Nationalist councillor have claimed the north is missing out on a “goldmine” – because its lifeblood visitor attractions are shutting up shop early.
And SNP members of the local authority are now aiming to start a revolution and change the way some of the region’s biggest draws do business.
They will issue a rallying call to fellow elected members at a meeting of the full Highland Council in Inverness this week.
Attractions such as Cawdor Castle near Nairn and Glenmorangie distillery at Tain are among those identified on a list compiled by the Nationalists’ group leader Maxine Smith and Ken Gowans, the group’s leisure and culture spokesman.
In a motion to colleagues, they say “tourism is one of the main economic drivers in the Highlands and yet most visitor attractions do not open beyond 5pm”.
Compared with Edinburgh, Glasgow and London, they say “the Highlands is not moving forward with the trend to offer tourists what they want, which is the freedom to visit attractions in the evening”.
Both councillors have urged the sector to “move with the times, if we want to continue attracting an increasing number of visitors to our region”.
Councillor Smith said last night: “If you try to get into a distillery, a castle or any of the iconic things that the Highlands of Scotland are known for, you can’t after 5pm.
“The trigger to this was that my son, who works in Azerbaijan, said they’d got a crew that were coming over and were working on an oil rig in Invergordon and working shifts that didn’t end until 7pm, and asked if I could help find them a tour around a castle or a distillery and we couldn’t do it.
“It must be really frustrating for visitors if the only evening choices are restaurants and bars before returning to their hotel rooms.”
Both councillors are urging tourism agency VisitScotland, development agency Highlands and Islands Enterprise, the council’s leisure wing High Life Highland and others to arrange a summit to decide how best to encourage businesses to extend their opening hours.
This would mean attractions across the north opening up to the public during evenings, weekends and peak local holiday periods throughout the year.
A spokesman for VisitScotland, said: “The Highlands has many world class attractions that thousands of visitors from all over the world flock to see every year.
“From castles to distilleries, museums to monuments, there is no shortage of things to see and do across the region.
“We welcome industry partners in the Highlands exploring new ways of working, potentially offering even more people the opportunity to enjoy the abundance of attractions on offer in the region.
“However, any decision on an extension in opening hours would have to involve a full consultation with communities and partners to ensure the activity was in the best interest of all those concerned.”
A spokesman for HIE said: “We would be happy to take part in these discussions.”
Highlands and Islands Labour MSP Rhoda Grant cautiously welcomed the motion.
She said: “You cannot expect businesses to go out on a limb. It has to be done collectively and does need leadership, so calling for a seminar between these agencies to do that is a good idea.
“But there has to be the market to ensure it will be cost-effective because the last thing we want is to threaten Highland businesses.”
