Kenya tourism takes off – arrival figures up

Kenya is on course to smash its UK arrivals target this year, with tourism and arrival figures from January to April already taking off to around 35,000 (28%) up on the same period last year.

However with UK visitors visiting Kenya more frequently, they stay for shorter durations. “Uncertainties with air travel and the economy are making people feel like going for fewer days, booking last minute, and taking a lesser risk..

The Kenya tourist board launched its first global marketing campaign this month, with holiday promotions in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Germany, France, Switzerland and India.

The Tourism board projects it will finish 2010 with total arrivals 10% higher than 2009, when new arrivals were at 164,000.

The World Cup is really positioning Africa. We want to ride on this, and be out in the marketplace at this time when Africa is in people’s minds,”

Crucially, new travel projects are focussed on less-developed areas, such as the Lamu archipelago as an alternative to Mombasa. There will be no further development in busy parks like the Mara and Amboseli, but Meru National Park is being positioned as a new alternative.

“There’s good security now, a good luxury camp, the roads have been done and there are more hotels in the pipeline,”

Nzioka added that Kenya hopes to gain from the World Cup this summer, with Kenyan tour operators selling weekend breaks to Kenya in between matches.

Kenya exhibited at the Indaba trade show in South Africa for the first time this year, and will look to ramp up its presence there in 2011