I want to express my profound gratitude to everyone who attended this Meetup! It was fun to ‘not just be’ able to travel virtually but to ‘know how to’ travel to the places we might have put on our bucket list for years with no clear vision on how to reach those places.
In this make-believe Tourism meetup, we (Local Guides) acted like ‘Tour Agents’, created ‘Tour Agencies’ and provided ‘prospective clients’ (Local Guides Attendees) with convincing Tour packages containing mouth-watering discounts and offers that awakened in all the desire to travel and see these places as soon as the COVID-19 Pandemic travel ban is lifted!
- The opening Presentation was from ‘Sophia Fusion Travel & Tours’ from one of the three hosts; Sophia who took us straight to Israel; the most exciting places you should look out for if ever you were to book a ‘Holy Land Pilgrimage’.
- Next, ‘Nyai Travel Style’ present to us; “Love Earth Green Heart Sukabumi,Indonesia” presented by our beloved Connect Moderator; Nyai who took us to breath-taking places in and around Sukabumi, Indonesia
- Next, we had our beloved Guiding Star; a.k.a. Mom Local Guide; Devi Dimitra who took us straight to the most exciting places to see in the Jakarta City Center
- Next, we had “Alpha Tours” who took us to Banjul, Senegambia and some other exciting parts of Gambia; the Smiling Coast of Africa
- Finallly, we had 'Travel Ventures Corps’ presenting to us; "Blissful Kodaikanal Break". The presentation was made by Salmaan who took us to one of the places he loves to visit the most! A place he has visited close to 5 times; Kodaikanal. The Presentation was prepared by Ajit Thite but presented by Salmaan as Ajit was unavoidably absent at the time.
At the end of it all, we played games related to tourism with our Credit cards, ATM cards, Passports, Cellphones, Country flags, wide-brimmed hats, etc.
It was an informative, unique and exclusive meetup.
Here is a link to the Photo Album; Tourism
Here is the link to the video on Youtube; Tour the World with the Greatest Local Guides of all time!
Please read on for more juicy details and let me know what you think.
Thank you.
THE TOURISM MEETUP
The Meetup began with the introduction of every one present and the Hosts;
- Sophie Menuse @sophie_fusion
- Shreeya Barai @Shreeya_99
- Rahmat Harman @RahmatHarmanP
- Ewaade
Left- Right: Sophie, Shreeya, Rahmat
After the introduction, we kickstarted the Meetup with the Introduction and Brief History of the Topic; Tourism
Tourism by Sophia Menuse
The United World Tourism Organization defines tourism as the; "social, cultural and economic phenomenon that entails the movement of people to countries or places outside their usual environment for personal or business or professional purposes. Also, Tourism can be defined as; travelling to another place for not more than one consecutive year for purposes other than seeking employment.
We learnt these from the presentation;
- Tourism is the world’s biggest industry and employs about 10% of the World’s workforce.
- World Tourism Day is celebrated on the 27th of September every year.
- The difference between Travel and Tourism. Travel is only a component of Tourism.
Forms of Tourism
- Inbound Tourism
- Outbound Tourism
Types of Tourism (Based on purpose of travel)
- Leisure
- Business
- Education
- Cultural and Heritage activities
- Special interest (Dark or Volunteer Tourism)
- Religious activities etc.
Types of Tourism (Based on personal interest)
- Nature-based
- Eco-tourism
- Adventure
- Shopping
- Sports
- Gaming
- Medical
Sophie capped up the presentation with; "There is a world out there waiting to be explored, dream without limits" to a cheerful applause. 
Shreeya’s Presentation
Tourism is such an important industry for a developing country, because it helps in generating income for that country. This has been seriously affected by the pandemic.
As a Local Guide, you should support Local Tourism in your community. Like, in Maharashtra, there are families who run local tourism businesses, who show people around the ancient places, places still constructed out of wood, if you visit such places, you should add them to maps to create awareness and to support the Local Business owners.
When you find a place of interest, save them, you can also create a list which you can choose to publish or keep private. Your list needs not only be about restaurants and hotels. Saving Places also helps to remember them, especially if they are foreign places you will like to tour or go for any other purpose mentioned like education.
PRESENTATION
In this meetup, we tried to do something different, where; Local Guides will create ‘Tour Agencies’ and make dummy presentations which consists of a ‘Tour Package’ which they pitched to ‘prospective Clients’ (Attendees) for ‘purchase’.
