Harare — ZIMBABWE today takes its tourism tapestries to Moscow, Russia, as it continues to seek new markets and bolster tourist arrivals.

Another team of tourism marketers is also leaving the country tomorrow for the Melbourne Tourism Fare in Australia. The fair runs concurrently with the Russian exhibition.

Zimbabwe Tourism Authority chief executive Mr Karikoga Kaseke is leading a delegation of tour operators, hoteliers and hunting concession operators to the Moscow International Travel and Tourism show, Russia's premier international trade event for travel and tourism industry scheduled for March 15-22.

In an interview yesterday, Mr Kaseke said the trip to Russia was part of ZTA's quest to double tourist arrivals by 2010.

"This is the second time Zimbabwe is attending a travel fair in Russia, having attended MITT last year. Participation at the ITM was at the invitation of the Federal Republic of Russia, which is also keen to assist Zimbabwe in opening and setting up a tourist office in Russia.

"Participation at the two tourism exhibitions is in line with the National Tourism Development and Marketing Strategy objective to increase national tourist arrivals from both the traditional and new markets from 1,5 million to over three million by 2010. Russia is one of the targeted markets supplying over 700 000 tourist to Africa annually while at the same time Russia has big spenders, especially in hunting of which Zimbabwe has some of the best hunting places in the world," said Mr Kaseke.

The participation in Russia comes hardly at a time when ZTA participated at the Fatur Tourims Exhibition in Spain (January 28 to February 2 2008), the Tourism Fair in Germany (March 6-9 2008) and the Bosa Internationale Tourisma in Italy, last week.