KENYA: Kenya Tourism Federation Opposes Cutting Down Tourism Trade Fairs Attendance

Kenya Tourism Federation like many other Tourism, Travel and Hospitality stake holders are sharply opposed to Kenya Tourism Ministry cutting down of budget for Tourism exhibition attendance.

Are we not supposed under an agreement to have joint stands at tourism trade fairs, which includes Kenya?

Why are they suddenly breaking ranks with us?

Whatever they are trying to say, why not tell the truth that they failed to allocate enough money for tourism marketing this year?

Well let me tell them, if they are AWOL those of us who are at those trade shows will simply sell our own countries and Kenya’s loss will be our gain.

Entebbe and Kigali are now well connected to Europe, the Gulf and across Africa and it is no longer essential to fly through Nairobi to get here said a leading Ugandan tourism agent.

Another from Rwanda said This is an uninformed decision taken for lack of money surely and now trying to explain it away.

I speak of experience because we were told last year that permit fees for gorilla tracking had to be doubled for conservation reasons and we now know that this was equally poorly informed.

At least we still go to tourism trade shows and with the Kenyan competition absent we stand a better chance to sell those expensive permits.

Mohammed Hersi Chairman of the Kenya Tourism Federation made the following statement:

I am one of the few people who are opposed to the move by KTB to pull out of fairs. Even retaining ITB Berlin was after we raised hue and cry.

I do NOT recall any research or study that was done or shared with us for a buy in that indeed participating in these fairs is waste of time and money.

WTM London is mainly for UK agents and some European. It is even more crucial now that BREXIT is happening and UK is taking back Its rightful No 1 position as a tourist source for Kenya . ITB is for entire EU and other buyers

Indaba is mainly for Safari Buyers especially North America. Australia etc. ATM Dubai is for the GCC and Asia.

They talk of ROI. Firstly we have never been told how much we spend on these fairs besides we all fly ourselves and also pay for our accommodation we then share the cost of the stand.

The justification put forward is that we are now adopting a direct consumer approach does not hold any water since it is a known fact that as a safari destination you’ll always need a DMC who in turn works with wholesalers globally.

The logistics of attracting a do it yourself client for a safari itinerary is next to impossible more so when we are trying to attract families.

You tell me which family from Sydney or Seattle or Tokyo would attempt to do that?

Even with a DMC they are never sure about Africa. Kenya as a destination is not some Disney that we can wake up and claim to market direct to the consumer.

You bypass the wholesalers and you avoid the fairs then they’ll happily read your obituary to any potential visitor while our competitors will happily pick the pieces.

They have already done it at ATM Dubai and Indaba Durban and soon at WTM London.

We have no issue with digital campaign but that should complement other channels like fairs.

Even at our worst image crisis as nation like the PEV of 2007/8 while the peace accord was signed on 28th Feb 2008 the following week we were at ITB telling the world we are open for business.

Imagine for once if we missed out?

To KTB if fairs are a failure how comes the rest of the world are all attending?

What is that very special insight that KTB has that has been missed out by the rest of the world who are still wasting their time and money at these fairs so to speak?

If KTB is going digital how come the Tech zones at these fairs are getting bigger and better every year yet all they do is to trade online.

Why would Booking.com, Expedias and The likes "waste" their money at fairs yet they can comfortably do it in a digital way besides that is precisely what they are Online Travel Agents OTA’s.

Where would you meet 30 buyers from 4 continents and 20+ source countries in 3 days?

If you were to physically visit all these source countries to meet all these players you will blow your budget for the next three years.

Coca Cola President was asked by a young pilot why they spend so much money on advertising yet Coca Cola is already popular.

The President calmly responded to the young pilot “Why are we running the engine and yet we are already airborne.”

I am afraid pulling out of these fairs will negatively affect our destination while the competition is rubbing their hands with glee.

Well time will tell and as industry players we are exploring how to take ourselves to WTM London.

If that is to happen then KTB’s very existence will be under focus since marketing and promoting the destination is their first mandate which by default they would have abdicated.

I rest my case
Mohammed Hersi
Chairman
Kenya Tourism Federation

KENYA: Sun Africa Hotels To Acquires Nyali Beach Hotel Managent

Mohammed Hersi, Group CEO of Sun Africa Hotels
Sun Africa Hotels, a rising star among Kenya’s hotel owning and management companies, has late yesterday confirmed that the group has taken over what used to be known as the Nyali Beach Hotel on the northern mainland of Mombasa.

