Sunday, February 17, 2013

Arusha accommodation classifications


Once and for all putting an end to the accommodation classification confusion for customers visiting Arusha Tanzania.  The city is known by many tourists around the world to be E.Africa's capital safari hub and is also home to the most popular accommodations in Tanzania.  While blessed with hundreds of thousands of tourists coming to our city every year efforts to sustain the demand there has led to a rush of  entrepreneurs taking advantage by building accommodations all around the city.  In the past tourist had no choice but to have their tour companies place them in accommodations wherever they saw fit, well all that has changed  and for the first time customers have a choice on where to stay in Arusha, what type of accommodation is perfect for their needs, budget and standard.  So vital is this process that most experienced tourists may even swear it is this choice that sets a tone for the whole Tanzania safari experience.  Make a good choice you are in for a treat, make a mistake and your Tanzania visit is a disaster before it even begins.
And so according to the various Arusha accommodations, this is the information tourists can use as a road map to get familiar with the big 3 classifications of accommodations mainly hotels, lodges/  b&b and guest houses.

Hotels
Most have a full time reception personnel, more that 15 rooms, various en suite bedrooms, room service, full time restaurants, inclusive breakfast, sometimes a large garden with a public pool, a public bar, conference facilities, airport transfer (extra charge), Wi-Fi internet(extra charge) and business facilities.  Guests are mainly tourists with few locals.

Lodges and B&B
Full or part time reception personnel, 15 rooms or less, en-suite accommodations and some shared bathrooms, some have room service, some have restaurants(most on part time basis) or breakfast nook, inclusive breakfast, Wi-fi internet (extra charge).  Some have a garden and a pool, some provide airport transfers (extra charge), some have conference facilities, guests are a mix of tourists and locals.

Guest houses 
Full or part time reception personnel, 5 to 10 rooms, mostly shared bathrooms, no restaurant, no room service, no airport transfer, no conference facilities, no pool, no conference facilities, most have no internet access, no business facilities. The guests are mainly locals.

Brought to you by Tumaini Cottage Arusha tourist accommodation, supporting the tourism of our great country of Tanzania.  For all your accommodation needs contact us today.
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Or call us at
255-784-588-698
Or for United States call
317-987-1066
210-268-4166

Saturday, January 12, 2013

2013 Arusha hospitality news updates.

Tanzania tourism has been on the roll in the past few years and Arusha city has been a recepient of this great fortune.The hospitality business has been short of a miracle,the city is experiencing a boom like never before (more than the Tanzanite rush back in the early 90's),this E.African safari capital hub seeing hundreds of thousands a tourist a year has sparked the interests of hundreds of intrepreneurs who have jumped in and started to create a hospitality standard of it's own ,catering for tourists with everything from high end restaurants spreading out like mashrooms,massage parlors with therapists providing inhouse and making outcalls,Coffee shops making a name for themselves using the rich aromatic peaberry Tanzania coffee  and hotels,lodges,Inns and guest houses revamping their facilities and services to accommodate more international clients.These are strategic,exciting and progressive moves that only time will tell the outcome but there's a feeling one gets talking to these hardworking self made business owners, that it's going to  be a boom that last for generations and they are ready to sacrifice it all to rip the benefits.It's been a long time coming but it's music to the ears of the owners of these establishments especially when the tourist board announced that Tanzania is projecting about a million tourist by the  year 2013.Not the best number compared to the neighbouring country but never the less a promising future for our great city.
It's going to be a good year in this business and if you are a tourist and reading this bless us with your visit by getting online and booking a Tanzania safari,volunteering, mountian climbing or just a cultural tour and  if you are a business owner look inside your business and see how you can make the best out of the Arusha tourist boom while it lasts.We all can make a difference welcome to Arusha Tanzania.

Brought to you by Tumaini Cottage Arusha tourist choice accommodation providing quality accommodation, delicious food, excellent customer services and free safari consulting. Book your Arusha accommodation today online at www.tumainicottage.com or call 255-784-588698 and for United States call 317-987-1066.
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Monday, December 10, 2012

3 tricks in choosing a safari company in Tanzania




  Visiting Arusha Tanzania for a safari? Dont stress out..

 Go through online reviews first, with millions of tourists reviewing safari companies daily it’s not a surprise that it is the number one way to get information before choosing a tour company. Your fellow tourists will be real without sugar coating which is very important to know before you open up your wallet. Read multiple reviews to make sure they are unbiased, then visit the company’s website to get a feel of the company, make sure it fits what you want as far as price and dates.F.Y.I (You get what you pay for).

