The 2019 World Tourism Day Celebrations

The 2019 World Tourism Day Celebrations

A few days from today, the world is set to celebrate the World Tourism Day. What is World Tourism Day all about? According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) the World Tourism Day– held every 27^th September is a day when the entire world reflects on the role of tourism within the international community and to demonstrate how it affects social, cultural, political and economic values worldwide. The international celebrations for the 2019 World Tourism Day are set to be held in India under a theme of “Tourism and Jobs, A Better Future for All”.

Is Uganda taking part in this year’s celebrations?

Yes, being a signatory to the UNWTO and one of the leading tourist destinations on the African continent it’s a no brainer that Uganda won’t miss this chance to highlight her potential as a tourism destination by gracing these celebrations in the dear motherland. Uganda’s tourism celebration will also coincide with the entire world celebrations which are taking place on the 27^th of September. Uganda’s celebrations will be held in Gulu district at the Pece grounds and Uganda will also follow the world celebration theme of tourism and jobs, a better future for all.

What does Uganda have to offer as a tourism destination?

Whatever Uganda lacks in terms of land size, it usually compensates in terms of its wide biodiversity because As far back as 1864 and in fact by 1907, Uganda had already been baptized “The Pearl Of Africa” by Sir Winston Churchill in his book entitled My African Journey, this is because Uganda has a thing of captivating every person that makes an Africa safari to this country given its spectacular diverse attractions that range from the beautiful landscape that includes towering mountains such as Rwenzori mountain which is the 3^rd highest mountain on the African continent with an elevation of 5109m, Mountain Elgon at 4321m above sea level, 3 of the 8 Virunga ranges found in Uganda, the forever intriguing Kigezi highlands will excite you on your Uganda safari to Kabale district. Birds, when you speak of birds in Africa, Uganda should be your first priority because a Uganda birding safari is to any of the numerous birding safari destinations in Uganda such as Semuliki National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park, Kidpeo Valley National Park and Kibale National Park is a totally unique experience that gives you an opportunity to encounter several of the 1070 bird species that call Dear Uganda home. This makes Uganda home to over 50% of all the bird species that are found on the African continent. Wild mammals- if you are looking for wild mammals, a Uganda wildlife safari to some of Uganda wildlife safaris destinations such as Murchison Falls National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park, Lake Mburo National Park and Kidepo Valley National Park will give you an encounter with some of the finest African savanna mammals like you have never seen before. Many of these destinations have 4 or 5 out of 5 of Africa big game which include African bush elephants, cape buffaloes, lions, leopards and rhinos. On top of these expect to encounter numerous other mammals such as Roth child giraffes, burchell zebras, elands, Jackson hartebeests, topis, and wide variety antelopes. Primates- you can most definitely refer to Uganda as the African home of primates as its home a wide variety of primates which include the elusive mountain gorillas that are found in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park. If you are looking chimpanzees there is no better place to come than Uganda because in Kibale National Park is home to one of the world’s highest concentration of chimpanzees. Other things that make Uganda a destination of choice to many travellers include its unique culture- Uganda a culturally diverse country that has over 60 different tribes all living in country that is less than the size of Great Britain or Oregon state in the USA. Various research findings have indicated Ugandans to be one of the liveliest and happiest people on the planet and great to be round with. All these and more have made a Uganda a favorite destination for Uganda safaris/ Uganda wildlife safari, Uganda wildlife safaris, short Uganda safari/ short Uganda safaris/ long Uganda safari/ long Uganda safaris/ gorilla trekking Uganda / gorilla trek safari Uganda / Uganda gorilla safari, /Uganda gorilla tour/ gorilla trekking Uganda safari.

Because of Uganda’s alluring attractions, Uganda has registered a dramatic increase in the number of tourists who visit This Pearl Of Africa. According to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics, Uganda received 1.8 million tourists in 2018, up from 1.4 million in 2017. In 2017, the 1.4 million arrivals injected about $1.4billion into the economy. This contributed to about 10 percent of the GDP.

In a speech in Kampala, Godfrey Kiwanda, the state minister for Tourism, said, “We are going to increase our marketing activities by contracting three more public relations firms for Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, (Qatar and Oman), Japan and China markets; the firms will be contacted at a cost of $0.5m per country,” he said.

Last year, Uganda contracted three PR firms from the United Kingdom, USA and Germany at a cost of $ 0.5m each. When the new PR firms for Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, (Qatar and Oman), Japan and China markets come on board, the government will spend $3m on marketing Ugandan tourism.

Kiwanda further explained that; “Other targets will include digital marketing and use of celebrities who have a big following as tourism ambassadors; they should be able to compose songs for tourism and that can be done by taking them around our parks.”

Other programs include local and regional campaigns such as Twende Uganda, Destination Uganda and Pearl of Africa campaigns.

Claire Mugabi, UTB’s marketing manager, said, “Twende Uganda targets East African tourists, Destination Uganda targets other non-Kiswahili speaking Africans and the Pearl of Africa campaign targets international tourists…”

Kiwanda said; “Last year we recruited Zarinah Hassan, commonly known as Zari Hassan, a local socialite, and Kanye West and family were here…they will be made tourism ambassadors, but this will not stop anybody willing to come on board,” he said.

Do you feel like making a Uganda safari tour? You can contact Prime Safaris tours ltd, a local tour company that operates a wide range of tours that come in short Uganda wildlife safaris long Uganda wildlife safaris or short Uganda gorilla safaris/ long Uganda gorilla safaris. You can also decide to make a car hire with Prime safaris and a Uganda adventure vacation safaris of a lifetime given that we have a wide range of safari cars for hire in Uganda which include the following. Safari mini-bus hire Uganda/ 4×4 safari minibus hire Uganda Kampala / 4x4mini bus hire Uganda/ 4×4 coaster hire Uganda/ 4×4 buses hire Uganda/ 4×4 safari land cruisers hire Uganda/ 4×4 safari land cruisers Kampala Uganda / 4x4safari jeeps hire Kampala Uganda