017
Title: National Museum of Scotland is Most Popular Visitor Attraction
Motion Text:
That the Parliament congratulates the National Museum of Scotland, which is based in Edinburgh, on being named as the most popular visitor attraction in Scotland in 2016; notes that figures from the Association of Scottish Visitor Attractions show that, in total, 1.81 million people visited the Edinburgh museum in 2016, an increase of 15.5% on 2015; considers that the recent investment in the museum and opening of new galleries has helped attract more visitors; notes that in 2016 1.77 million people visited Edinburgh Castle, up 13.4% on 2015, and that 11 of Scotland’s top 20 most popular attractions are based in Scotland’s capital; pays tribute to all those working in the tourism sector in Edinburgh, Lothian and across Scotland for the service that they provide, and urges local residents and visitors alike to continue to enjoy the world-class cultural and tourism sites that Edinburgh and Scotland have to offer.
