The Gambia Experience aims to dispel Ebola fears

The Gambia Experience launched its new brochure last week amid hopes of attracting interest from agents for its range of wildlife tours to the West African nation after the disease struck the region in December 2013.

Product manager Karen Durham said that the operator, which also runs trips to neighbouring Senegal, was “working closely” with agents to dispel fears travellers may have since the outbreak that claimed almost 30,000 lives on the continent – despite Gambia itself not recording any cases of the virus.

“The whole of West Africa was tainted even though only four countries actually had Ebola,” Durham told TTG. “It did have a dramatic effect on bookings, which we could appreciate and we understood why people were cautious of going to the destination and why the trade were cautious of sending their clients there.

“Now that the virus is under control, it’s important for us to continue working closely with the trade to show that Gambia is safe and get the message out there with agents who can reassure travellers.

“Our overall sales are recovering and are now up by 20% from last year, and in many ways Gambia is having a resurgence and is an under-visited winter sun destination.”

Reinforcing its plans to market the country, the operator will take up to 20 agents on a fam in November and is running webinar training schemes throughout the year.

On top of that, The Gambia Experience has also introduced complimentary private transfers for Titan Airways Star Plus travellers and added an extra flight from Birmingham with Thomas Cook Airlines.

Furthermore, the operator continues to offer two birdwatching tours led by nature broadcaster Chris Packham.

“Chris loves the destination and it’s a fantastic place for bird watching. He’s been working with us for 10 years and on his tours clients get a great opportunity to see so many different species,” added Durham.