daniel chigunwe
Thupeyo Muleya-Beitbridge Bureau
THE Tour de Tuli cycling event in the Greater Mapungubwe Transfrontier Conservation Area encompassing Northern Tuli Game Reserve in Botswana, Tuli National Park and Maramani Communal lands in Zimbabwe, and the Mapungubwe National Park in South Africa has this year drawn 600, people including 335 cycling tourists.
The expedition involves mountain bike tours and seeks to market the GMTFCA as one of the best tourist resorts in the Sadc region.
The cyclists pass through three countries during the course of the event and this year participants came from the United States, Britain, Canada, Germany, Australia, Austria, Italy and The Netherlands as well as from the host countries of South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe.
The annual event, which was introduced in 2009, returned on Tuesday morning after a two-year gap because of Covid 19.
Tour director Ms Bronwen Bunden described the event as a great success and hailed Zimbabwean officials for efficiently handling all the logistical issues as the cyclists passed through the country.
She said they were impressed by Zimbabwe’s conservation systems which have seen the communities being able to get rewards for such efforts and it was pleasing to note that the environmental management was starting at the grassroots level around Zimbabwe’s component of the TFCA.
“We are thrilled to have the many riders coming through into Zimbabwe through an informal border post and leave again for Botswana and back to South Africa via other informal border posts,” said Ms Bunden.
“This event has been a great success considering that we had taken a two-year break due to Covid19-related restrictions”.
The tourists entered Zimbabwe through a temporary border post between Zimbabwe and South Africa on Tuesday morning where they cycled for 70km around the Maramani Communal Lands, and put up at the Shashe Wilderness Camp close to the Tuli National Park.
On the following day, they left for Botswana via another informal border post along the Shashe River. They will leave for South Africa via the Pont Drift port of entry this morning.
The funds raised from the expedition will be channelled towards charity programmes in the participating countries.
“We are planting back into the community everyday through our programmes and we want to make sure the children learn a lot on issues of conservation.
“The hospitality of Zimbabweans is impressive and we are proud to be passing through their component which is rich in wildlife,” said Ms Bunden.
Each participating cyclist pays R24 900 and brings their own bicycles, although some riders managed to get sponsorship.
Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management’s Business enterprise manager for the Matopo region, Mr Partridge Mhembere, said the Tout de Tuli has helped boost arrivals in most parks and within the area, where the expedition is usually held.
He said the tour was also meant to raise more awareness on conversation issues around the communities.
“We hope the communities will benefit from the awareness which comes with such events. In fact, conservation will be the end winner since people now realise its importance.
In addition, sport unites people and at the same time we believe we will be seeing more arrivals judging from the feedback from the cyclists,” Mr Mhembere said.
He said the interest of many tourists to visit Zimbabwe was encouraging and that they will continue reorganising and repackaging the Zimbabwean component of the TFCA.
Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) spokesperson Mr Godfrey Koti said the influx of more than 500 tourists for a single event in just under a week was an endorsement of the country as a destination of choice.
He said the event boosted the country’s MICE tourism concept which is anchored on Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Events, and Expeditions.
“The Tour de Tuli cycling event that we are hosting together with Botswana and South Africa is a massive expedition we are using as a marketing tool for Zimbabwe,” said Mr Koti.
“We are now working together with Zimparks to put together the best tour package in this area.
At the end of this event there are children from this area who will be taken into class in South Africa to learn more on conservation,” he said.
Mr Koti said the authority was hard at work putting the pillars that are required to make the area a destination of choice rather than a transit destination.
The cyclists said they were impressed by the wildlife in Zimbabwe and that they were eager to come back with their families on private visits.
“It is pleasing to interact with the Zimbabwean welcoming community in the Maramani Communal lands. Definitely, I will come back to explore more Zimbabwean facilities. This is my first time here and what make it interesting is the commitment by the three governments to promote tourism around this area,” said a cyclist identified as only Andy.
Mr Gabriel Erasmus from South Africa said there is a lot Zimbabwe could do to introduce more tour packages in its component of the TFCA.
“It’s an honour to be here and the terrain is really good for mountain bike tours,” he said.
Ms Lindy Nieuwemhuizen said Tour de Tuli was helping to build mutual relations with the three hosting governments in areas around conservation and tourism marketing.
Peter Tanyanyiwa
Online Reporter