Tourists throng Edinburgh’s Royal Mile during the festival.

VisitBritain figures show a 15% rise in flight bookings to Scottish airports in June and July.

More direct flights from North America and, say tourism chiefs, Highland warriors and Tartan Army have helped For the tourist industry, 2026 has been a rocky year, with war, EU border delays, climate and economic woes gnawing away at holiday plans.

But while much of Britain is feeling the loss of visitors from the Middle East and beyond, one part is thriving.

Scotland is reeling in ever more visitors, with strong annual growth and a 15% rise in flight bookings to Scottish airports in June and July, compared with a drop in bookings to London and the rest of England in recent months, according to VisitBritain figures.

With heatwaves gripping much of Europe, the hope of finding cooler climes farther north may have increased Scotland’s allure – although tourism chiefs say dashing Highland warriors and kilted football fans may have more to do with it.

Long-term plans to increase direct flights from North America have come to fruition in the last two years, bolstering the traditional US-led foreign tourist base.

A rise in visitors from continental Europe, possibly looking to escape the heat, has added to the mix.

And more Britons have chosen to holiday at home rather than face the border confusion and delays under the EU’s entry-exit system.

In Edinburgh, where August has long been the busiest time of the year, Princes Street was this week particularly teeming with tourists, gathered around bagpipers and being targeted with leaflets by cheery fringe promoters.

The Gilded Balloon, one of the main venues during the Edinburgh fringe.

“Edinburgh is jumping, which is great.

And that’s a massive draw for international visitors,” he said.

Not all were here for the world’s biggest arts festival: Zanet Garcia, from Mexico City and on her second day in the country, had no idea it was on.

“I was really confused by it all.

I had never heard of the fringe and I didn’t know what it was,” she said with a laugh.

“But everyone has been so friendly.” Garcia chose Scotland because of her interest in Scottish mythology, sparked by books and TV shows that were huge UK exports, such as Harry Potter and Outlander, and had visited locations connected with them.

She was taking in traditional national attractions too, fresh from the Johnnie Walker Experience – “I don’t even drink whisky” – and with tickets to the military tattoo.

An earlier visitor to the Johnnie Walker Experience in Edinburgh, the Tory leader, Kemi Badenoch.

But it is the big-spending foreigners who are more likely to stay longer, chalk up the visitor attractions and pack in the experiences.

An average overseas visitor to Scotland spent just over £900 in a week in 2024, compared with just over £300 in three nights for a British holidaymaker.

According to data from the Moffat Centre for travel and tourism at Glasgow Caledonian University the biggest jump this year has been in visitors touring by campervan rather than staying in hotels.

Numbers are up but spending per head is down, Crothall said, describing the overall picture as “healthy but by no means booming”.

The holidaying Briton is more likely, he said, to be pursuing free visits to museums and walking in the countryside, with the cost of living still a big issue.

“Instead of the three course meal, it’s the one.

The 5% VAT and free travel helps, but it’s not magic,” Crothall said.

A scene from an earlier series of the TV show Outlander has helped spark an interest in Scottish mythology among visitors.

Movie Channel/Courtesy Although Scotland has suffered its own heatwaves, and devastating wildfires in the Cairngorms, it remains cooler than the southern UK.

“We hope and suspect that we’ll see more European visitors given the climate conditions,” Crothall added.

Conclusive data linking the heat to changing tourism habits is not yet available, said Vicki Miller, the chief executive of VisitScotland.

“But certainly we’ve seen this year strong demand from Europe including Spain and Italy, which is potentially the climate impact,” she added.

What the research does show, however, is just how many visits, such as Garcia’s, were inspired by the screen.

Online searches spiked on the back of reality TV hit The Traitors, although Ardross Castle – the main location for the UK and US versions of the show – is not open to visit.

Castles that have featured in Outlander – a long-running hit in the US and parts of Europe – have also become big draws. skip past newsletter promotion after newsletter promotion Ardross Castle, where The Traitors is filmed, is not open to visitors, but castles that have featured in Outlander have been big draws.

“And people’s memories are long: they remember Braveheart or Local Hero as well.” Sport has also pulled in visitors, from this year’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow to big golf tournaments, along with the reflected glory from travelling Scottish football fans.

Interest from Germany increased after it hosted Euro 2024, when the Tartan Army were voted the best supporters at the football tournament: a mixture of “friendliness, banter, and donations to local charities – they capture hearts, they’ve been fantastic ambassadors”, Miller said.

Scotland fans cheer in the stands before their team’s World Cup match against Morocco at Boston stadium in June.

While Scotland hopes to reap the fruits of a long-term strategic approach, including more direct flights – 100,000 more seats annually from the US alone – and promoting visits in all seasons, many are still feeling the pinch from reduced spending.

On the streets of the Scottish capital, Dexter, working at Edinburgh Bus Tours, was rueful.

“I’ve been here seven years and the crowd is going down.

Tips have gone, big time.

I used to be able to go on vacation just on my tips, now that’s not the case,” said the tour guide, who is originally from Nevada, US.

He said the tourist tax – a 5% levy introduced in July on accommodation in Edinburgh – “has hurt”, on top of the cost of living: “People have got no money.” Leon Thompson, the executive director of the trade body UKHospitality Scotland, concurred.

“People are in their cost of living crisis and that is a challenge,” he said.

Thompson added that companies were feeling the impact of business rates, national insurance contributions and VAT, and were anxiously awaiting tourist levies to be introduced by other Scottish local authorities after Edinburgh.

“Scotland will always be a popular destination, but we can’t be complacent.

We can’t allow ourselves to be priced out of what is the global visitor market,” he said.

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