Use your base accommodation/hotels/lodges/bnb's.Another very popular way of planning and choosing a tour company without the headache.Because of the already set connections accommodations are able to hook you up with reputable companies and better rates than you can otherwise get for yourself, they have a reputation to maintain so they will do anything in their power to get you the best at your price. So make sure to explore this option.
     
Family and friends can be one of the best sources before you make that choice. With the power of social media through facebook , twitter, LinkedIn etc, you can just post to your connections and ask them if they have any recommendations ,the outcome might surprise  you, either your friends or their friends might get you inside information obtained only from experienced first hand traveler,so before spending thousands of dollars check out this option.


 Brought to you by Tumaini Cottage Arusha,dedicated in providing quality accommodation,execellent customer services,delicious food and inside information to tourist/tour companies, travel agencies about the hospitality business in Arusha city and Tanzania in general.For more information visit us at www.tumainicottage.com or call us at 255-785-588-698..for United States call 317-987-1066 and 210-268-4166

Sunday, November 11, 2012

4 Main Tourist Complaints about Arusha Accommodations


Arusha City, Tanzania  is becoming the tourist hub of east Africa, serving hundreds of thousands of tourists each year. Because of this tourist boom hundreds of hotel accommodations, lodges, B&B's and restaurants are popping up daily to serve this growing population of adventuresome foreigners.  All this expansion by entrepreneurial locals have led to some interesting difficulties when dealing and interacting with these diverse cultures.And here are the top four main complaints.

1. Language barriers are the first and foremost complaint among tourists that have visited Arusha City, Tanzania.  Yes tourists know that English is not the national language of the land but with Arusha City's worldwide reputation as the capital safari hub of Tanzania, tourists expect locals to speak enough English in hotels, lodges and B&B's to communicate effectively with their guests.

2. Unreliable and high internet prices.  Most travelers, especially first timers, expect to be able to communicate with their home countries using their portable devices.  These folks are happy to pay a little extra for this luxury but find it almost impossible because of  to hefty add-on fees or impractical due to the possibility of paying for the service and not being able to use it at all.

3. Power outages are a frequent occurence in under developed countries and as such is another huge problem for those folks caught unaware.  First of all most tourists understand that they are visiting Africa and so they are prepared for the unknown, it's part of the adventure.  The power plants and infrastructure  dated technology lives alot of room for improvement.  Random blackouts are a common occurance, and even though these problems are not the fault of the business owner and entirely out of their control, quality accommodations should at least have a backup generator to combat the problem.

4. Excessive credit card charges at stores,accommodations and restaurants in Tanzania WILL lead to steep and unexpected fees that wreak havoc on your account.  A majority of tourists come from cultures where carrying $500 in their pocket is essentially unheard of and are in the habit of swiping their credit cards for every purchase.It's a problem that most third world countries are trying to combat and businesses can only do so much to which to their credit are giving it their all.Some accommodation have chosen not to take credit cards to avoid costing their clients those hefty fees and will take you an atm for less charges.


So take a deep breath,relax and do your research,ask questions before booking your accommodation just remember you always get what you pay for, and sometimes paying more does not guarantee the best but also cheap can be very expensive.


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Your Arusha choice accommodation visit us at www.tumainicottage.com or call us at 011-255-784-588-698 or for United States call 317-987-1066 and 210-268-4166. Welcome to Arusha Tanzania "Hakuna Matata" . Join us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tumainicottage Also Like us on our facebook page http://facebook.com/tumainicottage

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Who is really cashing in on Arusha Tanzania tourism?

 
     The answer may surprise you; most people think Tanzanians are becoming overnight multi-millionaires because of the tourism sector which in the past few years has quadruple. Yes there are more tour companies in Arusha city  alone than in many cities combined, yes the tourism sector is the number one employer in Arusha, and yes safari companies, hotels, bnb’s, lodges, Inns  are popin up faster than you can keep up. But the little secret shared by many of the veterans owners of these tour companies, and establishments is, most of the time they  just make enough to pay their overhead, add a car or two a year and just a bit left over for profit which in turn has to be saved for the next travel season.
    So the million dollar question is who really cashing in? The answer may surprise many but it’s just facts, western travel agents, online travel companies, brokers and just a small percentage of Tanzanians who have deep contacts all over the world are the true winners."Sometime keeping profits for  up to 45% then bargaining with small safari companies and accommodations to do the rest" as one tour company operator advised me. It's  job well done by mom and pops safari companies and accommodations doing all they can to make the best out of the Tanzania tourism by training their staff , investing and advertising Tanzania to the world with the little cash they have, but with shady contracts, problematic infrastructure, high taxes, low government support and the global competition which has been fueled by the internet revolution, achieving the multi-millionaire status just engaging in tourism, is a blinking light seen at the end of  a far away tunnel.


