The Enchanted Forest, Perthshire’s multi-award-winning sound and light show in the woods, is back for its 15th year – with an event that’s set to wow visitors and also benefit local charities.

The state-of-the-art show, which runs throughout October, attracted a record 62,000 visitors last year and smashed box office records. This year, more than 65,000 tickets are going on sale, which will open to the general public at 10am on Friday 17th June. Organisers Perthshire Big Tree Country are advising customers to book early to avoid disappointment.

The 2016 show, which has been revealed as SHIMMER, will use dazzling visuals and an original music score, and runs from Thursday 29th September to Friday 30th October at Faskally Wood near Pitlochry. This year’s event will also see the return of the multi-award-winning creative team of Kate Bonney and Simon Hayes as lighting designers, and RJ McConnell and Jon Beales providing sound design and composition.

The Enchanted Forest, which last year extended its season due to popular demand, brings in an estimated £2 million to the local economy. It was recently awarded the coveted Scottish Rural Award for Tourism & Hospitality 2016, beating off stiff competition from more than 50 of Scotland’s top tourism businesses.

Proceeds from a dedicated charity night on Thursday September 29th will benefit the following three organisations: Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance; Kidney Kids Scotland; and British Heart Foundation Scotland.

Ian Sim, acting chairman of The Enchanted Forest, said:

“Every year our show lights up the countryside of Perthshire and boosts our tourist trade. The show we have planned for this year is remarkable and will prove to be a must-see for visitors. As a charitable trust, we are delighted to be able to direct proceeds from a special preview show on Thursday 29th September towards three highly important charities in Scotland. As the show goes from strength to strength, so our charitable net widens, which is extremely heartening.”

“As a community-based event, we are committed to not only giving the community an exceptional place to visit every Autumn, but also to giving back. Our three charities have been chosen because of the important work they do across Scotland, and we’re proud to name Kidney Kids Scotland, British Heart Foundation Scotland and Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance as this year’s beneficiaries. We also can’t wait to share all the dazzling new visuals and music we have up our sleeves.”

Kidney Kids Scotland Manager Sheena Dunsmore said:

“Kidney Kids Scotland are thrilled to be chosen as one of the charities to benefit from The Enchanted Forest. This is a great opportunity for us to raise awareness of the charity and a fantastic way of reaching out to families who may need our support. Money raised on the night for Kidney Kids Scotland will help children suffering from renal and urological illness and their families, both directly and through our support for the pediatric renal services in Scottish hospitals.”

Lisa Stafford, Fundraising Manager at British Heart Foundation Scotland, said:

“We’re really excited about the chance to weave some magic with the award-winning Enchanted Forest and raise funds to help save lives in Scotland. Sadly, heart disease touches many families. Visitors can be wowed by this fairy-tale event knowing they’re raising money for our life-saving heart research.”

Sally Cameron, Head of Fundraising at Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance, said:

“SCAA is extremely grateful for this support – a donation that could mean the difference between life and death for someone in desperate need of an air ambulance when speed and urgent medical attention are critical factors in their chance of survival.”

Tickets will go on sale to the public at 10am on Friday 17th June at www.enchantedforest.org.uk

The Enchanted Forest, Perthshire’s multi-award winning sound and light show, has staved off competition from 38 of Scotland’s top tourism providers to take home the Tourism & Hospitality Award at the recent Scottish Rural Awards.

The show, which will celebrate its 15th anniversary this year attracted just over 62,000 visitors to the Highland Perthshire area in 2015 over a 32 night run, demonstrating a 33% increase on the previous year, breaking all previous box office records. The event’s impact on the local tourism economy is now expected to be in the region of £2.75million per annum with over 50% of all visitors to the event choosing to stay overnight in the area on their visit and 90% citing the event as their main reason for visiting the area in the Autumn.

Ian Sim, acting chairman of The Enchanted Forest Community Trust that runs The Enchanted Forest, commented:

“This is a tremendous achievement for Highland Perthshire in a hotly contested category at one of Scotland’s most prestigious awards. We continue to be deeply encouraged by the continued support of our visitors, many of them loyal visitors who return to the Forest year after year, and winning the Tourism & Hospitality Award is testimony to the hard work put in by the community to make The Enchanted Forest such a successful and popular event.”

Visitors to the event in 2015 included Radio 1 DJ ‘Rob da Bank’ who tweeted out his attendance to his 81,000 followers as well as Tomas Jansen, Head of Sales for Walt Disney Parks & Resorts who, following his visit, commented:

“It was great!!! Well done and well executed, we really enjoyed it.”

