TANZANIA has been named among 52 places to go this year by the 'New York Times', in a new development that gives a further boost to the country's growing tourism industry.
The American daily newspaper mentions in a recent edition the newly high profile hotels and camp sites in the main tourists attractions of Serengeti National Park, Tarangire, Selous Game Reserve and Ruaha National Park.
The Serengeti National Park, which is a UNESCO heritage site, is famous for its annual migration of over 1.5 million white bearded (or brindled) wildebeest and 250,000 zebra and for its numerous Nile crocodile.
Commenting on the report, the Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Mr Lazaro Nyalandu, told the 'Daily News' that the report was testimony of continued efforts to implement right policies in the tourism sector and fighting against poaching.
"The New York report makes all of us in Tanzania proud. It is a demonstration of our continued efforts to implement the right policies related to tourism and keep us with an on-going battles against poaching," he said.
The desire of the government is to see Tanzania becoming the leading conservation state in the world, he added. The Minister further said the government projected the number of tourist arrivals shooting to two million in the near future and and up to five million by 2020.
"These require sustained investments in hotel and other tourist related infrastructure and we are committed to do that," he said. Zanzibar, a well known tourist hotspot, is also mentioned with the upcoming opening of Park Hyatt Zanzibar, a five-star luxury hotel located in Stone Town.
It further says security fear that affected tourism industry in Tanzania had inadvertently benefited Tanzania. Kenya's tourism sector is currently facing crisis due to security concerns. International tourist arrivals in Kenya decreased from 1.7 million in 2012 to 1.5 million in 2013.
According to the 2014 Economic Survey released in 2014 by the Devolution and Planning Ministry, this decline in international arrivals may be attributed to travel advisories by traditional tourist markets due to security concerns.
"Security fears in neighbouring Kenya have inadvertently worked in Tanzania's favour, as far as tourism goes: Its luxurious new lodges are enticing diverted visitors. The everpopular Serengeti retains its cachet with high-profile openings," the newspaper says.
"Asilia Africa's secluded Namiri Plains property and roving mobile camp Kimondo opened in July, followed by Legendary Expeditions' Mwiba Tented Camp in August, and a revamp of & Beyond Grumeti Tented Camp is slated to be unveiled this April."But the real new treasure here is unprecedented access to sparsely trafficked regions.
Nomad Tanzania opened Kuro amid the baobab-studded landscapes of Tarangire; Azura opened a new camp in southern Tanzania's Selous Game Reserve, home to large concentrations of elephant, wild dog and leopard; while Ruaha, one of Tanzania's largest yet least visited national parks, is now home to Nomad's new Kigelia camp and Asilia's Kwihala.
"Not to be outdone by its bush brethren, the alluring isle of Zanzibar is scaling up its luxury hotel offerings in the form of the coming Park Hyatt Zanzibar."
The 'New York Times' (NYT) which is an American daily newspaper, has won 114 Pulitzer Prizes, more than any other news organization.
The paper's print version remains the largest metropolitan newspaper in the United States and second-largest newspaper overall, behind The Wall Street Journal. It is ranked 39th in the world by circulation.
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