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Business Reporter
THE Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) has intensified its marketing efforts by hosting a series of virtual tours targeting key source markets.

This week, ZTA executives and RIDA International Travel Solutions jointly hosted a live virtual tour of Victoria Falls and Harare.

The tour was attended by over 400 travel agents from the South East Asian region, one of the fastest growing travel markets for Destination Zimbabwe prior to the devastating Covid 19 pandemic.

ZTA acting chief executive, Mr Givemore Chidzidzi, made a presentation on Destination Zimbabwe and outlined what the country has to offer.

The virtual audience was then given a front-row seat to experience a live tour of the majestic Victoria Falls as well as Harare’s Chiremba balancing rocks, the Mbuya Nehanda statue and the city centre.

“Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, interaction with the outside world has been limited hence the need for us to employ innovative and disruptive ways of communication,” said Mr Chidzidzi.

“We decided to engage RIDA International Travel Solutions to assist us to host virtual tours to market Zimbabwe to various markets across the globe.

“We needed a team that had an understanding of the market as well as the needs of agents and potential tourists.”

The ZTA executive said the aggressive destination marketing efforts were informed by the Government’s National Tourism Recovery and Growth Strategy, which underscores the need to maximise use of digital marketing platforms such as webinars, social media, digital televisions and microblogs, among others.

“It is against this backdrop that we decided to take the ‘Visit Zimbabwe Campaign’ to the world using these platforms,” said Mr Chidzidzi.

“An aggressive digital marketing campaign is in motion with the aim of improving destination visibility locally, regionally and internationally.”