The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
But according to Darius Dosantos, the founder of Kings Travel Centre, external marketing is the most important thing that RDB should focus on if momentum is to be continued in 2017.
He says Africa will never generate revenue from internal marketing and domestic tourism.
“Africans don’t have disposable income to spend loosely on pleasure. All that is needed is a strategy to attract foreign tourists. India, for instance, attracts all types of tourists: medical, business, etc. What is Rwanda’s strategy?”
Towards the end of 2016, Rwanda’s tourism got a shot in the arm when American luxury and lifestyle travel magazine, Condé Nast Traveler, named Rwanda its second-best destination for travellers to Africa in 2017. Rwanda was ranked as No. 14 on Condé Nast’s “Best Places to Travel in 2017” list, behind 13th-place Zimbabwe, the only other African country on Condé Nast Traveler’s list.
Rwanda made it to this list because of the expected opening of Wilderness Safaris’ Bisate Lodge near the Volcanoes National Park, which Condé Nast described as “one of the most anticipated hotel openings on the continent.”
In fact, it’s the opening of new hotels that greatly boosted.
However, Paul Kasule, managing director, Executive Travelers says that the country’s Achilles heel remains its poor customer care, saying that the major culprit is the hospitality industry which still needs a lot to be desired.
“Tourists can only come back, or even market the country through the word of mouth, when they had a good experience. But we still lack good customer service compared to countries like Uganda and Kenya where tourism is at a higher level,” says Kasule.
Kasule says that Rwanda should aggressively market its tourism potential abroad, adding that it’s a shame that many tourists just come to Rwanda as an add-on trip from either Uganda, Tanzania or Kenya, despite its rich natural heritage that can parallel these countries.
An economic driver in the country, tourism contributes more than$300 million to the economy each year with a good number of Rwandans employed in the industry.
****
editor@independent.co.ug
