Three new visitor trails have been created to take visitors on a journey to discover more about Robert Burns and his poetry while also enjoying the visitor attractions and beautiful landscapes of south west Scotland which inspired him.

The trails, brought together under the banner of ‘Burns and the South West’, are the result of joint working between Ayrshire & Arran Tourism Team, Dumfries and Galloway Council and VisitScotland. The main aim of the initiative is for locals and visitors to see and experience places in south west Scotland where Robert Burns was born and chose to live.

‘Following Burns’ is a 3 day itinerary that reveals Robert Burns’ life through the places he lived and the people he knew. ‘Naturally Burns’ is a 2 day trail of light walking in Ayrshire taking you into Burns Country to explore the very land that inspired our poet. ‘Actively Burns’ is a fun 4 day itinerary that includes cycling, walking and horse riding. A web presence at www.burns-southwest.com has been created to complement the trails. There is lots of information about the man himself, his life, his influences and his work. In addition you can find out about events taking place across Ayrshire and Arran which are related to Burns.

These new trails are a superb addition and give our local businesses the opportunity to sell Ayrshire’s natural and historical assets relating to Burns giving visitors another reason to explore our region.

Nat Edwards, Director of Robert Burns Birthplace Museum and Vice-Chair of the Ayrshire & Arran Tourism Leadership Group said: “If you really want to get to know Scotland – you could do no better than walking in the footsteps of her national Bard. The landscape, heritage, language and music of Robert Burns’s South West has still got as much power to take your breath away as it did in Burns’s time and this project is a great chance to introduce it to a whole new generation of visitors.”