The show was also featured on BBC1 Countryfile last Autumn with presenter Ellie Harrison revealing the wonders of The Enchanted Forest to the nation.

Over 5000 people who were not lucky enough to get tickets for last year’s show have already signed up to an advance notice list to purchase tickets for 2016. More information on how to sign up is available on www.enchantedforest.org.uk

The 2015 show FLUX was designed by a creative team led by Derek Allan including Scottish lighting designers Kate Bonney and Simon Hayes, and specially composed and recorded music, and sound effects by RJ McConnell and Jon Beales. Together they created a dazzling and engaging show which celebrates the stunning woodland setting of the event.

The Enchanted Forest Community Trust is looking to appoint a Production Manager for their 2016 ‘Enchanted Forest’ event. This multifaceted role will require ef?cient planning and coordination skills to facilitate delivery of all technical and creative aspects of the event, under the supervision of the Producer and Creative Director.

For futher details on this vacancy have a look here

The Enchanted Forest, Perthshire’s multi-award winning sound and light show, has presented three charities each with a four figure sum following their successful charity evening opening night this year.

PKAVS (Perth & Kinross Association of Voluntary Services), Scottish Autism and CHAS were all selected to benefit from this year’s show through ticket sales for the event’s opening night. This week they each received a cheque for £2500, bringing the total of charitable donations to a generous £7500.

Graham Brown, chairman of The Enchanted Forest Community Trust that runs The Enchanted Forest, commented:

“This was a tremendous year for Highland Perthshire and The Enchanted Forest and we are deeply encouraged by the continued support of our visitors. As a charitable trust it is particularly gratifying that we are in a strong position to give back to the local community and that three charities will directly benefit as a result. 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 the funds raised.”

Claire Macdonald, Marketing & Fundraising Assistant at PKAVS commented:

“We were delighted to be part of the Enchanted Forest experience this year and loved having the opportunity to take service users from our Carers, Mental Health & Wellbeing and Minority Communities hubs along. We are overwhelmed by the tremendous amount raised and will use these funds to continue our work, enhancing the lives of local people right here in Perth & Kinross.”

Karen Wilson, Fundraising Manager for Scottish Autism commented:

“We were delighted to be selected as one of the charities to benefit from this event for a second year running. Not only is it a fantastic opportunity to raise the profile of our services which support people with autism and their families throughout Scotland, but many of our service users attended the event and very much enjoyed the show.”

Alison Rennie, CHAS Fundraiser commented:

“We’re delighted that CHAS is a recipient of the funds generated by The Enchanted Forest’s charity evening and they will help us to continue to provide vital support to babies, children and young people with life-shortening conditions.”

The Enchanted Forest released its visitor numbers for its 2015 show last month confirming it attracted just over 62,000 visitors to the Highland Perthshire area over a 32 night run. The Enchanted Forest has now broken all previous box office records and it is predicted that the event’s impact on the local tourism economy is now expected to be in the region of £2.75million per annum with over 50% of all visitors to the event choosing to stay overnight in the area on their visit and 90% citing the event as their main reason for visiting the area this Autumn.
The 2015 show FLUX was designed by a creative team led by Derek Allan including Scottish lighting designers Kate Bonney and Simon Hayes, and specially composed and recorded music, and sound effects by RJ McConnell and Jon Beales. Together they created a dazzling and engaging show which celebrates the stunning woodland setting of the event.

The Enchanted Forest, Perthshire’s multi-award winning sound and light show, has released its visitor numbers for its 2015 show which closed on Sunday night, confirming it attracted just over 62,000 visitors to the Highland Perthshire area over a 32 night run, a 33% increase on the previous year.

The 2015 show, flux, 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. The event was recently shortlisted as a finalist for Cultural Event of the Year at the UK Event Awards and currently holds the VisitScotland National Thistle Award for Best Event.

This latest announcement confirms The Enchanted Forest has now broken all previous box office records, and has driven a surge in visitor numbers of over 33% on the previous year. It is predicted that the event’s impact on the local tourism economy is now expected to be in the region of £2.75million per annum with over 50% of all visitors to the event choosing to stay overnight in the area on their visit and 90% citing the event as their main reason for visiting the area this Autumn.

