Realising the True Impact, which looked at the effect of museums and galleries on Scottish tourism, found that more people visit museums than any other type of tourist attraction.
The report, commissioned by the Scottish Museums Council (SMC), also found that visiting museums and heritage sites are among the top three activities undertaken by tourists.
More than 70 per cent of inbound visitors expressed an interest in Scotland's heritage and culture, and the report calls for recognition of the fact that museums play a central role in attracting visitors to Scotland.
Joanne Orr, the director of the SMC, told Museums Journal: 'We commissioned the report to find out how big a part of the tourism industry mus-eums and galleries are. [Without them], there would be a massive hole in the tourism product.'
She said the Scottish Executive couldn't afford to ignore the report and that museums and galleries would have to comprise a major part of its national tourism strategy, which is currently being drafted.
One of the problems highlighted in the report is that some museums have little or no marketing budget. Susan Jeffrey, the museum manager for Renfrewshire Council, said that although museums are integrated into the council's tourism strategy, they have no marketing budget at all for the three museums in the service.
'It means we have to choose whether to spend money on marketing or collections management,' she said.
Jeffrey added that she would like to develop a dedicated website to promote the museum service to external visitors. 'Currently the museum site is within the local authority website, which is geared to local users.'
David Adams McGilp, the chairman of the Highlands and Islands Museums Forum, said that most small independent museums have 'no such thing as a marketing budget'.
He added that the first step was for small independents to be able to come out of their sustainability crisis. 'I don't care where the money comes from, but the Scottish Executive has got a responsibility to museums and it's time it faced up to it.'
The report was compiled by the Moffat Centre for Travel and Tourism Business Development. A full copy of the report can be downloaded at www.scottishmuseums.org.uk
Sharon Heal
The report, commissioned by the Scottish Museums Council (SMC), also found that visiting museums and heritage sites are among the top three activities undertaken by tourists.
More than 70 per cent of inbound visitors expressed an interest in Scotland's heritage and culture, and the report calls for recognition of the fact that museums play a central role in attracting visitors to Scotland.
Joanne Orr, the director of the SMC, told Museums Journal: 'We commissioned the report to find out how big a part of the tourism industry mus-eums and galleries are. [Without them], there would be a massive hole in the tourism product.'
She said the Scottish Executive couldn't afford to ignore the report and that museums and galleries would have to comprise a major part of its national tourism strategy, which is currently being drafted.
One of the problems highlighted in the report is that some museums have little or no marketing budget. Susan Jeffrey, the museum manager for Renfrewshire Council, said that although museums are integrated into the council's tourism strategy, they have no marketing budget at all for the three museums in the service.
'It means we have to choose whether to spend money on marketing or collections management,' she said.
Jeffrey added that she would like to develop a dedicated website to promote the museum service to external visitors. 'Currently the museum site is within the local authority website, which is geared to local users.'
David Adams McGilp, the chairman of the Highlands and Islands Museums Forum, said that most small independent museums have 'no such thing as a marketing budget'.
He added that the first step was for small independents to be able to come out of their sustainability crisis. 'I don't care where the money comes from, but the Scottish Executive has got a responsibility to museums and it's time it faced up to it.'
The report was compiled by the Moffat Centre for Travel and Tourism Business Development. A full copy of the report can be downloaded at www.scottishmuseums.org.uk
Sharon Heal