Shetland screen tourism boost
Visitors to Shetland are twice as likely to be influenced by film, TV or literature, than the average visitor to Scotland, according to a new survey.
The Shetland Islands Visitor Survey finds that more than half (51%) of all leisure visitors to Shetland are inspired to visit by film, TV or literature featuring the islands.
This compares to almost one in five visitors to Scotland (19%) who are inspired to visit by screen tourism.
The hit BBC crime show, Shetland, returned for its ninth series in 2024 and is filmed across various locations on the islands, including Lerwick. Based on the books by Ann Cleeves, the TV series is broadcast around the world and Promote Shetland, the local destination marketing organisation, has created several self-guided tours of locations from the series for fans.
Two separate Islands Visitor Surveys 2024 were carried out in Shetland and Orkney*, commissioned by the respective islands councils, in partnership with VisitScotland.
The surveys – which don’t include cruise passengers – aim to identify visitor profiles, explore the visitor journey, evaluate their experience and determine the visitor volume and value.
VisitScotland’s own research revealed earlier this year how set-jetting – visitors choosing to visit the ‘set’ of their favourite Scotland-based film or TV show – is a rising consumer trend. Shetland is the most mentioned TV series by visitors outside of Outlander.
The Shetland survey reveals that more than half of visitors take in an iconic location from the Shetland TV series (52%).
Almost seven in 10 leisure visitors who took part in both the Shetland and Orkney Islands Visitor Surveys declared their trip to the islands as ‘one of the best holidays’ they had ever taken, giving their visit a nine or ten out of ten.
The number of annual visits to Shetland was almost 89,000 in 2024, with 173,037 visits to Orkney. The survey also revealed that total annual spend by visitors to Shetland was approximately £50.3 million in 2024 and £78 million in Orkney.
Chris Taylor, Destination Development Director for VisitScotland said: “It’s fantastic to see that our islands’ renowned offering and welcome are continuing to earn praise from visitors across the world. However, we know our tourism and events industry continues to face challenges.
“Tourism and events are among our islands’ most valuable sectors. Their success creates a ripple effect which powers a vibrant visitor economy. Visiting an island is something special. It is more than simply going on holiday; it is this cumulative impact which highlights why growing the visitor economy is so important - it is something that benefits us all.
“The added value tourism delivers can be felt right across our islands, in jobs, incomes and the services we all enjoy.
“It’s not surprising that so many visitors were inspired to visit these beautiful islands after seeing them on screen or in books - this is evidenced by the set-jetting trend we are seeing, where visitors are looking for guided tours and opportunities to immerse themselves in the places they see on screen.
“I am also delighted that visitors’ to both islands groups experiences such high satisfaction and that local people really added to their holiday experience.
“These surveys are a great piece of work that provide a good evidence-based platform on which to plan our sustainable tourism offer.”
For more information about the surveys, please visit: https://www.visitscotland.org/research-insights/regions/shetland and https://www.visitscotland.org/research-insights/regions/orkney
ENDS
*Visitor surveys have been carried out in Orkney and Shetland over a number of years - the most recent in 2017 and 2019. In Shetland, a total of 2,245 face-to-face interviews were conducted over the peak months of 2024 with visitors at key exit points from the islands (Sumburgh Airport and Holmsgarth Ferry Terminal). In Orkney, a total of 2,679 face-to-face interviews were conducted over the same time period in 2024 at key exit points from the islands (Kirkwall Airport and ferry terminals at Hatston, St Margaret’s Hope and Stromness). Follow up online surveys were also carried out to gather more detailed feedback from both islands.
For more information about our travel trends for 2025, please visit: https://www.visitscotland.org/news/2025/wellness-travel-trends
For more information about Scotland’s visitor survey, visit: https://www.visitscotland.org/news/2024/visitor-survey-2023