Graham Brown, chairman of The Enchanted Forest Community Trust that runs The Enchanted Forest, commented:

“This is a tremendous success for Highland Perthshire tourism businesses and we are deeply 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.”

Visitors to the event this year included Radio 1 DJ ‘Rob da Bank’ who tweeted out his attendance to his 81,000 followers as well as Tomas Jansen, Head of Sales for Walt Disney Parks & Resorts who, following his visit, commented:

“It was great!!! Well done and well executed, we really enjoyed it.”

The show was also featured on BBC1 Countryfile with presenter Ellie Harrison revealing the wonders of The Enchanted Forest to the nation.

Despite extending their run to accommodate increased demand, the event still sold out of all tickets by the 18th October. Over 4000 people who were not lucky enough to get tickets for this year’s show have already signed up to an advance notice list to purchase tickets for 2016. More information on how to sign up is available on www.enchantedforest.org.uk

The 2015 show FLUX was designed by a creative team led by Derek Allan including Scottish lighting designers Kate Bonney and Simon Hayes, and specially composed and recorded music, and sound effects by RJ McConnell and Jon Beales. Together they have created a dazzling and engaging show which celebrates the stunning woodland setting of the event.

The Enchanted Forest, Scotland’s premier sound and light show, has been shortlisted for two titles in this year’s prestigious UK Event Awards. The shortlisting will see it battling out for its place at the top against some of Britain’s biggest events at a glittering awards ceremony to be held in London’s Marriot on Grosvenor Square in December.

This year the event will compete for the title of the UK’s Cultural Event of the Year, while its agency, Volpa, has been shortlisted for Event Marketing & PR Strategy of the Year.

The event will bid for the title against a broadly Scottish line-up of 5 nominees that includes Edinburgh International Fashion Festival, Tiree Music Festival and Glasgow Life’s Festival 2014. Volpa, however takes on a shortlist of 6 that includes the launch of an ice bar by international beer brand Coors, the 10th Scottish Fashion Awards, the re-launch of the QEII Centre in London, VisitScotland for the Ryder Cup and DinoFest in Hampshire.

The Enchanted Forest has become a mainstay of Scotland’s tourism calendar and is organised by The Enchanted Forest Community Trust under the Perthshire Big Tree Country brand. Founded in 2002 with just 3000 visitors attending in its first year. This year’s event has already smashed all box office records with over 50,000 attending and final attendance figures yet to be confirmed.

Graham Brown, Chairman of The Enchanted Forest Community Trust said:

“Delighted. The team are simply delighted to be recognised at such prestigious awards. We have always pushed the boundaries with The Enchanted Forest, with several record breaking years, and entertaining tens of thousands of visitors. It’s very rewarding to see that the hard work and commitment of a small rural community can comfortably compete on quality, scale of event and creativity with other major events across Britain. This is testimony to the level of exceptional talent we have in our creative team, from the stewards to the designers, from the lighting engineers to the box office staff and, of course, our marketing agency, Volpa, who also have gained national recognition for their successful approach to marketing the event.”

Tricia Fox, Managing Director of Volpa commented:

“Volpa are so thrilled to be nominated and to see our name shortlisted alongside some of the country’s biggest brands. We’ve worked with The Enchanted Forest since 2008, guiding the event from 15,000 visitors per annum to a level of attendance which is well in excess of 50,000 this year, taking a strategic long term approach to marketing to create what is now one of Scotland’s biggest events. Being shortlisted for a national award for our strategic approach is the proverbial cherry on the top of the icing.”

The winners will be announced at a glittering awards ceremony due to take place in London on Wednesday 2nd December.

Enchanted Forest spreads its magic amongst local businesses

As The Enchanted Forest, Scotland’s premier sound and light show, gathers momentum with 2015 show, FLUX, in full flow, local businesses have been working closely with event organisers to ensure that the economy continues to be part of the Forest’s tree-mendous success story.

The Enchanted Forest now attracts visitors from all over the UK and, indeed, the world and the positive impact on the local area is estimated to be well in excess of £2 million.

With box office numbers soaring with over 40,000 tickets sold already for this year’s show, the impact on the local economy is expected to increase and closer working relationships with key businesses this year are set to enhance the offering for visitors to the area throughout October.

A number of local tourism businesses are working collaboratively to promote the event, with local accommodation providers offering deals that include tickets to the event, and other visitor attractions offering discount entry for Enchanted Forest ticket holders.

