CNN Names Uganda Among The Best Tourism Destinations To Visit In 2023
By Uganda Online Media
After nearly three years of travel disruptions and complications, many countries have dropped most of their pandemic restrictions. People are travelling internationally in large numbers, and there’s plenty of pent-up demand to spread around the world.
While international tourists are looking around for breathtaking destinations to visit, US television channel CNN could not wait to include Uganda, the pearl of Africa on the list of the best destinations to visit in the year 2023.
“From the expansive shores of Lake Victoria to the snowy Rwenzori Mountains, Uganda is a beautiful wilderness playground, with opportunities for adventure including treks through the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest or up to the craters of the Virunga volcano chain or whitewater rafting along the Victoria Nile,” CNN said.
CNN further added that Uganda does not only have beautiful sceneries to offer to tourists but also rich cultures and hospitality from the communities across all the tourist destinations in the country.
“There’s also an emphasis on connecting visitors with Ugandan communities promising tastes of Ugandan food, music and culture. Last year saw the launch of the Uganda Cycling Trail, a 1,600-kilometer mainly unpaved 22-stage route designed to appeal to all levels of cyclist from hardcore solo bikepackers to fully-guided easy riders.”CNN noted
According to CNN, ”there is considerable change brewing in Uganda’s travel offerings at the moment with the country christened the pearl of Africa now looking beyond the traditional staples of safari and wildlife spotting to appeal to both regional and international visitors”.
”Keen to revitalize post-Covid tourism in all corners of the country, not just the big-ticket businesses offering wealthy visitors a glimpse of the Big Five beasts or mountain gorillas, it’s turned to marketing its other attributes” CNN added.
In a bid to revive and boost the tourism sector that was badly hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, President Museveni together with the Uganda Tourism Board recently launched a new campaign dubbed ‘Explore Uganda, The Pearl of Africa thus calling upon the international community to embrace Uganda as a tourist destination again, after two years of low business due to Covid-19 pandemic.
While launching the campaign, Museveni said that while Africa had not suffered from the COVID-19 pandemic as much as the rest of the world in terms of deaths further noting that Uganda performed even better than most of the African countries.
Re-affirming President Museveni’s comments, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) Lilly Ajarova also noted that ”Uganda is and has always been the Pearl of Africa, but there was a lack of clarity and consistency on it. There have also been several efforts by different players to create awareness at various levels with various levels of success- but there has been a lack of a single-minded messaging and or interpretation of what constitutes the Pearl of Africa in a manner to makes us stand out and appealing to the various travel segments out there.”
“The brand is a value proposition; around which we shall mobilize Uganda’s entire tourism ecosystem to deliver to our visitors all the time, at all the touchpoints. It is a lifetime pursuit and not a one-time affair and or a time-limited communications campaign,” she added.
The Ministry of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities then predicted that in 2020, the number of visitors would grow to 1.8 million and the earnings to $1.6 billion.
A 2019 Uganda Tourist Expenditure and Motivation Survey (TEMS) done by the Ministry amongst 4,184 foreign visitors to Uganda, found that slightly more than half of the visitors to Uganda were returning visitors. And more than 60 per cent of visitors said they were most likely to return shortly, to Uganda.
To return to this position and grow the sector further, UTB decided to launch a new effort by rebranding “Destination Uganda”, and take on the evolving challenges in the market environment.
At the launch of the campaign themed: Rebranding the Pearl of Africa, Museveni also challenged those responsible for planning for the sector to get a new and unique message that will attract the world to Uganda.
Uganda has also presented itself as the best destination for hosting international conferences, meetings and events .
