TANZANIA (eTN) - When tourism executives across the world are set to
meet in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi in November this year to discuss
strategies to market African tourism in the United States and other
world markets, there are best tourist attractions in Africa not much
known and needing exposure before the global tourist market.
Executives from the Africa Travel Association (ATA) from New York in
the United States are expected to join other travel trade leaders from
Africa, Europe, and Asia during the 40th Annual World Congress to be
held in Nairobi, come November of this year.
Rich with natural tourist attractions, the African continent receives
about 5 percent of global tourists, despite its unique and attractive
tourist hot spots consisting mostly of wildlife and nature.
Taking a sample of Africa’s unbeatable attractions, there is a
tourist park on this continent where tourists might feel closer to
heaven, as it is both alive and relaxing under the sun, at a higher
altitude with cold weather almost year round, similar to Mediterranean
conditions.
This new park, the Kitulo National Park in the southern highlands of
Tanzania, stands among beautiful and thrilling tourist sites worth a
visit by its natural flowers which botanists compare to those in the
Biblical Garden of Eden.
Not only blossoming flowers, which have attracted a good number of
Japanese tourists to visit this Tanzanian park, but the altitude of
3,000 meters above sea level ranks among Africa’s leading sky parks.
Having its unique flower species which has remained wild since
creation, tourists could also enjoy watching birds singing and migrating
to the highland forests which make the park.
Kitulo Plateau National Park is the latest and a newcomer to
Tanzania’s tourist attractive sites under trusteeship and management of
the Tanzania National Parks. It is the site of one of the world’s great
floral spectacles.
Tourists visiting this park have named it “God’s Garden” by virtue of
its higher altitude and its natural setup as the only park of its kind
in Africa where wild flowers, birds, and harmonious grass-eating mammals
dominate.
Botanists have dubbed it the “Serengeti of Flowers” as it bears
witness to one of the great floral spectacles of the world. This park is
known for its flora and is home to 350 species of vascular plants,
including 45 varieties of terrestrial orchids, many of which are endemic
to Africa’s highlands.
Although sparse in big game, this natural botanical garden is highly
alluring to bird watchers who thrill to sightings of the rare Denham’s
bustard, the endangered blue swallow, mountain marsh widow, Njombe
cisticola, and Kipengere seedeater.
Endemic species of butterfly, chameleon, lizard, and frog further
enhance the biological wealth of “God’s Garden.” Kitulo National Park
stands alone, boasting of being the only tourist attractive site in the
African continent offering floristic visits with traditional wildlife
photographic holidays, which most tourists to Tanzania are used to
experiencing.
Tourists from all corners of the world are now exposed to this park,
ecologists from Tanzania National Parks say. It is perched between the
rugged peaks of the Kipengere, Livingstone, and Poroto Mountains in the
Southern Highlands of Tanzania.
The eminently hikeable park is carpeted in wildflowers for 6 months
of the year, from November to April. There is a documented 350 species
of wild flowers including lilies and fields of daisies.
The park covers 413 kilometers of forest land, dominated with plants
and few wild animals which together form a natural habitat that is
tourist attractive by itself.
Added to its natural attractions and uniqueness, Kitulo Plateau is
the natural resting site for intercontinental migrating birds during
periods of the year on their way to Europe.
It is only in this park where migrating storks rest while flying from Cape Town in South Africa to Northern Europe.
European white storks and other species of storks from Scandinavian
countries via West Africa migrate to brood inside Kitulo Plateau on
their way, flying across the European and African continents every year.
These big attractive birds stop in this park for some months and later
continue with their long journey across the continent.
Kitulo National Park is the only natural habitat area in Africa
perched on the East African massif, much influenced by the Eastern Rim
of the Great Rift Valley which stretches from the Red Sea in Middle East
across north and East Africa to Mozambique in Southern Africa.
To reach this park, visitors pass and climb the scenic plateau
through 57 pin-corners from the Tanzania to Zambia highway. Open walking
safaris through the grasslands watching birds and wild flowers, hill
hiking on the neighboring ranges during the day, gives a visitor
fantastic views of Lake Nyasa at Tanzania and Malawi border.
Wild flowers blossom between December and April, and the summer
months from September to November, are best times to visit the park.
From June to August the entire park is foggy with no visibility during
the daytime, and it is hardly possible to view its beauties.
0 comments:
Post a Comment