Blair Castle on Atholl Estates is one of the businesses that is promoting discounted entry during the show. Andrew Bruce-Wootton, General Manager at Atholl Estates commented:

“The Enchanted Forest is a firm favourite amongst families and people flock from across the country to visit the area and see the spectacular light and sound show. The fact that the castle exhibitions are refreshed each year also means that we see a flurry of new visitors through our doors when the event is on. It also provides a very welcome boost to businesses across the surrounding area and we’re delighted to extend a warm Highland Perthshire welcome to The Enchanted Forest’s customers.”

Graham Brown, Chairman of The Enchanted Forest Community Trust commented:

“We are delighted that The Enchanted Forest’s success directly benefits the local business community of Highland Perthshire, many of whom are incredibly busy as a result of thousands of additional visitors to the area, but it also enables us to support local charities, clubs and organisations in the area, all of which deliver important services to the people of Highland Perthshire.

“Due to the continued success of the event, we are asking visitors to plan ahead and book their tickets in advance. All of our popular Saturday night shows are now sold out, so I would recommend that people plan ahead and book their tickets to avoid disappointment.”

The event runs from Thursday 1st October – Sunday 1st November. For further information about the Enchanted Forest and to book tickets, visit the Enchanted Forest website at www.enchantedforest.org.uk

The Enchanted Forest, a Perthshire Big Tree Country event and Scotland’s premier sound and light show, has announced that over 50,000 tickets have now sold for this year’s show FLUX, surpassing last year’s box office breaking record.

The fourteenth event in the series has been delighting visitors from around the world since it opened on 1st October with stunning aerial acrobatics, choreographed sound and light displays and a specially constructed pier that places visitors right at the heart of the stunning son et lumiere show.

Organisers predicted that over 55,000 visitors are set to flock to the Highland Perthshire this Autumn to see the event and the latest box office figures puts them on track to exceed that figure by the time the show closes on Sunday 1st November.

Graham Brown, Chairman of The Enchanted Forest Community Trust commented:

“The demand for tickets this year has been stronger than ever and I’m delighted that the event has set a new box office record, testimony to its continued popularity and quality delivery. There are still tickets remaining for the final two weeks, but we really must urge visitors to plan ahead and book early as these are being snapped up at a very quick pace.”

The Enchanted Forest will also feature in this Sunday’s Autumn Colours episode of Countryfile on BBC1, which saw presenter Ellie Harrison take a trip to the event on 30th September. Countryfile will be broadcast nationally on BBC1 this Sunday evening at 6.15pm, just prior to Strictly Come Dancing.

The 2015 show FLUX has been designed by a creative team led by Derek Allan including Scottish lighting designers Kate Bonney and Simon Hayes, and specially composed and recorded music, and sound effects by RJ McConnell and Jon Beales. Together they have created a dazzling and engaging show which celebrates the stunning woodland setting of the event.

The event runs until Sunday 1st November. For further information about the Enchanted Forest and to book tickets, visit the Enchanted Forest website at www.enchantedforest.org.uk

Scotland’s premier sound and light event, The Enchanted Forest, has been shortlisted for the Excellence in Tourism & Leisure Award at the Perthshire Chamber of Commerce Business Star Awards 2015.

The nomination comes as visitors begin to descend on highland Perthshire, with around 55,000 expected throughout October in what will be its first four week run this year, reinforcing the event’s position as a major driver of tourism for Scotland. Organisers of the event, The Enchanted Forest Community Trust, hope this year’s record breaking success is enough for them to take the title.
The event’s international profile has catapulted the Victorian town of Pitlochry onto an international stage and press coverage around the globe attracts visitors from around the world.

Graham Brown, Chairman of The Enchanted Forest Community Trust that runs the event commented:

“The whole team at The Enchanted Forest are thrilled to have been nominated for a Business Star Award. The event continues to grow year on year and we are very proud of the success the event has had over its 13 year run and that so many people travel up to Highland Perthshire as a result.

Graham continued:

“Tickets have been selling exceptionally quickly for this year’s show, with over 40,000 tickets sold for this years show already. We’d strongly urge customers to book early if they have a particular date and time in mind.”

The Business Star Awards recognise the very best of local companies in Perthshire in what has been an outstanding year for businesses of all sizes in the area. The winners of this year’s awards will be announced at a glittering awards ceremony taking place on 20th November at Crieff Hydro.

This year’s show launched on October 1st and will run every night until November 1st.

