LAGOS – A Culture and Tourism Consultant, Mr Kehinde Oluwafunso, on Tuesday urged tour operators
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to participate more in international tourism conferences and exhibitions to promote Nigeria’s domestic [pro_ad_display_adzone id=”10″]tourism.
Oluwafunso, a member of Pan-African Historical Theatre Festival Foundation, Nigeria, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in an interview in Lagos, that such gesture would lure more tourists into the country.
He advised tour operators to deviate from their usual method of writing tickets to travelers, adding that they should rather focus on using the nation’s numerous tourist centres to attract foreign tourists.
“Nigeria is endowed with numerous cultural and tourism sites that can attract millions of tourists across the globe, if projected and marketed to foreign and local tourists.
“Tour operators should, therefore, use international tourism conferences and exhibitions to exhibit the nation’s cultural and tourism sites in order to attract tourists.
“They should surpass their method of writing and selling tickets to tourists travelling outside the country and rather engage more in luring tourists to visit the country’s tourism sites.
“This will also generate foreign exchange for the country, ‘’ Oluwafunso said.
He, however, advised the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) to partner with tour operators and other tourism agencies by engaging them in regular stakeholders’ meeting to identify ways of promoting domestic tourism.
Oluwafunso said the NTDC should among other things, capitalise on President Goodluck Jonathan’s visit to Obudu Cattle Ranch, Cross River, in the past, to encourage visits to tourism sites in the country.
He said the President’s visit to the tourism site was a way of promoting domestic tourism and projecting Nigeria as a tourist destination. (NAN)