Out of touch

Mr Steven’s comments on my letter, as reported by Shetland News (Tour guide wants action on St Ninina’s chapel site; SN, 15/09/15), in which I highlighted my visitor feedback on St Ninian’s Isle shows just how out of touch Promote Shetland is with visitor experience.

He seems to think that so-called ‘social media’ contact is a much more reliable way of assessing tourism feedback than actually speaking to tourists.

Shetland Geotours has been taking tourists to Ninian’s Isle twice weekly every summer for the last ten years. This year alone I have taken 200 visitors to St Ninian’s Isle.

Visitors, especially those from abroad, are more likely to comment to their tour guides on the day rather than search out Promote Shetland’s online presence. In fact I doubt if few, if any, of my visitors have even heard of Promote Shetland.

These visitors take photos and their comments home with them, where word of mouth of their actual experiences here is much more valuable to promoting Shetland’s image than ‘social media’ and online gimmicks.

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Not once in ten years has Shetland Geotours been asked by Promote Shetland for visitor feedback (or about anything else to do with tourism).

I am fed up at the end of yet another year having to apologise to visitors for the state of what should be regarded as valuable tourism asset.

Shetland seems happy to spend hundreds of thousands of public money promoting online gimmicks but can’t spend tens of pounds to cut down a few nettles or tow a wreck of a beach.

Allen Fraser
Shetland Geotours
Meal
Hamnavoe
Burra