Date :
18/02/2015
Alan Jamieson has created an innovative motorbike sidecar business as an addition to his holiday cottages at Durhamhill Farm in Kircudbrightshire.
The tours for visitors to his farm, will be available to guests for a small fee who will get the chance to go in a Russian Ural Gear Up 745cc and a Triumph Bonneville T100r. The venues will offer short trips for children or bigger tours for intrepid adventurers; seeing many special places and lasting as many hours as requested, possibly with a picnic or fishing stop included.
Alan got his first motorbike with sidecar almost ten years ago and had been keen to get the business started. He said:
“Eight years ago I got a sidecar and I had the idea for tours a couple of years ago. It’s a really great way to give visitors a more memorable experience of their holiday”.
The addition of the sidecar business is expected to give a boost to tourism in the area and provide an alternative and exciting way to see some of the sights in Dumfries and Galloway.
A report from VisitScotland showed that in 2012, 57% of visitors who went to Dumfries and Galloway spent more than one night in the area and amongst those visitors the average stay was 4.65 days. Since 2012 this figure has gradually risen and is expected to rise even more this year.
Some of the top reasons reported for choosing Dumfries and Galloway as a holiday destination are the scenery/landscape, visiting a particular tourist attraction or visiting family and friends in the area.
With tourist numbers steadily increasing in Dumfries and Galloway it provides a great opportunity for businesses like Alan’s to start developing and expanding their existing business into other areas of tourism.
For tips on coming up with great ways to make your visitor experience as memorable as it can be, check out Tourism Intelligence Scotland’s 5 Steps to Destination Development to help unlock your business’s tourism potential.