President Obama visited Cooperstown yesterday, May 22, 2014. While there, he signed a memorandum directing his staff to develop plans to cut wait time for foreign visitors at the 15 biggest airports in the US saying of the visitors, “…. They can get to Cooperstown faster.”

For those who do not know, Cooperstown is a small town in central New York where the National Baseball Hall of Fame is. The Baseball Hall of Fame is a museum. Yes people go there from around the world to see a bit of American sports history. Reports are that tourism has declined a bit at the Hall of Fame and thus Obama’s visit. Tourism is a very profitable industry. It brings “free” money in to boost local economy. It is enough to get the President out of Washington. What would Ghana’s President do to boost tourism in Ghana?

Many countries, states, cities, and enterprises depend on tourism. I am sure people have seen young people walking around in Ghana wearing T-shirts with “I love NY” on them. The “I love NY” mantra was a promotion to increase tourism to New York City that worked so well that many states in America emulated it. Jamaica’s only industry is tourism. They do very well with it. Florida, Hawaii, and many states have tourism as a major source of employment and income. They invest in the industry to beget the benefits that it brings. Our investment in tourism is Panafest while tourists dodge fesses at our beaches. I have written past articles on how the government can tap into Ghanaians in the Diaspora to boost tourism. I guess as far as the government goes, my articles fell on deaf ears. It won’t stop me because I love my country too much.

I remember the days when Afro Americans came to Ghana in droves as tourists. At the time, I had a ring side seat working at the Foreign Branch of Ghana Commercial Bank right along High Street. They walked up and down High Street looking at and buying crafts and other goods being sold along the street. I must say that I have had a chance to bring my own family to Ghana and taken the walk along High Street. I have seen a show at Accra Arts Center and have gone to Cape Coast Castle and to Panafest. In the end, I have asked myself, “What does Ghana have for a tourist to want to come.”

Jamaica sells beaches, sun, and fun. Florida is the sunshine state. London sells majesty and pageantry. It is said that in New York City, you can tell who is a tourist by looking for people looking up in the skies. They sell famous places and sky scrapers. Tourists to London have on their itinerary to watch the changing of the guards. People wait to see it. While they wait, they can enjoy the scenery. The Palace is beautiful. There are beautiful flowers and well kept grounds. When they finally see the changing of the guards, they know they have seen something spectacular even though it doesn’t last very long: far cry from a tour to Cape Coast castle.

I am not trying to knock what we have. We can make the best of what we have but we don’t. Christiansborg Castle is out of bounds. The two main castles that we have left are the Cape Coast Castle and the Elmina Castle. A tour to Cape Coast Castle takes half hour to an hour or so, and then what, on to Elmina Castle and it is all over? Just as people have been endeared to diamond, many people have been sold on the idea of a vacation being seeking the sun, a beach, lying down and doing nothing, hunting, golfing, and sightseeing. We don’t have spectacular places to see besides our historical castles. Can’t we develop soaking in the sun around the castles?

I thought I saw a picture of a new building next to the Cape Coast Castle where what was called “Legion” was. I have since tried to confirm that I saw right, but I have not been able to. I thought the Legion building which has been ripe for demolition for a long time is a good place to construct a raised platform with a parapet around it and the parapet filled with sand for people to soak in the sun. Tourists can then plan to visit the castle and then spend the rest of the day at the beach. (The place has a history of being “white man’s beach). The government can build launching pads further away from this area for the fishermen to launch their canoes.

The street in front of the castle going along the Water and Sewage building should be closed to traffic if this comes to pass and the Water and Sewage building should be demolished and replaced with shower and toilet amenities, a sit down restaurant, a fast food restaurant, an ice cream pavilion, a beverage joint and maybe a pub. Going to the castle can become an all day trip away from Accra. The government can even look to model this after a Jamaica beach complete with a resident hiplife/reggae band and maybe even a Kolomashi Band. (I hope that’s how Kolomashi is spelt; if not, I’m sure the reader knows what I mean). We can have something similar in Elmina instead of having a bridge to the castle that people are afraid to walk on.

The old post office building nearby which I have heard for years now that someone has plans to convert to a hotel is a good place to locate a hotel with a large pool where the mail boxes were with a bridge from the pool over the street next to the building so that people can walk to the beach and to the castle without dealing with traffic. Yes, I have said close the street to traffic, but traffic can remain open to Chapel Square and Ghana Commercial Bank. For those who don’t know the area, this can be done easily.

This is but one of many ideas that I have written in opinion articles on Ghanaweb to help boost our tourism industry. Tourism is money that comes in and never leaves. It creates JOBS. Many governments look for a way to get some of the tourism money. To get our share, we have to offer something. We can continue selling carvings and African garb or we can add the beach, sun and fun to our attraction.

tpmensahr@yahoo.com