Africa: A Traveler’s Guide to the Destinations and Hotels of the Second Largest Continent

Map of Africa credit: wikitravel.org

Africa is the second largest and second most populous continent in the world. It covers an area of 30,370,000 square kilometers and has a huge population of 1.2 billion. It is right behind the Asia continent in terms of both population and area. Algeria and Seychelles are Africa’s largest and smallest countries respectively. Nigeria is the most populous and South Africa, Kenya, Egypt, Ghana, Morocco, are some of the other populous countries or dependent territories located in Africa. Lagos, Cairo, Johannesburg, Dar e Salaam, Casablanca, Nairobi, Accra, are some of the largest cities of Africa.

Africa is experiencing growth in its economy. It is the world’s second fastest growing economy, and tourism is one of the main factors for that impressive growth. An amount of above 30 million tourists visit Africa every year. The number of visitors is increasing rapidly with every passing year. Wildlife expeditions being the prime attraction for most of the tourist but there are much more to experience in Africa. UNESCO has declared 131 sites in Africa as Heritage sites. Among them 85 are cultural sites, 40 are natural sites, and the remaining six sites are mixed. These heritage sites are located in 37 countries in Africa.

Though there are several hindrances in the tourism sector and maintenance of the heritage sites, African tourism is showing no sign of stopping to grow further. According to a recent report, Johannesburg, Nairobi, Cairo, Accra, Lagos are some of the top business destinations of Africa. Morocco, Egypt, and South Africa are the three major destinations for international arrivals. The hospitality service in Africa hotels is commendable. It also results in Africa’s tremendous growth in the economy.

Hospitality and exceptional service are not enough to maintain the reputation of a hotel among the visitors. The hotels need to improve technology and ensure user-friendly access to them. They need to be able to accommodate more people. With all the obstacles, the African countries are trying their best to attract more tourists in their destination spots and hotels.

South Africa is the first African country that comes to mind which is known for its modern hotels and inns. There is no scarcity of the best hotel in Cape Town South Africa, and the reason for them being the best among the rest is their upgraded technology. Though they still have a long way to go to satisfy their global travelers by being rich in technology, the commencing is more than positive. They are unbeatable in hospitality service and some of the South Africa hotels Cape Town are majestic and iconic. Add the latest technologies in different facilities of the hotels and the hotels will soon step towards the global competition.

As we are talking about of Cape Town, Johannesburg is not too far behind in terms of well-constructed hotels with amazing hospitality services and technologies. Johannesburg is among the popular business destinations. There are several top hotels in Johannesburg which have efficiently organized international business events. The hotels are affordable, nicely decorated, have spas and all the technological facilities like automated check-in/out, wifi, entertainment systems like HD TV, speaker system, laptop, tablet and offers modern security as well.

The hotels in Johannesburg airport are no less. So, if the reason for ignoring a stay in hotels near the airport is the assumption of underwhelming service, then it is an invalid reason. The hotels are as well-equipped as all the other popular hotels in the cities, and then there is a bonus of no chance of missing flights.

Nairobi is one of the fastest growing cities in East Africa and also the capital of Kenya. The inns and hotels in Nairobi Kenya are luxurious and won many local and international awards for their hospitality, facilities, rooms, and foods. Nairobi is also known as the location of many multinational companies and organizations. The hotels have successfully organized many international conferences and events.

Not only business hotels, but it also has some of the best honeymoon hotels. The serene destinations here make it the best option for spending the most precious days of a couple’s life. The hotels in Nairobi are planning to add more than two and a half thousand rooms in their hotel chains for accommodating more visitors.

Egypt is among the three top attractions of Africa. Cairo being the capital of Egypt has some of the most beautiful destinations to visit and experience. It is set on the River Nile. Pyramids of Giza, The Egyptian Museum, Al-Azhar Mosque, the church Old Cairo, the monumental statues on Valley of the Kings, Kom Ombo temple, Downtown Cairo are some of the destinations which scream diversity of Africa. It has hotels of every kind. Cairo hotels Egypt has a range of luxurious, mid-range to the more budget-friendly ones. Then there are hotels right beside the Nile river.

There are plenty of 5-star hotels all over the city. So, for the people who can afford expensive rooms and suites has options to choose the from the best hotels in Cairo Egypt. Same goes for the limited budgets hotels where the service is top notch without being pricey. Cairo is a big city so traveling can consume a lot of time. So, those who are apprehensive about missing the flight can opt for the hotels near the airport one day prior. The hotels in Cairo airport have a few minutes walking distance. They have pools, food, and beverage venues, well-facilitated rooms, top hospitality service.

Other than South Africa, Egypt, Kenya – Morocco, and Ghana are also known for stunning attractions. Morocco’s capital is the port city of Casablanca. It is also the largest city in Morocco. Hassan II Mosque, Central Market of Casablanca, Twin Center, Morocco Mall, Casablanca Cathedral, and La Corniche are the most popular destination spots of Casablanca, Morocco. The hotels in Casablanca mostly handle and arranges events and conferences related n business as it is the commercial hub of Morocco. Marrakech and Agadir are the other two cities which are extremely popular among tourists.

Coming to Ghana, Accra is its capital. Labadi Beach, Independence Arch, National Museum of Ghana, Osu Castle are some of the top places to visit in Accra, Ghana. The luxury hotels in Accra Ghana are high end and secure. The cheaper hotels are much more affordable than the rest in Africa and offer top class service in a low price range.

Even after being the second largest continent, it is struggling due to different reasons and challenges. It is trying to overcome the struggles and is maintaining a balance in its economy. But the impact of hindrances is so hard that it is taking huge time.  However, the future is very bright for the African economy especially the tourism sector. A well-thought plan of maintaining the destination spots and adding more attractions to them, proper execution of that plan, also opting for modern technologies and substantial infrastructures will surely take African tourism a long way which will eventually benefit the whole African economy.