When the then Cross River State government radically decided to strike on a new trail far from the conventional track other state governments were following, many saw the effort as a little elitist far removed from reality.
The vision was complicated, yet simple. Even a blind man, on stepping on the soil of Cross River State feels the vibe of peace and relaxation. In many places, a huge amount of money is spent to create an artificially ambience whereby the people and their environment are at peace with nature. In Cross River, it is a natural phenomenon. The people, the landscape and vegetation create a kind of symphony that make visitors lower their guards and bask in the positive the state emits.
The tourism endowments in Cross River State are diverse and scattered all over the state. Some are more than a five-hour drive apart. But in between those that separate by distance are other spectacular sites and tourism products that leave a visitor’s jaw dropping.
Calabar was once the colonial capital of what is known as Nigeria today. It is a treasure trove for adventure tourists who want to enjoy an admixture of history, culture and eco-tourism. A few kilometres from Calabar is one of the most ambitious tourism projects in Africa, the Tinapa. It has not fully taken off, but it is a place worth visiting. A stay at the Lakeside Hotel within the Tinapa complex is an experience of its own. The hotel has a wonderful view of the creeks behind, of course, the leftover of the vast rainforest complex was carved out of.
The culinary experience in Lakeside is one that befits the status of Calabar as Nigeria’s capital of palate. A town where food preparation and service are an art. Other exciting places one could visit in Calabar include Marina and national museum.
Of course, the flagship product for tourism in Calabar is the annual one-month festival, the Carnival Calabar. Reputed to be Africa’s biggest street party, the distinct thing about the Carnival Calabar is that like every other carnival all over the world, there is boisterousness, colour, glitz and revelry. The difference is in the African costuming, dance steps and music, making it distinct from any other Carnival the world over. It normally takes place every December 27.
From Calabar to Obudu is about six hours by road. While the distance between Calabar is long, but to the knowledgeable, it an adventure as there are many important tourist sites scattered along the route.
The Agbokim Water Falls, up on a hill top and gushing down into deep valley with thick rainforest all around, it is idyllic and therapeutic.
In Obudu Mountain Resort, Cross River State comes close to literally having a heavenly paradise. As one drives up the mountain, the beauty unfolding is not something one could easily be captured in words. There are so many to capture: the undulating green hills that spread out as far as one’s eyes could go, the lush green vegetation, the surreal serpentine road that snakes up towards the mountain top. Obudu also has the longest cable car in Africa. Gliding on the cable car, one feels like flying on a magic box.
These are the products on offering in Cross River State, but it one thing to have an exciting destination and another having a tour management company in place to provide a seamless travel package for those desirous of having the experience of these exciting destinations. This is where a company, Remlords Group, in partnership with the hospitality and tourism facility owners in Cross River State last year, came up with an online travel portal: Experience Cross River.
It is an end-to-end travel portal that provides packages for local and international tourists wishing to visit Cross River. Through the Experience Cross River portal, individuals, couples, families or groups can choose comfortable tour packages. The Experience Cross River travel portal that was launched last year is gradually revolutionizing the Nigerian tourism industry and, most especially, it has made the tour of Cross River more rewarding and easy.
The Experience Cross River recently marked its first anniversary with a success story to tell. Mr. Nkereuwem Onung , the Managing Director of Remlords Group had this to say: “The online portal of Cross River State gives visitors tourism packages to come and experience the tourism assets of Cross River State. It is one year we began the journey. We like to thank God for what he has done so far. We will like to salute the governor of Cross River State, Senator Liyel Imoke, for courage and will to sustain the tempo of tourism activities in Cross River State. It is pertinent to thank the governor creating a friendly environment for public-private partnership for tourism to thrive in state.
“In just one year of the Experience Cross River, we have received over 2,000 visitors and hosted major conferences for both local and international organisations and groups through the portal because when you say you want to come to Cross River, how do we get there, who do you talk to? All you need is get to the portal and you are going to find packages, you are going to find whatever you want that enable you experience this great destination. But we are channelling our support for Cross River State Tourism as flagged off by His Excellency Governor Liyel Imoke.
“Today, the government has set up Cross River Tourism which is a medium where the government and the private sector interact to be able to move tourism in the state forward because the private sector people are the people who will drive tourism. Government only creates the enabling environment. Everywhere you find government doing anything about tourism, you can be sure it will never succeed.
“What we are doing today is to reaffirm our support for Cross River State Tourism as principal partners.”
The leader of hoteliers in Cross River State, Mr. Charles Ogar, talking about the impact of Experience Cross River to the destination, praised the Remlords Group for initiative.
He called on them to include more hotels in the list of hotels the portal is advertising on its platform, promising that they would work towards raising the standards of the hotels in the state.
The Managing Director of the Cross River State Tourism Bureau, Mr. Michael William, spoke on the positive outlook of tourism in the state and the contribution of the private sector: “When I came here six years ago in 2007, and I saw all that Cross River State had to offer, the immense potential that was here, I wanted to be a part of it. I also saw a government which was very particular about tourism, pushing to start the tourism and I wanted to see the private sector take up the challenge and move ahead.
“It was the single biggest gap that we had in Cross River. What I have been able to see manifest is how far the private sector has come of age.”
The publisher of the African Travel Quarterly (ATQ) and organizer of the annual West African travel fair, Mr. Ikechi Uko, also commended the group for the Experience Cross River as it has helped the industry in the area of data collection. Uko said the country’s tourism reception has grown, but many Nigerians are sceptical about this due to lack of data to back this claim in some cases.
He said with the initiative of Remlords Group, it is easy to measure the state’s tourism receipt as the figures given by Remlords are back by verifiable facts.
The Experience Cross River portal has shown how serious the business of tourism is in the state. It would help in growing the local market. It shows factually that the efforts that the state government is putting towards growing the tourism industry is bearing fruits.
With the budgeoning industry, the Federal Government owes it as a duty to help the industry grow by providing the necessary infrastructural facilities. The first is road. The Calabar-Obudu Road is one of the biggest hindrance to Obudu Mountain Resort achieving its full potential.
