Tour of Britain In Castle Douglas Brings £250,000 To Region

The Tour of Britain stage finish in Castle Douglas created an economic impact of nearly £250,000 for the regional economy, an official report has concluded.

The UK’s blue riband cycling race blazed into the Food Town under perfect blue skies to meet an expectant crowd of 10,000 people on the first Sunday in September. German sprinter Andrei Greipel raced clear in King Street to bring Stage One to a thrilling conclusion, and set up a fantastic week of cycling.

The formal economic impact assessment report into the event in Scotland, commissioned by national events agency EventScotland, has reported that the Tour created an additional, net £241,277 for the local economy. The net financial value of the event excludes the media and web-based profile the Tour of Britain generated, which was considerable and widespread. The economic report also highlighted that 28% of spectators came to Dumfries and Galloway from out with Scotland.

One hundred and twenty cyclists participated in the 2016 Tour, representing 20 professional cycling teams, The Glasgow to Castle Douglas Stage was covered live on ITV4 and extensive highlights were also broadcast on the evening of the race. Syndicated race coverage was sold to more than 115 countries worldwide.

Dumfries and Galloway Council were part of the partnership to deliver the event, which also included the Tour of Britain, EventScotland, Scottish Cycling and the Castle Douglas Development Forum. Our Council coordinated the local management and delivery of the event.

Councillor Colin Smyth, Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Events Champion said;

“The Council’s investment in major events does create a fantastic return on our funding for our communities and business base. The Tour of Britain lived up to all expectations and 10,000 people enjoyed a great day out in Castle Douglas last September. As a Council we were able to promote the region as an attractive cycling destination and our efforts with other partner agencies paid off with the large numbers of visitors we enticed to Dumfries and Galloway to take in the Tour.”

Paul Bush OBE, Director of Events at VisitScotland said:

“It is great to see the region has reaped the benefits of hosting a stage finish of the 2016 Tour of Britain. Dumfries and Galloway Council really took the opportunity to showcase their region to the widespread national and international TV audience as well as work with local producers and suppliers to ensure a fantastic atmosphere for spectators at Castle Douglas.

“EventScotland is proud to have supported Dumfries and Galloway Council to promote their region as part of The Tour and show why Scotland is the perfect stage for events.”