Local Coach Operator Selected to Assist with Expansion

The Enchanted Forest, Perthshire’s multi-award winning sound and light show, has awarded a contract to Perthshire based Earnside Coaches to bolster the transportation needs of the 55,000 visitors expected to visit the forest this Autumn.

The existing transport contract, which will continue to be led by Pitlochry firm Yules Coaches, was literally using all the available buses in the fleet, prompting organisers to look further afield to assist with the needs created by an extension of dates and to ease the flow of visitors to the event from 1st October – 1st November.

David Rutherford from Earnside Coaches commented:

“As a local business, we’re delighted to be working with The Enchanted Forest this year, and look forward to taking their visitors to and from the forest. It’s one of the country’s major events and we’re proud to have been selected as one of their transport partners, proof that collaborating with local businesses is great for the local economy.”

55,000 tickets went on sale to the general public in June this year and box office performance is already strong, showing an increase in sales on the previous year. The extended event run is expected to be worth more than £500,000 additional income to the local economy, boosting tourism trade in what has traditionally come to be known as the “shoulder season”.

Graham, chairman of The Enchanted Forest Community Trust commented:

“We’re delighted to be able to award the contract to a local business, an approach which is very much part of our operational ethos, and we are confident that Yules and Earnside Coaches working together will enhance our, already excellent, shuttle service operations for our thousands of visitors.”

The 2015 show, FLUX takes place from Thursday 1st October – Sunday 1st November at Faskally Wood near Pitlochry. Tickets are available online at www.enchantedforest.org.uk

The Enchanted Forest, Perthshire’s multi-award winning sound and light show, has called on the public to fully engage with the public exhibitions taking place this week concerning the A9 Dualling project.

Announcing its clear preference for the proposed routes currently termed “2a” and “2b”, event organisers fear that selection of the wrong option, currently termed “1”, would have a significant impact on the future of the show and on Pitlochry’s economy.

Their call for engagement comes following two days of consultation and exhibition of the proposed scheme options with the local community earlier in July, which is set to be repeated again this week.

With more than 55,000 tickets on sale for this year’s event, VisitScotland’s reigning Scottish Thistle Awards Winner for Scotland’s Best Event has confirmed that ticket sales are already up 99% on the same period last year. More than half of the visitors who attend the show stay over in the area, contributing an estimated £2 million to the local economy. The event is run by The Enchanted Forest Community Trust who, this year, contributed proceeds from the previous years’ show to 23 local projects and individuals.

A spokesperson for the Trust commented:

“Following a full and frank one to one consultation with Jacobs, as well as attendance at the public exhibition to further review and thoroughly assess the options, it is our considered view that routes 2a and 2b offer the right solution for the area and for the future of the event.

“The alternative route will have a significant impact on Faskally Wood and would, therefore, impact negatively on the event, forcing us to significantly review our ability to operate in that location.

“We fully appreciate openness of this process and firmly welcome the intention to dual the A9. We also know that there may be many different feelings about the options available. We wanted to ensure that everyone knew and understood our position, as well as its potential impact on the Autumn economy of Highland Perthshire and we’re very much encouraging people to attend, get engaged and to take part in the consultation – it’s vitally important that local voices are heard.”

“Faskally Wood attracts around 60,000 visitors every year. In 2015 The Enchanted Forest expects to add a further 55,000 visitors to that number, in effect doubling the visitor numbers. The event garners a strong national and international profile, putting Pitlochry firmly on the map as a key destination. We will be strongly advocating that these factors are fully taken into account when selecting the right route for the town, the area and for the regular users of the A9.”

The Enchanted Forest takes place from Thursday 1st October – Sunday 1st November at Faskally Wood near Pitlochry. For more information visit

The Enchanted Forest, Perthshire’s multi-award winning sound and light show, has announced that over 55,000 tickets are set to go on sale to the general public on Friday 12th June. After smashing box office records for the event in 2014, The Enchanted Forest has extended its run from 23 nights to 32 nights this year, opening up thousands of additional tickets, including a dedicated charity night on Thursday 1st October, to meet the increasing demand.

The extended run is expected to be worth more than £500,000 additional income to the local economy, boosting tourism trade in what has traditionally come to be known as the “shoulder season”.

Confirming the title of this year’s show will be FLUX, Graham Brown, chairman of The Enchanted Forest Community Trust that runs The Enchanted Forest, commented:

“We are delighted that we have been able to extend our run this year to accommodate growing demand to attend the event and to continue to expand this popular spectacle for visitors to the area.

