A Fraserburgh councillor has pledged to keep the pressure on VisitScotland bosses after they controversially moved their tourist information office out of the town centre.
The organisation sparked protests when it announced plans to shift the Broch office to the Museum of Scottish Lighthouses on the edge of town.
VisitScotland has said the move at the end of March has already seen a boost in visitor numbers. From March 31 to April 24, a total of 1,027 people visited the new site, compared with 281 the year before.
But local councillor Ian Tait, who campaigned against the move, said the office needs to return to the town centre to help local traders.
“I think VisitScotland and the SNP government minister for tourism have lost the plot,” he said. “They have supported a short-sighted, narrow minded approach without considering the greater good of the local economy.”
Mr Tait said the figures released by VisitScotland were misleading and unrepresentative, because they were recorded during the Easter break.
A VisitScotland spokeswoman said: “We appreciate this is only a small sample was helped by the Easter weekend falling during this period, but we are extremely hopeful of a continuation of this trend.”
She said the new location would be reviewed after the first year.