THE lure of the Loch Ness monster is set to spearhead a drive to open up a potentially lucrative new market with holiday- makers from China.
A delegation of six high-ranking politicians from Benxi – a principal city in a region of China with a population of 44 million residents – has arrived in the Highlands for a whistle-stop tour of Loch Ness and other main tourism attractions in the area, which could lead to a Chinese tourism boom in the north of Scotland.
The influential Chinese delegation, which has the power to promote destinations, made a special request to see the area after a visit from Inverness tourism representatives in 2008.