“We are also delighted to be including a dedicated charity event on Thursday 1st October, which will see three charities benefit this year: PKAVS, Scottish Autism and CHAS. As a charitable trust we are in a strong position to give back to the local community and we have selected three charities that are very active in this area. It is marvellous to be able to assist PKAVS, Scottish Autism and CHAS in their important fundraising efforts and we hope that they will benefit greatly from this unique fundraising opportunity.”

Tickets were made available on pre-sale to previous customers in May and sales are already up over 80% on the previous year, prompting organisers to advise customers that they should buy in advance or risk disappointment.

Graham added:

“Even though we have made thousands of extra tickets available by extending by one week, we are already experience strong demand for shows across the run with some show times already sold out before we’ve gone on public sale. The message is very clear: if you have a date and time in mind, don’t leave it to the last minute to book.”

Tricia Fox, marketing manager of The Enchanted Forest commented:

“As a community based event, we are very committed to giving something back and all three charities do exceptionally important work to support families and children across Scotland. Every year we get very positive feedback from customers whose children are affected by autism, and the profound impact the show has on them. For other families who are facing challenges, such as those supported by CHAS and PKAVS. The show offers an opportunity to enjoy time together and a break from their normal routine. We are proud to be giving Scottish Autism, PKAVS and CHAS a helping hand.”

Claire Macdonald, Marketing & Fundraising Assistant at PKAVS commented:

“We are delighted to be part of this renowned experience and are pleased that funds raised from the evening will be invested back into our local communities through our work at PKAVS. We look forward to bringing along some of our service users and supporters to experience the magic of The Enchanted Forest on the night too.”

Karen Wilson, fundraising manager for Scottish Autism commented:

“We are delighted to be selected as one of the charities to benefit from this event for a second year running. This is a fantastic opportunity to raise the profile of our services which support people with autism and their families throughout Scotland. We are also looking forward to bringing along some of our service users to enjoy the experience on the night.”

Alison Rennie, CHAS Fundraiser commented:

“We’re very excited to have been chosen for the second year as one of the charities to benefit from The Enchanted Forest’s charity evening, which was very popular last year. Once again it promises to be a magical event and all the funds received by CHAS will help us to continue to provide vital support to babies, children and young people with life-shortening conditions.”

The 2015 show, FLUX, sees the return of the creative team that put together the multi-award winning 2013 and 2014 shows, with lighting design by Kate Bonney and Simon Hayes, sound design and composition by RJ McConnell and Jon Beales. As in previous years, they will be led by creative director and producer, Derek Allan, of Allan Associates.

The Enchanted Forest takes place from Thursday 1st October – Sunday 1st November at Faskally Wood near Pitlochry. Tickets will be available from 10am on Friday 12th June at www.enchantedforest.org.uk

Tickets for the Charity Night on Thursday 1st October will also be available to book on 12th June by visiting www.enchantedforest.org.uk/charity

After smashing all box office records for the event in 2014, the multi-award winning sound and light show The Enchanted Forest has announced it will extend run from 23 nights to 30 nights this year, opening up an additional 5000 tickets to meet the increasing demand.

This year’s show will launch to the public on October 2nd and will run every night until November 1st, now embracing both the Scottish and English half term breaks during the course of the show.

Organisers, The Enchanted Forest Community Trust, are predicting a sell-out show again and are aiming to see a record 50,000 attendees visit the event at Faskally Wood, near Pitlochry. Attracting visitors from all over the world to Highland Perthshire, The Enchanted Forest is now firmly recognised as a major driver of tourism for Scotland in the Autumn and it is expected that the additional dates will have a further positive impact on the local community and its growing economy.

This extension of dates comes after another triumphant year in 2014 for The Enchanted Forest with 46,000 tickets sold during the three week run of its show, elemental, last October. The event has grown every year since its launch in 2002 to become one of Scotland’s most popular and exciting outdoor events, recently winning Best Cultural Event at the Scottish Event Awards in 2014. Next week it will go head to head with some of the country’s other major events for the coveted VisitScotland Thistle Award for Best Event.

Derek Allan, producer of The Enchanted Forest, commented:

“The success of The Enchanted Forest is down to the tremendous team involved in producing the event and that fact that so many people from all over the world travel to Pitlochry every year to experience our sound and light show. Our audience numbers have consistently increased and our shows have gone from strength to strength to reflect that. We are delighted to be able to extend the event by an additional week and accommodate the demand from the market for tickets. We would still recommend, however, that customers wishing to attend on specific nights or at specific times book early to avoid disappointment.”