The Enchanted Forest, a Perthshire Big Tree Country event and Scotland’s premier sound and light show, launched last night in an array of dazzling colours to a select audience of press and VIPs at Forestry Commission Scotland’s Faskally Wood near Pitlochry.

The fourteenth event in the series delighted visitors with stunning aerial acrobatics, choreographed sound and light displays and, for the first time ever, visitors will have the opportunity to go “off path” using a specially constructed pier that will situate them right at the heart of a stunning son et lumiere show.

On course to smash all previous box office records, organisers are predicting that over 55,000 visitors will flock to the Highland Perthshire town of Pitlochry this year to see the event and, with all Saturday nights during the run sold out and local hotels filling up quickly, they are urging customers to plan ahead.

Graham Brown, Chairman of The Enchanted Forest Community Trust commented:

“We’re delighted to announce our fourteenth show officially open to the public and the signs are looking positive that it will be another successful show for us this year. The event’s success directly benefits the local business community of Highland Perthshire, many of whom are incredibly busy as a result of thousands of additional visitors to the area, but it also enables us to support local charities, clubs and organisations in the area, all of which deliver important services to the people of Highland Perthshire.”

The show was officially pronounced open by Mike Cantlay, Chairman of VisitScotland who was in attendance along with his family. He commented:

“As the current winner of our prestigious Thistle Award for Best Event, The Enchanted Forest continues to go from strength to strength and I’m delighted to see that this year’s show is more spectacular than ever before.

“The creative team at The Enchanted Forest has an exceptional way of refreshing their approach every year to create a unique event that showcases Scotland’s natural landscape at its very best. This is a must-see event this autumn for people of all ages, one of the best shows I’ve seen all year.

“Events like this don’t just provide entertainment – they boost the local visitor economy and represent a multi-million pound opportunity to increase jobs as well as deliver cultural and social benefits.”

The 2015 show FLUX has been designed by a creative team led by Derek Allan including Scottish lighting designers Kate Bonney and Simon Hayes, and specially composed and recorded music, and sound effects by RJ McConnell and Jon Beales. Together they have created a dazzling and engaging show which celebrates the stunning woodland setting of the event.

Liz Grant, Provost of Perth and Kinross was also in attendance to welcome visitors to Highland Perthshire:

“This is undoubtedly one of Perthshire, and indeed Scotland’s, finest cultural events and I’m delighted to see that this year’s show is as exceptional as ever. Last year it attracted over 46,000 visitors to Highland Perthshire, an essential boost to the local economy at this time of year, and it is a superb ambassador for Perth and Kinross as a destination, not just nationally, but right across the globe. I heartily recommend a visit.”

The event runs from Thursday 1st October – Sunday 1st November. Proceeds from the first night’s show on Thursday 1st October will be split equally between three charities: PKAVS, CHAS and Scottish Autism.

For further information about the Enchanted Forest and to book tickets, visit the Enchanted Forest website at www.enchantedforest.org.uk

Scotland’s premier sound and light event, The Enchanted Forest, has been shortlisted for Best Event or Festival for the second year running at the regional heats of the Scottish Thistle Awards, announced today.

Currently holding the national title for Best Event or Festival, having won the National Final of the Scottish Thistle Awards in Glasgow back in March, this is the second shortlisting in a row for this popular Autumn event.

Over 55,000 people are expected to travel to Faskally Wood near Pitlochry this October to enjoy the sound and light spectacular in what will be its first four week run this year, reinforcing the event’s position as a major driver of tourism for Scotland.

The event’s international profile has catapulted the Victorian town of Pitlochry onto an international stage in the 13 years since the event launched and press coverage around the globe attracts visitors from around the world to the sound and light spectacle which humbly has its roots firmly planted in the nearby forest of Faskally Wood.

Derek Allan, Producer of The Enchanted Forest commented:

“The entire Enchanted Forest team are delighted to shortlisted for the second time running for a prestigious Scottish Thistle Award. Every year The Enchanted Forest continues to grow and we are very proud of the success the event has had and that so many people travel up to Highland Perthshire as a result. Receiving an award like this really highlights the dedication of the people involved in making the Forest come to life every year.

Derek continued:

“Tickets are now selling very quickly for this year’s show, with most Saturday nights now sold out and box office reporting a level of sales that’s 45% higher than the same period last year. We’d urge customers to book early if they have a particular date and time in mind.”
This year’s show will launch on October 1st and will run every night until November 1st.

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