Tourism in Perthshire will be the winner after three different projects learned they are to share grants totalling £50,000.
The money has been made available through the Rural Tayside LEADER Local Action Group.
An award of £10,615 has been made to establish a book festival in Blairgowrie and the Glens for residents and visitors to the area with an appetite for literature.
The programme will include a range of fringe events in the glens and school-based activities, as well as a mini-festival for children and the main weekend literary event in the autumn.
Councillor Bob Ellis, chairman of the Blairgowrie and East Perthshire Tourist Association, welcomed the funding.
He said: “I think it is very appropriate for Blairgowrie to have a book festival. We have lots of history, lots of culture and numerous books have been written by local people.
“It certainly adds another string to our bow in this beautiful part of Perthshire.”
Breadalbane Tourism Cooperative Ltd is to receive £11,000 for the Ring of Breadalbane Explorer (ROBE), a second phase pilot initiative to provide an extended “hop on, hop off” bus transport service during the summer months for locals.
Two buses will operate four days a week from May to September and the new service will be widely promoted to target more visitors and will have a range of offers, such as two-for-one entry tickets and increased cycle rack capacity. The timetable will allow for half-day tours and extended stops at places of interest.
The largest grant goes to St Fillans Community Development Trust, which will receive £30,000 to construct and install a timber truss girder bridge to span the Glen Tarken Burn and form access tracks.
This is part of a longer-term plan to create a shared-use path on the old railway line between Lochearnhead and Dalchonzie and expand opportunities for walking and cycling on the network of paths and routes.
LEADER is part of the Scottish Rural development programme and focuses on supporting small-scale, community-driven projects that tackle local development objectives and benefit the community.
It is funded by the Scottish Government and the European Commission. Match funding comes from the public and private sector and community groups.