Harare — SOME sections of European and Asian media have hailed Zimbabwe as a safe tourist destination that is set to regain its position as one of the major players in world tourism.

An Irish newspaper, The Cockman Daily, on Monday published an article saying Zimbabwe was set to become a growth area in years to come.

"When you consider that in just a few years, a country like Croatia has gone from having no tourism, to now being one of the world's most popular destinations. While the numbers travelling to Cape Town have also soured, Zimbabwe will definitely become a major player in the tourism industry," read part of the article.

The paper praised Zimbabwe's tourism facilities.

"Zimbabwe boasts of one of the best hotels in Africa, in Harare, the capital, while there are 15 golf clubs in Harare alone offering facilities to rival many of the world's top clubs."

A British online newspaper, People's Daily Online, last week reported that Zimbabwe's tourism industry was showing signs of recovery.

"The most obvious evidence of the country's recovery is perhaps that the tourist arrivals in Zimbabwe in the first half of this year increased by 33 percent compared with the same period of last year, which means that more than a million tourists visited Zimbabwe during the period.

"Many of the world's famous recreational resorts and sightseeing spots in Zimbabwe have seen an increasing number of visitors since the beginning of the year.

"This has been evidenced by full booking in hotels and lodges in these places at the peak time of tourism in the first half of the year," read part of the article.

The online publication added that the world still recognises Zimbabwe as a safe tourist destination.

"In spite of the campaigns of negative branding by some countries like the United States by issuing travel warnings alarming their nationals not to visit Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe scooped the Global Destination and Most Visited Stand Awards at the Kuwait International Fair in May this year, which was a sign that the international tourism industry recognises Zimbabwe as a secure travel destination," said the People's Daily Online.

The publication also said this was also evidenced by the visit of two Saudi princes, Abdulazziz and Mohammed Salman Al Saud, who were in Zimbabwe for 30 days visiting various tourist attractions in June this year.

Another Chinese newspaper, The Xinhua noted that the royal visit by the Saudi princes showed Zimbabwe had managed to divest the negative image foisted on it by sections of the Western media following the fallout between Harare and London over the land reform programme.

The fieldwork by the paper's reporter during the just ended Zimbabwe International Travel Expo also showed that most of the foreign visitors in Zimbabwe did not view travel warnings against Zimbabwe as genuine.

"My daughter told me that it was dangerous to travel to Zimbabwe but I came and it is safer than any other places I have visited," he wrote.

The publications gave a vote of confidence to Zimbabwe, a major blow for the Western propaganda machinery that tried to erode international tourism confidence in the country.

In August, President Mugabe, along with his Mozambican and South African counterparts, Armando Guebuza and Thabo Mbeki, officially opened the Giriyondo Tourist Access Facility.

It is expected to be a significant step for Zimbabwe as it gears to rebound to the pinnacle of tourism.

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