O2 announces 4G upgrades at Glen Ord Distillery and Eilean Donan Castle as part of £32m programme across UK tourist spots; five other Highland sites, including Dornoch beach, Dunvegan Castle and Loch Ness lifeboat station at Drumnadrochit are also on the list
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TOURIST hot spots in parts of Ross-shire are set for greater mobile connectivity after O2 included them in a £32 million network upgrade programme.
The firm announced the package last week as part of efforts to upgrade connections around tourists' "favourite selfie attractions and destinations".
The Glen Ord Distillery in Muir of Ord and Eilean Donan Castle are two of the seven Highland destinations receiving a 4G upgrade. Dornoch and Dunvegan Castle on Skye are among the others.
O2 said its investment programme was aimed at preparing the UK for a record-breaking summer, with 92 per cent of Brits planning to holiday on home soil in 2019.
“We’ve upgraded our network where people need it the most this summer, to ensure British holidaymakers will be able to share their summer with holiday selfies, use Google Maps to navigate the best hiking spots, and compare local restaurant reviews," said O2’s chief operations officer, Derek McManus.
O2’s investment in Britain’s holiday hotspots follows a recent study by the operator, which found that Britain’s tourism and hospitality sectors often stand the most to gain – over any other industry - from enhanced mobile coverage.
The Highland upgrades are among 400 UK-wide holiday destinations included in the programme.
UK minister for tourism, Rebecca Pow, welcomed O2's announcement. She said: “Mobile connectivity helps people make the most of their holiday and is essential for the UK tourism industry, which employs millions of people all across the UK and is one of our fastest growing sectors.
"It is great news that O2 is investing over £30m in improving 4G coverage to almost 400 holiday destinations and landmarks across the UK- from urban centres to some of our most remote visitor attractions.”
4G is currently available to O2 customers in almost 19,000 towns, cities and villages across the UK. Indoor population coverage remains around 99 per cent.
Commenting, Mr McManus said: “4G will be the backbone of our network for years to come, that’s why we plan to add 4G to even more towns and rural locations throughout 2019. At the same time, we are also looking ahead. Our 5G roll-out will start later this year and just like 4G, we intend to build 5G for our customers where they need it most.”
