Aura App by Transcorp wants to digitalise Nigeria’s hospitality industry

Following a year the hospitality industry has been one of the worst-hit by a global pandemic; Transcorp has launched Aura, a digital platform that is to connect people with hotels, homes, restaurants and tourist destinations across Nigeria. It is also expected to offer property owners an opportunity to put them to better commercial gains, especially when such have been left unused.

The Aura platform, which was formally launched last week in Abuja, had Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and Femi Gbajabiamila, Speaker of the House of Representatives in attendance.

“Aura is a digital hospitality platform that gives the opportunity to all our stakeholders and guests to be able to book accommodations and experiences at their fingertips,” said Dupe Olusola, managing director and chief executive officer of Transcorp Hotels Plc.

The hospitality platform, she says, gives people the possibility at the touch of their fingertips, to book exciting experiences across all different regions in Nigeria.

Olusola explained that the platform provides an opportunity to diversify the Nigerian economy, create jobs and develop domestic tourism and leisure travel. Though the platform is taking off in Nigeria, it is expected to spread across Africa and with time, other parts of the world.

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The Aura platform is also expected to offer opportunities to people who have invested in real estate but have left them fallow and not making money from them. “What Aura does is give an opportunity to list your property and be able to make money from it,” said Olusola.

At the peak of COVID last year, she recalled that Transcorp Hilton Hotel went from 70 percent occupancy to 5 percent. This necessitated thinking out of the box to survive beyond the pandemic and re-imagine hospitality to begin offering domestic leisure travel to everyone.

Ifeoma Okafor, business development director for Aura, while also reiterating the platform as one that “gives access to properties, great food and memorable experiences”, emphasised it could enable the country to unlock home-grown and domestic tourism. More so, it democratises access to luxurious hospitality, and for every type of user (luxury or not) enables them to find hospitality solutions seamlessly.

Among other expectations, the company hopes the Aura platform will become an avenue to “showcase the beauty we have in Nigeria across different locations.” The App is available for download from the Google Playstore and Apple App Store.