03 May 2019
Scots heritage sites start to benefit from National Trust visitor experience investment
BY Andy Knaggs
Brodick Castle on the Isle of Arran is reopening this weekend ‒ the first of a series of major investments in Scotland's heritage by National Trust for Scotland to come to fruition.
The conservation charity has ploughed £13m (US$17m, €15.2m) into improving visitor experience and conditions at a number of locations that are due to be unveiled this summer. This is part of a £57m (US$74.5m, €66.68m) five-year plan of investment.
Brodick Castle, which dates back centuries, although its present building was constructed in 1844, was the ancient seat of the Dukes of Hamilton.
A family fun event from 4 to 6 May will see the launch of a new interactive exhibition and visitor experience that focuses on the lives of the Hamiltons in Victorian times and the activities they enjoyed, including working recreations of "penny arcade" games. There are formal gardens with ponds, waterfalls and woodland trails, and an "Isle Be Wild" adventure play area for kids.
Further locations soon to reopen include a revamped visitor centre at Glencoe, a new restaurant and visitor centre at Inverewe Garden in Wester Ross, and Hill House Box, which is designed to protect the Charles Rennie Mackintosh-designed house (considered a masterpiece) in Helensburgh.
Simon Skinner, chief executive of National Trust for Scotland, said the programme of improvement was the most ambitious the Trust had ever undertaken: "New facilities and innovative exhibitions are being put in place to help tell Scotland's stories, bring our properties to life and give visitors reasons to come back again and again.
"Brodick Castle shows this new approach. Simply stated, we've transformed the traditional castle experience into a fun and fully immersive day out for the whole family."
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