Brisk business for Victoria Falls tourism players

Brisk business for Victoria Falls tourism players
Published: 17 December 2018
A MAJORITY of tourism players in Victoria Falls managed to break even in terms of arrivals and income this year owing to renewed interest generated by the new political administration.

The Employers' Association for the Tourism and Safari Operators president, Mr Clement Mukwasi, revealed this at a Press conference here last week.

The forum was organised by the Zimbabwe Union of Journalists (Zuj) and coordinated by secretary general Foster Dongozi and programmes officer Eric Matingo as a post-mortem of the 2018 harmonised elections.

"After the elections, we witnessed a lot of zeal to visit Zimbabwe from across the world. The Second Republic brought hope and safety for visitors by removal of roadblocks and new policy direction and as a result we didn't only see investors coming but also tourists," he said.

"Every company broke records in terms of people who came and income.

"We have numerous inquiries from people who want to visit the destination."

The currency exchange rates and fuel challenges came out of the discussion as threatening the tourism sector to which Mr Mukwasi said the industry had made an appeal to Government to be prioritised in terms of distribution of fuel considering that tourism generates foreign currency for the country.

The discussants included socio-political analyst Mr Roland Sibanda, residents association representative Mr Kelvin Moyo, civic society activist Mr Trymore Ndolo, media analyst Mr Mgcini Moyo, human rights lawyer Mr Thulani Nkala and a politician Mr Jonson Ndlovu.

Panelists said the new political administration had ushered in a conducive environment for business and media but expressed concern on the sacking of Victoria Falls Mayor by the MDC Alliance saying this will stall development. Zimbabwe is already experiencing a surge in tourist arrivals and the trend is expected to continue.

Global travel guides — Frommer's, National Geographic Traveller and Lonely Planet have already listed the country as one of the top destinations for 2019. Both Frommer's and National Geographic Traveller have listed Zimbabwe as one of the 19 must-see destinations in the world in 2019, with the latter placing it at number 9, the highest ranking for any African country. Africa Albida Tourism (AAT) chief executive Mr Ross Kennedy said 2018 had been an incredible year for Zimbabwe tourism.

"We are thrilled to be on the same list and in the company of so many of Africa's great properties across the continent hence we continually seek to enhance our products and the experiences offered to our guests and those ethos will continue long into the future," Mr Kennedy said.

"Not only is it one of Africa's safest destinations, it's one blessed with ultra-friendly locals, Big Five-filled national parks, World Heritage-listed archaeological ruins, forested mountains and of course, the mighty Victoria Falls."
- chronicle
Tags: Tourism,

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