‘My first local tour package was inspiring’

Youth tourism promoters have continued to sprang up in Nigeria, with the newest, making a career in domestic tourism to not only keep themselves busy but also earning a living from the industry low hanging fruits.

One of such is Honeymia Travels and Tour, Evelyn Oyerinde, a graduate of tourism management from the National Open University (NOUN) who recently registered her tour packaging company and packaged her first domestic tour to one of the slave routes in Nigeria, though with a small group but described the experience as poor but encouraging for a more better package tour.

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Oyerinde who took the Badagry slave route destination as her litmus test took her small group to the popular point of no return through the lagoon with a stop over at the well of attornation, to the sea anchorage where slaves were ferry away from the point of no returns to Europe and the America.

She also took the small group on a tour of the Big Abbas Museum where the tour guide, Anago osho of Anago Osho adventure took the tourists on a step-to-step account of the sufferings and tortured most of the slave went through on there way to the journey of the unknown.

While recounting her experience of her first local tour package Evelyn Oyerinde said “reason for the low turnout is mainly because it’s actually my first self organised tour and virtually everyone but few believed I could do it.

“I was given different reasons to cancel or postpone the tour after much publicity. Some said election is in few days while others attributed the low turnout to the hard times experiencing in Nigeria.

When Travelpulse&MICE asked if the unprecedented experience of low turnout will not reduce her passion for the domestic tour, Oyerinde said “I was not discouraged a bit because I felt its the beginning of better package and I expect it to be like that because Rome was not built in a day.

“Maybe I did not use the right platform for my publicity but I used the social media, send messages to some groups even to tourism like minds.

“My next tour would be focusing on heritage and roots. We will be going to Ile Ife to see and hear about the Yoruba roots (Orisun Yoruba) as well as the Edos.

The recently concluded slave route tour was a wonderful experience, something I wish should never end but we have timeline, but I look forward to my next tour. I know it’s going be more educative, fun filled and one of the best.

Yes most of this sites are well kept they have there family representatives there who sees to the well being of the site.