Tickets for this year’s show will go on sale in June. To received notifications about ticket sales or for any further information visit www.enchantedforest.org.uk

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For further information contact Tricia Fox on 01738 658187 or mobile 07989 955039

The Enchanted Forest, Perthshire’s multi-award winning sound and light show, has released its visitor numbers for its 2014 show which closed to the public on Sunday night, confirming it attracted just over 46,500 visitors to the Highland Perthshire area over a 24 night run.

The 2014 show, elemental, saw the return of the creative team that put together last year’s successful award winning show, with lighting design by Kate Bonney and Simon Hayes, sound design and composition by RJ McConnell and Jon Beales. Led by Show Producer Derek Allan, their combined creative vision is being lauded as the critical success of an event that has been crowned Scotland’s Best Cultural Event no less than three times in the last four years.

This latest announcement confirms The Enchanted Forest has broken all previous box office records, and demonstrated a surge in visitor numbers of over 16% on the previous year. It is predicted that the event’s impact on the local tourism economy is now in the region of £2million per annum with almost 50% of all visitors to the event choosing to stay overnight in the area on their visit and a staggering 90% citing the event as their main reason for visiting the area this Autumn.

Graham Brown, chairman of the Highland Perthshire Community Interest Company that runs The Enchanted Forest, commented:

“This is a tremendous success for Highland Perthshire tourism businesses and we are encouraged by the continued support of our visitors, many of them loyal visitors who return to the Forest year after year. It is a testimony to the hard work put in by the community that our visitors number continue to grow year on year, and that our show continues to go from strength to strength.

Beneficiaries of The Enchanted Forest’s growth are not just exclusive to local businesses, but also include two national charities that will collect a windfall of £5000 as a result of organisers’ decision to open up an additional show night specifically for their benefit. Children’s Hospice Association Scotland (CHAS) and Autism Scotland will now share the proceeds from that night between them.

Graham Brown commented:

“The Community Interest Company was this year, for the first time, in a strong position to give back to the local community and in addition we selected two charities that are very active in this area. We are delighted to have been able to assist Scottish Autism and CHAS and hope that they will benefit greatly from the funds raised by visitors to the show on 2nd October.”

Karen Wilson, fundraising manager for Scottish Autism and Alison Rennie, CHAS Fundraiser issued their thanks to the Community Interest Company:

“We were delighted to be selected as the two charities to benefit from this event. This was a fantastic opportunity to raise the profile of our services which support people with autism and their families throughout Scotland and we’re thrilled to accept these funds which will be put to very good use in both charities.”

The Enchanted Forest will return in October 2015 and organisers have already opened up a subscription list for people who might have missed out on tickets this year to enable them to get advance notice of tickets going on sale in 2015. More information on how to sign up is available on www.enchantedforest.org.uk

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For further information contact Tricia Fox on 01738 658187 or mobile 07989 955039

An image captured by a visitor to The Enchanted Forest has proved a massive hit online, illuminating social media screens across the planet. The superlative snap has shot into the top 100 most viewed photos on photo sharing site Flickr which has almost 1 million uploads every day, clocking up a staggering 30,000 views in just 48 hours.
The magical photograph was taken by Paul Young, an accountant and amateur photographer from Ayr, who has been a regular visitor to the Forest with his fiancée, Jennifer, and has enjoyed capturing the event on his camera over the years.
Paul said:
“This photo is likely to become the most viewed I’ve ever posted. Coincidentally, a photo I took at The Enchanted forest two years ago also did pretty well with just over 15,000 views. I’ve had some great comments and feedback about the photo. It worked so well because of the range of vibrant colours, beautiful surroundings and, luckily for my fiancée and me, a lovely still evening. The placement of the moon really helped finish off the image!”
This year’s Enchanted Forest looks set to smash all previous box office records with over 45,000 visitors expected to enjoy Scotland’s premier sound and light show by the end of its current run in Faskally Wood, Pitlochry. Paul isn’t the only visitor to capture the magic of the Forest with many other visitors using social media to share their photos of the enthralling show.
Derek Allan, Producer of The Enchanted Forest commented:
“Visitors to The Enchanted Forest are greeted with a visual feast of colours and light as well as music that, when combined together, create an extra special experience. It is fantastic to see the incredible photos that visitors are taking and hats-off to Paul – he has captured the spirit of The Enchanted Forest with this atmospheric snap.”
Paul continued:
“As well as being a keen photographer, Jennifer and I love to travel. She is very patient as she spends a lot of time following me and my tripod around. We get married in Italy next year, and that’s one event I am not allowed to take my camera to!”
For more information about The Enchanted Forest visit www.enchantedforest.org.uk. The event runs until Sunday 26th October, 2014. Tickets are selling rapidly, so book now to avoid disappointment.