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Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter

THE Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) is set to premier at the New York Times Travel Show which opens tomorrow in the United States of America.

ZTA acting chief executive officer Mr Givemore Chidzidzi said USA remains the leading international source market for the local tourism sector with a total of 95 025 arrivals recorded in 2018.

This is, however, a drop from 101 206 arrivals recorded in 2017 which ZTA has said is a cause for concern hence the need for the authority to dig deeper into its bag of marketing gimmicks.

“With the increased significance of the American market to Zimbabwe tourism arrivals, ZTA is set to make a debut at the New York Times Travel Show scheduled for 24-26 January 2020 at the Jacob K Javits Convention Centre in New York, United States of America,” said Mr Chidzidzi in a statement.

He said the New York Times Travel Show is the largest travel trade and consumer show in North America attracting more than 35 000 attendees with over 700 exhibitors from more than 175 countries.

This is an opportunity for Zimbabwe to market itself to the outside world especially on the backdrop of negative publicity from international media.

The country is in a deliberate re-engagement agenda across the world which also entails robust tourism marketing.

 “Zimbabwe’s presence at this leading North American fair is expected to further the destination’s visibility, manage perceptions and foster assurance in this critical market.”

Contributing 95 025 arrivals recorded in 2018, the USA remains Zimbabwe’s top performing overseas market with an average spending of US$888 per traveller, according to the Visitor Exit Survey. 

At its peak in 2017, USA recorded 101 206 arrivals in Zimbabwe.

“We are, therefore, very much concerned with this drop and as such intensive marketing strategies have been devised to recover this diminishing market share. 

“This will entail road shows, educational tours, trade trainings, media engagements and sales calls,” said Mr Chidzidzi.

He said in the last 10 years, USA has been topping the overseas market chart with an incremental growth year by year. 

Other notable source countries are Britain, France, Australia, Canada, China and South Africa, among others.

Bloomberg has listed destination Zimbabwe among the top 24 destinations in the world while New York based monthly women’s magazine Harper’s Bazaar also listed it among the top 10 places to spend honeymoon in the world.

International holiday rental search engine, HomeToGo, also named the country among the top 10 trending destinations for United Kingdom-based tourists, putting it on number six last year. 

HomeToGo believes that Zimbabwe, as a nation, has a lot to offer, which includes good hospitability, beautiful landscapes, wildlife and great eco-tourism opportunities. 

The country also won an award for the most sustainable tourist destination at the International Tourism Bourse in Germany and was also voted as the third must-visit destination after Sri Lanka and Germany.

Lonely Planet, Frommers and National Geographic also acknowledged the country as one of the prime tourist destinations in the world.

A United States magazine, Travel + Leisure, named Victoria Falls Safari Lodge as the 5th top resort hotel in Africa.

Victoria Falls Safari Lodge is one of the many tourism facilities under the grand banner of leading hospitality group Africa Albida Tourism (AAT).

A number of high-profile celebrities visited the country last year and the ZTA says this is an endorsement of the country as a destination of choice. — @ncubeleon.