Dundee Planning an even warmer welcome to tourists this summer

The future’s so bright for Dundee that it’s time to wear shades! Arrivals at Dundee Airport today witnessed the launch of an imaginative seasonal tourism drive, highlighting the city’s unique position as Sunny Dundee.

It’s a little-known fact that Dundee is the only Scottish south-facing city, regularly clocking up more hours of sunshine than any other in Scotland.

A record number of visitors are expected to travel to Dundee this summer via rail, road, sea and air to enjoy a packed calendar of sporting events, outdoor concerts, cultural exhibitions, degree shows, and parades in the lead-up to the opening of Scotland’s design museum, V&A Dundee, on Saturday, September 15.

The Sunny Dundee campaign delivered by Dundee - One City, Many Discoveries will see thousands of pairs of #SunnyDundee branded sunglasses given to visitors, locals, and businesses, with an invitation to explore Scotland’s sunniest city and share their photographs using the #SunnyDundee hashtag on social media.

“This is a hugely exciting time for Dundee,” says Leader of Dundee City Council, John Alexander. “It might be Scotland’s sunniest city, but according to the world’s media Dundee is definitely one of the coolest places to be in 2018. The Wall Street Journal, Conde Nast Traveller, CNN, and Bloomberg are just some of the global names recommending a visit to Dundee this year.“Sunny Dundee is a great slogan to celebrate the city during such a significant year and will help promote the city’s position as Scotland’s ray of sunshine!”

The sunshine-yellow sunglasses will be available from locations across the city, including The McManus Dundee’s Art Gallery and Museum, Dundee Contemporary Arts, the VisitScotland information centre in City Square and Dundee Airport.

Although the sunglasses are free to collect, the campaign is hoping to support local charity, the cancer care centre Maggie’s Dundee, by asking people to donate £1.00 per pair, in turn making things a little brighter for those using the centre.

Businesses and organisations across the city including Abertay University, University of Dundee, DC Thomson, UNESCO City of Design, Dundee Contemporary Arts, Dundee and Angus Chamber of Commerce and Forth Ports have already signed up to participate in #SunnyDundee by ordering their own supplies of sunglasses for a variety of summer-themed events and activities.

Derrick Lang, Dundee Airport Manager said

‘“Dundee is a vibrant city and we are excited to be a part of helping to bring visitors to the area. We hope #SunnyDundee will help showcase all of what the city has to offer. With the predicted record number of visitors and a packed calendar of events, I’m sure it’s going to be a summer to remember.”

Abertay University Principal Nigel Seaton said:

“Dundee is a fantastic place, both to visit and to study, and our students make a huge contribution to the cultural, industrial and digital life of the city. With all that’s happening in 2018, there’s never been a better time to experience what this sunny, friendly and aspirational student city has to offer.”

Sinclair Aitken, Chair of Leisure & Culture Dundee said:

"Alongside other attractions in Dundee we can't wait for tourists to arrive at our venues this summer. Although we can't guarantee the weather, we can be sure that they will experience a wonderful warm and Sunny Dundee welcome to our fantastic city."

A spokesperson for the One City, Many Discoveries campaign said:

“Dundee regularly experiences more hours of recorded sunshine than any other Scottish city and is rated highly by visitors for our warm and friendly welcomes. This is an accessible and fun way to celebrate being in Dundee in 2018, as well as generating real-time photos of Dundee that could potentially be shared across the world.”

A new video featuring a couple arriving at Dundee Airport wearing #SunnyDundee sunglasses and exploring the city’s visitor attractions, restaurants and open spaces has been released to support the campaign.

https://youtu.be/U5XpN1n5XjM