This section was both the highlight and the most fun-filled part of the meetup, as we travelled virtually around the world, got to ‘strike off’ places off our bucket lists as we learnt about;
- Cost
- Requirements
- Important places to visit
- Hosting rights
Sophie kicked off the presentation as one of the Hosts.
The HOLY LAND TOUR by SOPHIE FUSION TRAVELS & TOURS - by @Sophie
Location - Israel
Israel is a very small, yet powerful and well known nation, that has Tourism as its mainstay. They have a very good economy, diamond and good agricultural industries boom here.
Major Industry
Tourism is the major industry for this country.
ITINERARY -7days, 6 nights
- Day 1- Visit to Mount Nebo; where Moses viewed the Promised land before he died. Visit to Monastery of St. George
- Day 2 - Amman, Petra. - One of the UNESCO Heritage sites. visiting for sight-seeing and for dinner
- Day 3 - Crossing the border to Israel, from where we will see the Jordan river. From there, we will go to Tiberias.
- Day 4- We will be in Tiberias where we see the Mount of Beatitudes. There is a Church here, there is also a synagogue here. It is one of the ancient places that people believed Jesus preached. People go here for prayers and meditation. From there, we go to the Church of the first miracle The Wedding Cana Church
- Day 5 - we visit University of Haifa, Haifa city, Mount Carmel, Church or Church of Saint John the Baptist, Church of the Visitation, Ein kerem, Caesarea, and all the other Churches within that site.
- Day 6 - On Day 6, we go to Jerusalem, where we visit; Pater Noster church, Dominus Flevit Church, Chapel of the Ascension, Mount of Olives, Gethsemane, Rock of the Agony, etc. From here, we visit the Dead Sea; which is the lowest point on the earth and it may interest you to know that; it is a natural spa as many delightfully take a mud bath as the sea mud is believed to be very therapeutic.
- Day 7 - we visit; St. Anne’s Church, Via Dolorosa, Bethsaida pool, Church of Nativity, Shepherd’s field, Lazarus’ tomb.
It was a powerful presentation that covered everything, down to flight costs!!! You have to watch the video to catch up on that of you are interested in going to Israel.
ATTENDEES PRESENTATION
Nyai Nurjanah @Nyainurjanah
LOVE EARTH, GREEN HEART SUKABUMI, INDONESIA by Nyai Travel Style
Sukabumi in Bahasa language, Indonesia means; Suka - Love, Bumi - Heart.
So, we will be touring Sukabumi with Nyai!
Itinerary
The exciting thing about Nyai’s itinerary is all the places listed can be visited at little or no cost!
- Situ Gunung Suspension Bridge
This is the longest suspension bridge in South-East Asia. It is 150metres long and 100 metress above ground level. The ticket costs $5.
- Kasepuhan Ciptagelar
it is a cultural village still in existence. The interesting thing about this place is; Food is absolutely free! Rice is not for sale here because selling of Rice is forbidden here, so, everyone that comes in here has food for free.
- Pelabuhan Ratu Beach
This is a long line beach with blue wave. A very nice beach to swim or relax or to jump! Also, it is rarely crowded.
- Vihara Widhi Sakti
This place is a proof that; Sukabuminese are highly tolerant people and welcome all religions. In Sukabumi, the religion is predominantly Islam. However, here in Vihara, you have the Buddhist temples, primarily for the Chinese.
CRASH PRESENTATION BY RADJA (OF JAKARTA, INDONESIA) AND SAIDUL (OF BANGLADESH, WHO RESIDES IN MALAYSIA) 
-How a Local Guide can better help you navigate your tour and play host to you during your vacation
We had a crash presentation by @Radjasitanggang and @Saidulkarim where Saidul described how Radja was able to help him cut costs during his visit to Indonesia as he played Tour Guide to him. He also mentioned how Devi helped him to make a list of places to visit. So, safe to say; if you intend touring, try to see if there are Local Guides on ground to put you through.
In this photo, we have Radja (taking the Selfie), Saidul, and Devi. It was so interesting listening to them, you can tell from @doc_dells expression.
**DEVI DIMITRA’S PRESENTATION by @Ddimitra **
JAKARTA CITY CENTER ‘MUST VISIT’
The unique thing about this package is that; the tourist destinations are close to each other.
- Museum Nasional Indonesia
- National Monument
- National Library
- Istiqlal Mosque
- Jakarta Cathedral
- National Gallery, Indonesia
- Taman Lapangan Banteng Park
- National Museum, Indonesia
Entrance Ticket - 5,000 rupiah
- National Monument
Entrance Ticket - 5,000 rupiah
- National Library
This is right across the National Monument and it is free to visit.
