NATOP partners Tarzan Jetty on boat cruise, tourism development

Desirous to change the face of tourism in the country, a private boat operator and critical player in the tourism sector, Tarzan Boat Cruise is working with harmony with the Nigeria Association of Tour Operators (NATOP) to enhance tourism.

No doubt, a major driver to any tourism growth is domestic aspect of tourism. In Nigeria, stakeholders have continued to harp on the sector as a way to rake in revenue and increase the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

To make this realistic, the Nigeria Association of Tour Operators (NATOP ) is already taking domestic tourism to the next level as it has decided to exploit the theme: Sustainable tourism: A Tool For Development”.

Leveraging on that, it is tapping into other aspect of tourism in Nigeria. In this piece, EBERE CHIBUZOR writes that the NATOP is fully in partnership with Tarzan Jetty, a foremost water transport and cruise company in Lagos to achieve this aim of exploring the quiet serene nature through the creek

In a bid to promote domestic tourism in Nigeria and exploit other parts of tourism sector through leisure trip, Nigeria Association of Tour Operators (NATOP ) has marked 2017 World Tourism Day on Lagos cowrie creek.

NATOP who said it believed that the leisure trip is a way to key into this year’s World Tourism Day tagged: ‘The Sustainable Tourism: Tool For Development’.

NATOP president, Mr. Nkereuwem Onung speaking on the trip, said, “We need to also appreciate Lagos state for what they have done.

Lagos state has done a lot into this, the monument you are seeing around, all that is needed is to create tourism circuits and begin to create destination out of it.

“Lagos State is already a destination, but it is time to market it which my excitement with the young tour operator who are flying everywhere using social media; and they are not making money, government can subsidize by giving us 30 buses and give them at subsidized rate.

For us as a country, all we could do let us develop our assets, let us make our decisions work. For example, Nigeria has not attended any travel expo in the last four years; so, who is marketing Nigeria?

These are things we must make work. Inagbe Beach Resorts you can see how exiting this place can be, but how many people know that Nigeria has a place like this?

On the theme: ‘Sustainable tourism:A Tool For Development’, Onung pointed out that we have not gone to that point of sustainability yet.

“Sustainability is when it become a roller coaster where its just rolling; it produces money, your assets are working; people are coming in. Those boat needed to be waiting for us as we land.

You are going to different country you know how things are being done. We have been in South Africa, people do party on boat and return. How many of those things are being done? ”

Commenting on the contributions of tourism to the SDG, he noted that, “In Africa, only four countries contribute to about 60 per cent of the tourist arrivals into the continent; and from that number, only about 10 per cent arrivals come to West Africa.

And Nigeria receives less. Government needs to demonstrate its commitment by supporting the private sector operatives. But the private sector operatives should not give up.

“We are celebrating this year’s World Tourism Day because, there is no communication from the government. So, we had to take our destinies in our own hands. Our effort here is to promote domestic tourism.

“I am very excited with the young tour operators in our midst as they are the future of this industry. Many of them may not be making much money now because they are just doing it out of passion.

Passion should lead to fortune. That is why I am urging the government of Nigeria to provide subsidized buses and coaches to help their efforts in packaging tours.

Domestic tourism must lead to inbound tourism; but if not, then, it’s not fulfilling its mission,” he said.

The Daily Times gathered that the cruise kicked off from the Tarzan Jetty Lekki Expressway through Lagos Five Cowrie Creek with breathtaking views of Banana Island, Osborne, Oba of Lagos Palace, Ebute-Ero, 3rd Mainland Bridge, Bonny Camp and Apapa dockyard down to the Oba of Ilashe Town, HRM Oba Fatai Akinwunmi, the Onilashe of Ilashe Kingdom.

The monarch received the tour operators and Executive of NATOP with gladness. He explained that he expects that after this visit the number of tourists coming into Ilashe would have increased tremendously.

He admonished the younger tour operators and youths to, “To engage in meaningful endeavours to get wealth and avoid engaging with bad gangs with a get-rich-quick syndrome.”

The Lagos Boat Cruise continued to Inagbe Beach resorts along the creek; and members of the cruise had lunch at Inagbe Resort, where they were entertainment by Salsa and hip-hop dancers.

Responding lately, the Managing Director, Leadway Tours & Travel Ime Udo said that the trip was wonderful, beautiful and it has actually promoted tourism.

We have actually explored and showcased some of what we have in Nigeria. “We are not Looking on the land now we are coming out of the beach.

We choose the creek cruise so that we can explore and know that we just don’t have tourism products on the land we also have right down the creek as you can see we have cultural area, as you can see we have gone to visit Oba to appreciate the cultural aspect of tourism.

We came here to the resort so that we can appreciate the ecosystem, we can appreciate the beauty nature. Tourism is visually, it is not about talk. Let us work the talk. So we choose to make this day different.

Udo who therefore requested the government to tap into sustainable tourism, equally said out that “I am going to use the Inagbe Beach Resort as an instance , this is a resort that promotes not just the ecosystem not only the natures, not just the beauty, not just the ocean view but indeed quiet serene nature.”

According to her government should begin to look into sustainable tourism, see what they can promote all these aspect of tourism, so that tourism becomes indeed as we always say a tool for development.

In her reaction, Mrs. Nneka Moses of Goge Africa said that, “We know that government has a lot in their hands, but they need to make out time and pay a little more attention to tourism. Nigeria will be better off for it.” She also praised the efforts of the organizers.

Mr. Michael Balogun of Tour2Nigeria, with excitement appreciated the effort from the organizers, while expecting the government should be sincere and practical in resolving several issues discouraging inbound tourism into Nigeria which he believes they already know from some of the interactions and engagements with them.

Mrs. Bolaji Mustapha, responding to the event said, “We decided to do something different from what we have done in the past. We have done road trip many times, so, we thought it a great idea to do a water cruise. Next time, we should be doing it with helicopters!.

“We are not getting the support we should from government. But, we just have to push ourselves. We are the critical stakeholders in this industry. So, we need to not give up, but continue to push ourselves. No one is going to do it for us if we do not do it”, she said.

World Tourism Day has been celebrated since 1980 on September 27, the day in which the statutes of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) entered into force.

It is worthy of note that the day September 27 for World Tourism Day was first mooted by a Nigerian, Mr. Ignatius Atigbi.