The resort, initially built in the mid 1940’s, rose to global fame during the heydays of Block Hotels, before the company’s owner over-leveraged the resort and dragged it down alongside the United Touring Company, in short known as UTC.

The immediate past management, full mouthed on several occasions of interaction with this correspondent but ever short of delivering the goods, began to run down the resort until it was in the end only a shadow of its former self.

It is therefore good news that a company with proven capacity like Sun Africa Hotels has taken the resort under its wings and given the experience, especially in coast resort management, by recently appointed Group CEO Mohammed Hersi, it can be expected that a thorough overhaul and refurbishment will start very soon to bring the Nyali Sun Africa Beach Hotel & Spa back into the top ranks of Kenya’s coastal hospitality scene.

The resort in the late 1970’s until the mid 1980’s underwent a major expansion with new wings being added but retained its colonial charm until the demise of Block Hotels.

From then on it was downhill given the failed management practices of the company looking after the property until a few days ago.

With 170 rooms and suites will the resort add much needed top ranking capacity to the market as the recovery of tourism at the Kenya coast gathers momentum, seemingly unperturbed by the political developments in the country.

Sun Africa Hotels, which is a Kenyan hospitality group has in recent times evolved into three key brands, The Luxury Collection, The Elite Collection and Sun 101, the latter a management arm which is a relatively new venture for management of hotels, lodges and resorts.

Under SAH’s luxury brand does the group operate the Sovereign Suites in Limuru, the Sun Africa Beach Resort in Mombasa and the Kiboko Luxury Camp on the shores of Lake Naivasha while a 112 rooms and suites, 5 star rated city hotel is also in its final stages of completion in the Hurlingham area of Nairobi.

Under the Elite brand, comprising four star properties, does SAH manage the 50 room Lake Naivasha Country Club and also the iconic Keekorok Lodge, a 100 room game lodge in the Masai Mara, the first ever to be built in the reserve.

SAH also operates Adventure Balloon Safaris with two balloons based at Keekorok Lodge.

It was learned that SAH is now at an advanced stage to rebuild the Lake Baringo Country Club while plans have been finalized to also construct another luxury Kiboko Tented Camp in Masai Mara near the Sand River area of the reserve.

Sun Africa Hotels is now also targeting the entire region for management contracts and perhaps even to build or take over properties, be it in Rwanda, Tanzania & Zanzibar, Ethiopia, Uganda and even Somalia, a country that is progressively rebuilding itself.

In Kenya the company wants to look at the devolved counties where huge opportunities exist to grow the SAH portfolio under their management arm of Sun 101.

Taking over Nyali Beach Hotel is a step forward in the company’s quest to position Sun Africa as a leading chain of fine hotels, lodges and camps across Kenya, the region and even beyond.
It was confirmed that SAH have retained all the staff from the old Nyali Beach Hotel.

An announcement for plans to refresh and revamp this very special resort that is synonymous with the history of Mombasa and Kenya’s tourism industry is expected in due course.

As always the very best for this new venture to SAH and to Mohammed Hersi whose experience and acumen in hotel and resort management will come in very handy to accomplish the company’s objectives.

Sun Africa Hotels offers the perfect combination of bush and scenic safari holidays with varied choices and the presence of hotels make it simple for travelers to choose. Our aim is to offer the highest standards of hospitality and service at all of our hotels and lodges located at the best places in Kenya.

This allows travelers see the best that Kenya has to offer.
Sun Africa Hotels is an expanding chain of some of the finest hotels and lodges in East Africa. It is one of the fastest emerging hotel chains in Kenya. From the best bars, unique game drives and exquisite spa’s to breathtaking balloon safaris, Sun Africa Hotels give you the best mix of holiday experience you’ll ever encounter.

Sun Africa Hotels offers high quality service in accommodation and conference room facilities at very competitive rates. You will enjoy the tranquil beauty of our private conservation area and its wildlife. We offer an exciting variety of entertainment from traditional dancing to live bands.

Our hotels are set amidst the scenic environments of Kenya that influence guests with a memorable holiday experience they will not forget.

Kenya is a multifaceted country of approximately 225,000 square miles, ranging from rugged arid deserts of the north, to rich, fertile valleys in the center which in turn give way to the rolling grassland of the Masai Mara in the South and from fishing villages on the shores of Africa’s largest lake, Lake Victoria in the West, to the white Sandy beaches of the Indian Ocean in the East.

Tourism Observer