Venue Focus
to brew drinkable potions
which bubble, smoke and
change colour
• The Scottish National
Portrait Gallery, the
world’s first ever purpose-
built portrait gallery
designed by Sir Robert
Rowand Anderson as
a shrine for Scotland’s
heroes and heroines.
It’s home to artwork of
famous historical figures
including Mary Queen of
Scots, Robert Burns and
even Prince Charles
• My Adventure, an
outdoor activities centre
which offers a number
of different activities
including gorge walking,
coasteering, mountain
biking and canyoning
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is often associated
with Scotland’s maritime
history, as well as the marine
life that can be spotted from
the city. It is also the home
of P&J Live, a 48,000sqm
event space made up of three
exhibition halls, an arena
and a subterranean car park.
The venue hosts a range of
events - from exhibitions to
conferences to concerts. The
location of the venue itself
allows organisers to target
a new demographic through
hosting events there.
In 2013, Aberdeen City
Council announced that
a brand new, state-of-the-
art events venue was to
be built, and in 2019, P&J
Live opened. The £33m
development was delivered
by Aberdeen City Council in
partnership with Henry Boot
Developments and replaced
Aberdeen Exhibition
Conference and Centre.
The site is environmentally
friendly and has its own
energy centre, which will use
local renewable resources
and advanced technologies
to produce an energy
ecosystem. Over 29,000
trees and shrubs are planted
on-site as P&J Live has
“ Over 29,000 trees and shrubs are planted on-site as
P&J Live has been designed to be living environment ”
been designed to be living
environment to attract both
people and wildlife to the
area. The venue is also on
course to achieve BREEAM
excellent the world’s leading
sustainability assessment.
• Those in Aberdeen can
also enjoy the experiences
it has to offer, for example:
The Torry Battery, a
dolphin watching spot
open all year round, where
from April to August
visitors can join the RSPB
Dolphin Watch team who
will provide binoculars,
spotting scopes and
talks on the bottlenose
dolphins, and where
visitors may also spot
other mammals like otters,
seals and whales
• The Countesswells Forest,
where visitors can explore
using the three walking
trails which provide views
of the countryside and the
city of Aberdeen;
• The Aberdeen Maritime
Museum which has a
collection of artefacts
from shipbuilding, fast
sailing ships, fishing and
port history, and is also
the only place in the UK
where you can see displays
which focus on the North
Sea oil and gas industry
Ayr
Ayr Racecourse is not just
home to Scotland’s only
Grade 1 track, the Coral
Scottish Grand National
Festival, and the William
Hill Ayr Gold Cup Festival, it
is also home to the Princess
Royal Conference and Events
Centre.
River Dee and Bridge
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