Brought to you by Tumaini Cottage Arusha tourist choice accommodation.Supporting responsible tourism in Africa. For all your Arusha accommodation and conference facility needs visit us at www.tumainicottage.com or call us today at 784-588-698 .Join us on facebook at http://facebook.com/tumainicottage or follow us on twitter at http://twitter.com/tumainicottage

Friday, September 14, 2012

Foodie Revolution in Arusha city Tanzania?



Who would have thought that you can have a filet mignon ,Asparagas prosciutto Brushetta  with a Tanzanian red  wine or a chimichanga with a margarita all within Arusha city limits?Well it’s no secret Arusha “The capital tourism  city” of Tanzania has seen it’s rise for the last 20 years,with more hotels, tour companies,Ngo’s , hundreds of people from every corner of the world trying to ride the success of this little city.But the wave in the last 5 years is like no other,if you just drive around Arusha town you will notice a robust of new restaurants serving anything from the traditional popular Nyama choma joints,to Italian pizza’s joints,burger joints and even Mexican cuisine.Tourists can now eat their own country’s cuisine during their safari  in Arusha,with an African twist.More Tanzanians are getting exposed to the international cuisines and learning how to prepare them at home,it’s so exciting for food lovers that some may even call it a foodie revolution in the works. This little city still got it’s problems with infrastructure, power outages, water shortage,  but as all the new restaurant owners will tell you, there’s hope.




Brought to you by Tumaini Cottage  Arusha tourist choice accommodation.travel,learn,volunteer and enjoy Tanzania E.Africa. For all your accommodation and conference needs follow our link or call us at 011-255-784-588-698 or for United States call 317-987-1066 and 210-268-4166

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Ontop of your game in Africa hotel business?



      The 2012 safari season started out slow, but it has finally picked up. There’s still more work to be done, more marketing, more infrastructures to build, more tour agents to bargain with, and more government regulations to follow but at least bills are paid on time and there's hope for a better future.
    Working together to create the best tourism in the country doesn't come without its ups and downs, talking to hoteliers, tour agents and investment owners I have the advantage of obtaining inside information that few have and I’m grateful to share. Looking at the numbers, the headaches, the high interest investment loans it gives you the feeling that the dream of owning and operating hotels, lodges, bnb's,Inns is not always what it's cracked up to be, or is it? .Tourists and traveler agents are now able to research your accommodation and services  with a click of a button and in a few seconds all the images, the amenities, the services and the reputation of the accommodation is displayed for free, Heart attack yet?. This can be dynamite for smart hoteliers’ and their accommodations but it can also be a disaster if you are not on top of your game. This raises the question, what it means being “Ontop of your game in African hospitality business?" Is it having the best location, the most expensive and unique services, the most advanced elevators, TV’s and communication systems that most customers don’t either have the time or electricity is not available for them to use or the daily freebies or wait what freebies?. With more accommodations thriving and depending on tourists coming from overseas, it's sometimes hard to answer that question, just copying and pasting what other accommodations in the world are doing, works only for certain things but not specifically for Africa, taking under consideration the water supply problems, daily power outages, expensive internet access, expensive diary products. We need a better way to express our high end hospitality services the African way, showing our culture through food, art, and quality concierge services, while being innovative and competitive in this multi million dollar market in the heart of Africa.
I encourage anyone who has the finance, knowledge and interested in the hospitality business in Arusha town to jump on the band wagon, build your dream accommodation and create your own unique services, but please do your research first, know the trends and most of all hire the best people to make your business a success, Arusha city has so much to offer it just needs people that will believe in it and those who have, are rewarded with the fruits of their hard work.
Brought to you by www.tumainicottage.com Arusha tourist choice accommodation. Travel,learn,volunteer and enjoy Arusha Tanzania in E.Africa.Contact 011-255-784-588698 and011-255- 715-588698 or info@tumainicottage.com For United States Arusha accommodation contact  317-987-1066  and  210-268-4166