- Istiqlal Mosque
Right beside the National Library is this magnificent mosque. It is the biggest mosque is South-East Asia! If you visit Indonesia, you must visit the Istiqlal Mosque. The newly renovated mosque now has a a garden for refreshments, and side walks. Some piece of clothing is provided to Tourists who do not come properly dressed.
- Jakarta Cathedral
Some few metres away from the Mosque is the Roman Catholic Cathedral. What’s there not to love about this Gothic architectural style?! It is one of the oldest Churches in Jakarta
- National Gallery, Indonesia
In here, you can see a lot of exhibitions, a lot of Art Pieces about Indonesia. It’s free to visit this place.
- Taman Lapangan Banteng Park
This is a Public Park, it is free to visit. It has a fountain and is a cool place to take walks and pictures.
Next Presentation was by Alpha Sumareh @AlphaSays who never misses an opportunity to show off his beautiful Gambia, especially the city of Banjul.
A WEEK AT THE SMILING COAST BY ALPHA TOURS
Alpha gave such a fantastic presentation that covered everything! Flight costs, passport requirements, activities offered that covered; entertainment, feeding, experiencing local cuisine, guided tours, etc.
He also drew our attention to what an Ecostay is. Have you ever stayed at one? Do you know what an Ecostay is?
Day 1- Senegambia - is the heart of the Gambia, the heart of Tourism, that is like the central core of entertainment in the Gambia. The most spectacular beaches are in this place.
Day 2 - Banjul/Bakau Tour- here, you have the Crocodile pool in Bakau. Banjul is the capital, there you will find the Albert market, where you can buy souvenir items to take back home with you
Day 3 - ‘Walk with the Lions’ in Banjul - if you want to experience this, Banjul is the place
Day 4 - Rural Gambia - We go all out to see the rural villages which offer exotic lifestyle in Gambia.
Day 5 - River Gambia Boat trip. The reason Gambia is so named is because of this River that spreads across the country. You could fish along the trip too.
Day 6 - 'Events and culture - You shouldn’t come to the Gambia without experiencing the culture; the African dances, the nightlife, etc.
Day 7 - tailored according to your preferences.
All the places presented are accessible. Alpha himself had organized a meetup at one of the locations and ensured that all the restaurants there got Wheelchair accessible ramps. The Government has also put a law in place to make all the Tourist center locations accessible to all peoples irrespective of their state.
Next to Present was**Ajit Thite @AjitThite **. Ajit had sent in his presentation but was unable to make it to the meeting, so @SalmaanN presented for him instead. Even though it was impromptu and a spur-of-the-moment decision to make, Salmaan delivered excellently like the Pro he is 
BLISSFUL KODAIKANAL BREAK BY TRAVEL VENTURE CORPS
(3 days, 2 nights)
Kodaikanal is located in Tamil Nadu and is the most visited place in South India. It is close to Kerala.
Spots to See;
- Kodaikanal Lake which is an artificial Lake.
- Coaker’s Walk
- Guna Caves
- Kodaikanal Pine Forest
KODAIKANAL LAKE
The special thing about this lake is that; once you get into the hills, the climate changes, you have to see a picture to understand this effect. There is also a bicycle rental service here that gives you freedom to travel the lenght of the lake and explore like a local.
COAKER’S WALK
It has an amazing view! You can see the Sunset and Sunrise here. It has a pedestrian walk, from here you can view the surrounding hills, valley and the Pambar river.
GUNA’S CAVES
The Guna’s caves is located between three large boulders. It is a very dangerous cave to see. A movie has been shot in here and everyone keeps wondering how they managed visibility. There are also several turns in the cave.
PINEWOOD FOREST
Many movies have been shot here as well both in Bollywood (Hindi Movies of North India) and Kollywood (Tamil cinema of South India). The forest is only filled with Pine trees. You can also go for photo shoots here.
With less than $10 you can visit all the places here.
To take pictures with Phones, it is free, but if you want to use a professional camera, you have to pay for it.
The best time to visit is between September and December especially between September and October.
CONCLUSION
Are you entertained? Are you informed? If you are, please leave a comment and what’s better than that? Please leave a picture of your most favorite tourist attraction/destination of either one you have visited or one on your bucket list (one you hope to visit).
I will be in the comments waiting for you…
how did I miss your name 
Thank you for being such an awesome attende