Fife strengthened its profile within Scotland’s visitor economy at VisitScotland Connect, held in Glasgow on 15th and 16th April 2026. As Scotland’s flagship business-to-business travel trade event, VisitScotland Connect plays a crucial role in attracting higher-value domestic and international visitors, supporting year-round tourism and encouraging longer, multi-destination stays that deliver economic benefits to communities across the country.
This year’s event brought together 291 tourism businesses, destination management organisations, local authorities and partners from across Scotland, alongside domestic and international tour operators, providing a major platform to generate new business opportunities and promote Scotland to global markets.
Fife Council Officers attended the event representing Welcome to Fife, delivering over 70 pre-arranged meetings with travel buyers across the two-day programme, promoting Fife as a high-quality year-round destination, building relationships to support future visits, longer stays and increased visitor spend.
They were joined by 20 Fife-based businesses, showcasing the breadth and quality of the area’s visitor offer, including hotels, whisky distilleries, agritourism experiences, guided tours and musical experiences, highlighting Fife’s distinctive mix of heritage, landscapes and high-quality visitor experiences.
Several businesses were supported to attend through Fife Council’s Economic Development team’s Trade Development Programme which supports businesses to participate in trade shows and exhibitions, helping them connect with new customers and access new markets beyond Scotland. Supported businesses included Capercaillie Escapes, Lindores - Stay, Bowbridge Alpacas, Glencarse Promotions, Serenity Scotland, Kingsbarns Distillery, The Dean Park Hotel and Rufflets Hotel.
Pamela Stevenson, Service Manager for Economic Development at Fife Council, said:
“Through our Trade Development Programme, we’re committed to helping Fife businesses take advantage of opportunities like VisitScotland Connect. It’s encouraging to see so many local companies engaging directly with international buyers, building relationships and raising their profile. For many, this is about taking that next step into new markets, and we want to make sure they have the support and confidence to do that successfully.
Jane Carswell Capercaillie Escapes
“The opportunity to connect with travel buyers from around the world at VisitScotland Connect this year was excellent. As a small business it felt like a really positive experience and there is nothing quite like getting to speak to people face to face to share our product. I also loved being able to connect with other Scottish businesses during the event. Thank you so much for the support from Fife.”
Hilary Roberts, Lead Officer for Tourism at Fife Council said:
“VisitScotland Connect is a vital opportunity to showcase the strength and diversity of Fife’s tourism offer to the travel trade. The level of engagement we have seen over the two days reflects growing interest in the region, and our commitment to provide training and support for our businesses to be able to compete in this market is really paying dividends. We look forward to seeing our visitor numbers grow sustainably as a result of this activity.”
This activity builds on the continued growth of Fife’s visitor economy, which welcomed an estimated 4.1 million tourism visits in 2024, generating around 6.9 million overnight stays across the region. This scale of activity highlights the important role of travel trade engagement in supporting longer stays, higher visitor spend and sustainable growth. Participation in VisitScotland Connect reinforces Fife’s commitment to growing the visitor economy through partnership working, targeted business support and strategic engagement with domestic and international markets.
VisitScotland Connect will return to Glasgow in April 2027, and businesses interested in being involved in future travel trade activity are encouraged to contact [email protected].
