‘It’s the Skyscanner of whisky’ - how Sip Seekers is making Scottish whisky tourism easier
As food and drink tourism is on the rise, particularly visitors to whisky distilleries in Scotland, one woman has set up a business to make booking experiences seamless. Rosalind Erskine finds out how Sip Seekers has been dubbed the Skyscanner for whisky.
It was a last minute trip to the Highlands that got Victoria Miller thinking about a new business idea. When trying to book a distillery visit she found herself found with multiple tabs open, jumping between websites, comparing experiences and, eventually, having to pick up the phone to check availability and make a booking.
It was this experience that made her realise how difficult planning and booking drinks trips may be for visitors who have never been to Scotland before. It was at this time that the idea for Sip Seekers was born.
Sip Seekers is a Scottish drinks tourism platform helping visitors discover and book whisky distillery tours, gin tastings, brewery experiences and drinks-led travel experiences across Scotland, which launched in 2025.
Ms Miller said: “As someone who had worked in the whisky industry for years, I knew these experiences existed and I knew how incredible many of them were. But if I was finding it difficult, I started wondering how challenging it must be for visitors who were completely new to Scotland or whisky tourism. I remember thinking there should be a simpler way.
“People can compare flights, hotels and restaurants in seconds, yet discovering and comparing distillery experiences was still surprisingly fragmented. At the same time, Scotland is home to some of the world's most famous drinks brands and over £300 million has been invested in distillery visitor centres over the last decade. We have created some of the most impressive food and drink experiences in the world. The challenge now is making them easier to discover and putting them in front of the right audiences.
“That's where Sip Seekers come in. We help people search, compare and discover distillery tours and drinks experiences in one place, while helping direct visitor spend towards local producers and communities.”
As well as a realisation that booking a drink-based tourism trip wasn’t particularly easy, it was also Ms Miller’s experience working for more than 14 years working in the drinks industry across sales, marketing and international business development, helping Scotch whisky brands grow in markets across Europe, Asia and the Middle East that helped shaped her EDGE nominated business.
She explained: “One thing that became very clear throughout my career is that people don't fall in love with whisky because of what's in the glass alone. They fall in love with the stories, the places and the people behind it.
“Working internationally also showed me just how much demand exists for authentic Scottish experiences. People travel from all over the world to visit our distilleries, yet there wasn't a dedicated platform helping them discover and compare those experiences easily.
“That combination of industry experience, international travel and seeing the opportunity first-hand ultimately led to Sip Seekers.”
Sip Seekers has been built as a specialist search engine for alcohol tourism, Sip Seekers aims to modernise how travellers explore Scotland’s drinks industry while supporting local producers and rural economies. This is a real passion for Ms Miller in launching her business as tourism isn’t just about the distillery or whisky.
She explained: “Tourists don't just visit a distillery. They book accommodation, eat in local restaurants, visit cafes, shop locally and explore surrounding attractions. Every visitor creates a ripple effect through the local economy. Many of Scotland's distilleries are located in rural communities where tourism spend can have a particularly meaningful impact.
“I believe Scotland is only scratching the surface of its drinks tourism potential. We have incredible distilleries, breweries, hospitality businesses and producers throughout rural Scotland that can benefit from increased visitor footfall and spend.
“What excites me most is that the opportunity goes far beyond the tour ticket itself. The average visitor spends over £40 in the distillery shop, often purchasing bottles and merchandise directly from the producer. Distillery visits also create something even more valuable - brand ambassadors. When someone has a memorable experience, meets the people behind the brand and hears the stories first-hand, they often leave with a much stronger connection to that distillery and are more likely to continue purchasing the brand in future.
“Currently around two in every ten overnight visitors to Scotland visit a distillery. Our ambition is to help move that to three in ten. That feels like an achievable goal, but the impact would be significant.
“An increase of that scale would unlock hundreds of millions of pounds in additional visitor spend, support new jobs across Scotland and drive significant economic activity into the rural communities that benefit most from tourism growth.
“For me, that's the real opportunity. It's not just about helping people book experiences. It's about helping Scotland unlock more of the economic value that already exists within its world-class food and drink industry.”
Ms Miller could also see the rise in more luxury and experiential tourism experiences, saying: “We're seeing growing demand for premium and immersive experiences. Visitors increasingly want to create authentic memories rather than simply visit an attraction.
“That might be a whisky and chocolate pairing with a local producer, a blending experience, drawing whisky directly from the cask, or sampling rare and exclusive drams.
“What's particularly interesting is what we're seeing through Sip Seekers. By allowing visitors to compare experiences side-by-side, we're finding many people are choosing experiences well beyond the entry-level distillery tour. Since launching our pilot in December 2025, our average booking value has been around £50 per person, significantly higher than many standard tour prices.”
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