The East Africa Tourism Platform (EATP) has announced the East Africa Destination web portal as part of its joint regional tourism promotion and COVID-19 recovery efforts. Through the www.visiteastafrica.net portal, tourists are able to plan and book tourist packages and offers from service providers of the region’s various tourist attractions in Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. The portal has a My Trip-Planner function that allows tourists to check for tour packages and operators to provide quotations for selected packages. Tourists can also find information on this portal, and can easily apply for the East Africa Single Tourist Visa. Created under the stewardship of the countries’ tourism boards, the shared platform was put in place to enable tourists have access to credible travel information on services to the region and also for travel trade operators to place their multi-country packages promoting the East Africa region as a single tourist destination. Over 830 regional tour operators and travel agents are already registered on the platform as the region joins efforts to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic. More travel operators are welcome to join the platform at no cost by registering through their respective country tour associations. Speaking on the platform launch, the EATP Chairperson, Mr Fred Odek, said: “The introduction of the portal will allow regional stakeholders to market to domestic, regional and international visitors directly. We are in discussions with more stakeholders from the other EAC countries to join the platform.” Mr. Odek noted that the platform will be enhanced to include an option for tourists to provide online reviews for places visited and an e-learning system for East Africa travel specialists. Anataria Karimba, Director of Business Competitiveness at TradeMark East Africa noted: “The platform will facilitate tourists from across the world to access information on products, experiences, and destinations in the Eastern Africa region all in one place; enhancing the availability of information in the region and accessibility to the tourism supply chain.” TradeMark East Africa is a key partner of the EATP and supports the platform under its regional Tourism Export Capability Programme. About the East Africa Tourism Platform (EATP) The East Africa Tourism Platform (EATP) is a regional private sector body for tourism in East Africa, set up with the support of TradeMark East Africa in 2011 after extensive consultations with tourism stakeholders to facilitate active and focused engagement of the Private Sector in the East African Community (EAC) Regional Integration process. The vision of creating and promoting a vibrant and diverse single tourism destination is the driving force. The platform works closely with national ministries responsible for tourism, hospitality, wildlife, transport portfolios, the EAC Secretariat, Trade Mark East Africa, East African Business Council and private sector organizations in all the member states to promote intra- and inter-regional tourism. About the East Africa Destination Portal The www.visiteastafrica.net portal unveils a range of tourism opportunities in East Africa, i.e. Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda. It keeps abreast of the latest news and announcements of East Africa and the different tour packages. EATP won the trust of Tourism Ministries of Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda; to oversee joint marketing of these countries. EATP was entrusted with the development and maintenance of the East Africa Tourism Portal. The site features information about the Single Tourists Visa, various tourist attractions, cuisine, offers and different experiences you can get in East Africa. It will make it easier for people to navigate and find a range of offers within the region and enable business owners to connect with tourists. An estimated 2,000 regional tour operators and 10,000 users are expected to start using the platform.
