Tartan Week showcase in US

10,000 pipers will play on the streets of New York

A massive US marketing campaign to coincide with Tartan Week celebrations has been unveiled by Scottish tourist bosses.

Tourism organisation VisitScotland has launched a series of initiatives to capitalise on the annual celebration of Scottish heritage in the United States, which takes place next week.

One million readers of the New York Times and USA Today newspapers are to receive supplements this weekend promoting golf, cultural and genealogy breaks in Scotland.

The tourist body is also involved in two major Tartan Week events, Tunes of Glory, a mass pipe band parade in New York on 6 Apri and Distilled - Live Scotland in New York, a three-day celebration of contemporary Scottish culture.

VisitScotland will be urging Americans - particularly those with Scottish roots - to come home and get a flavour of the new Scotland

Peter Lederer
VisitScotland

VisitScotland chairman Peter Lederer, who will be in New York for Tartan Week, said: "This year sees the marriage of old and new Scotland in New York, with the breathtaking spectacle of 10,000 pipers in the Tunes of Glory Parade and Distilled, an aspiring showcase of contemporary Scottish culture.

"Few countries in the world can match Scotland's blend of cosmopolitan 21st century cities and the richness of our living cultural traditions, all situated in some of Europe's most beautiful scenery.

"VisitScotland will be urging Americans - particularly those with Scottish roots - to come home and get a flavour of the new Scotland."

The tourism organisation is tying in a number of marketing schemes with the celebrations, including an open top yellow tartan double decker bus which will tour New York and a showcase of the work of 21st century kilt maker Howie Nicholsby in Manhattan.