The eighth natural wonder of the world is getting a partnership with TikTok
The eighth natural wonder of the world is getting a partnership with TikTok
Written by Conrad Onyango
Kenya is turning to a global youth audience to showcase the eighth natural wonder of the world—the great wildebeest migration—as Africa goes all out to ramp up international tourism numbers.
The east African country’s tourism board on Aug. 24 announced a partnership with the short-form video platform TikTok, as the Kenyan government leads Africa in retooling traditional marketing strategies to raise its tourism appeal.
The Latest UN World Tourism Organisation recovery tracker shows International arrivals to Africa have dropped by 81% since January on the back of uncertainty surrounding the pandemic and low consumer confidence.
A number of African countries are seeking to overturn those fears by rolling out major educational and investment campaigns to build the confidence of global travelers and once again lock in multi-billion US dollar tourism receipts.
Kenya is positioning itself as a luxury travel destination to boost tourism during the pandemic
Also this week, the east African country said it had begun a marketing strategy to position Kenya as a luxury destination in several key markets when it received 15 guests from the US on a $125,000 per person, 12-day luxury tour to four iconic African destinations.
“The visit by this high-level delegation is testament to the fact that Kenya is a consideration to the niche luxury traveler who is attracted to specific experiences and offerings. Our goal is to build on this as we work towards expanding into different market segments in the short and long term,” Balala said in a statement.
The trip christened ‘Greatest Safari on Earth’ and organized by travel company Roar Africa and airline Emirates will see the high profile tourists experience the Great Wildebeest Migration in Kenya, watch Gorillas in Rwanda, visit the Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe and experience the pristine wilderness of the Okavango Delta in Botswana.
The latest Allied Market Research predicted that the global luxury tourism market will reach $1.2 trillion by 2027. It is not clear to what extent Covid-19 could derail that, however. According to New World Wealth, the luxury hotel sector “is one of the most important sectors in Africa as it brings a large amount of forex spending into the continent.”
South Africa, the main luxury tourist destination in Africa, is gearing up to host African and overseas exhibitors during Africa Travel Week 2022, slated for April next year. The conference is part of wider efforts to spark a post-COVID resurgence in travel on the continent.
“Africa Travel Week is the perfect platform for us to showcase, to the international market, how our tourism sector has adapted to the times and improved on our already world-class offerings,” said Cape Town’s Executive Mayor, Dan Plato in a statement.
In north Africa, Moroccan tourism officials in June projected the country will fill 3.5 million seats by end of September after it began reopening air travel by cutting down transport costs to facilitate the return of Moroccans residing abroad. The move has caused a mini tourism boom. Popular hotels that target high net worth individuals in Marrakesh are reportedly recording up to 100% in occupancy rates.
This story was republished with the permission of bird, a story agency under Africa No Filter.
