KENYA: Increased Tourist Arrivals Up To 723,000 , Kenya Ranked Among Top Tourist Destinations

International tourist arrivals around the world has hit 1.1 billion mark in 10 months to October this year, according to the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer.

The figure is a seven per cent increase compared to similar period last year.

International tourist arrivals to Kenya rose 10 per cent to 723,000 visitors between January and September.

The rise in tourist numbers had been partly bolstered by international airlines that had increased flights to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi and Moi International Airport in Mombasa between June and August.

The surge in visitor numbers was also as a result of increased visits to Maasai Mara Game Reserve for the annual spectacle of wildebeest migration.

Last year, Kenya got 1.3 million tourists, who spent Sh100 billion, a 17 per cent increase from Sh85 billion spent in 2015.

The strong tourism demand of the earlier months of 2017, including Northern Hemisphere summer peak season, was maintained through October.

Destinations worldwide received a total of 1,127 million international tourist arrivals (overnight visitors) in the first 10 months of the year, 70 million more than in the same period of 2016.

Results were driven by sustained growth in many destinations and a firm recovery in places that experienced a decline last year.

In particular, destinations in Southern and Mediterranean Europe, North Africa and the Middle East showed extraordinary rise.

Growth in international arrivals exceeded seven per cent in all destinations of Southern and Mediterranean Europe, with a rapid recovery seen in Turkey, and double-digit increases for most of the region’s other destinations.

In North Africa and the Middle East, Egypt, Tunisia and Palestine rebounded strongly from previous years’ declines, while Morocco, Bahrain, Jordan, Lebanon, and the United Arab Emirates all continued to report sustained growth.

These robust results, the best we have seen in many years, reflect the sustained demand for travel around the world, in line with the improved global economy and the rebound of destinations that suffered declines in previous years, said UNWTO secretary-general Taleb Rifai at the second UNWTO/Unesco meet in Oman.

North American destinations experts Goway Travel have declared Kenya s one of the top and upcoming must-visit locations in the world this year.

Releasing its list of most-sought after destinations by avid globetrotters, Goway Travel said they publicised the list after receiving favourable feedback from individuals, families and groups who agreed with the selection that Kenya was among top seven most favoured location on Goway Travel’s exotic destinations selections.

Repeat visitors described Kenyans as charming and the country as a home to the greatest wildlife spectacle on earth — the wildebeest migration, dubbed as the Eighth Wonder of the world that attracts global television viewership annually.

Kenya is a perennial favourite and very ideal for a first-time safari, but also sees its share of repeat visitors, as there is so much to see. Right now, there are many never to be repeated offers on Kenya, including Goway’s Jambo Kenya Safari Sale, it said.

The advance bookings have been confirmed despite the jitters related to the next General Election set for August.

Goway Travel’s disclosure of its early bookings’ register come amid the planned February 23-26 global meet for American Society of Travel Agents — ASTA Destination Expo 2017 — to be held in Nairobi where 2,000 travel agents from America and another 1,000 ASTA agents from other parts of the world are expected to attend.

Goway Travel has been in business since 1970 providing select on select travel destinations in Africa, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Central and South America and Europe.

Its services targeting individuals, families and groups are offered from its Toronto, Vancouver, Los Angeles and Sydney offices as well as online portal.

Other locations in the selection of top destinations include Iceland’s city of Reykjavik, Sydney in Australia, Colombia in South America, Italy’s ancient city of Tuscany, The Islands of Tahiti — French Polynesia — as well as Conrad Bora Bora Nui region in French Polynesia.

UK’s travel magazine Rough Guide also named Kenya as the third most favoured holiday destination by UK tourists.




Tourism Observer

A Billion Visitors In The First Nine Months Of 2016

Tourism sites around the world have recorded close to about one billion visitors in the first nine months of 2016, the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) says.

The UNWTO World Tourism Barometer found that destinations around the world received 956 million international tourists between January and September 2016.

“This is 34 million more than in the same period in 2015, a 4 per cent increase,” the organisation said.

The UN tourism agency sated that demand for international tourism remained robust in the first nine months of 2016, though growing at a somewhat more moderate pace.

“After a strong start of the year, growth was slower in the second quarter of 2016 to pick up again in the third quarter of the year. While most destinations report encouraging results, others continue to struggle with the impact of negative events, either in their country or in their region,” it added.

Indicating results for the various regions of the world, it said Asia and the Pacific led growth across world regions with international tourist arrivals, noting that overnight visitors went up 9 per cent through September. It indicated that all the four subregions shared in the growth.

The UNWTO said many destinations reported double-digit growth, with the Republic of Korea (+34 per cent), Vietnam (+36 per cent), Japan (+24 per cent) and Sri Lanka (+15 per cent) in the lead.

According to the UNWTO, in Europe, international arrivals grew by 2 per cent between January and September 2016, with solid growth in most destinations.

“Nonetheless,” it added, “double-digit increases in major destinations such as Spain, Hungary, Portugal and Ireland were offset by feeble results in France, Belgium and Turkey. As a consequence, Northern Europe grew by 6 per cent and Central and Eastern Europe by 5 per cent while results were weaker in Western Europe (-1 per cent) and Southern Mediterranean Europe (+0 per cent).”

The Barometer indicated that international tourist arrivals in the Americas increased by 4 per cent through September. South America recorded +7 per cent and Central America up at +6 per cent led the results, followed closely by the Caribbean and North America both at +4 per cent.

In Africa there was +8 per cent increase, as sub-Saharan destinations rebounded strongly throughout the year, while North Africa picked up in the third quarter.

Available data for the Middle East points to a 6 per cent decrease in arrivals, though results vary from destination to destination. Results started to gradually improve in the second half of the year in both North Africa and the Middle East,” the UNWTO said.

The UNWTO however indicated that the results from the Barometer reflect preliminary data reported to date and are subject to revision.

Africa Declines As International Tourist Arrivals Up 4% Driven By Strong Results In Europe

International tourist arrivals grew by 4.3% in the first eight months of 2015 according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer, fuelled by strong results in Europe and consolidating the trend of recent years. International tourists (overnight visitors) travelling the world between January and August 2015 reached 810 million, 33 million more than in the same period of 2014.

Europe, the world’s most visited regional destination, recorded a robust 5% increase in international tourist arrivals, the highest across all regions and a notable result for a rather mature region. Asia and the Pacific, the Americas and the Middle East all enjoyed 4% growth, while limited data available for Africa points to an estimated 5% decrease in the number of international tourists.

“Sustained growth in international tourism is very positive news for all as the sector increasingly contributes to creating jobs, promoting trade and investment, developing infrastructure and fostering inclusive economic growth. This is particularly true in recent years, when tourism has been instrumental in supporting the economic recovery of many countries and in generating new jobs” said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai.

“Yet, we should not be complacent. We need to continue advancing fundamental issues such as travel facilitation and connectivity while placing sustainability at the core of our action. As world leaders prepare to meet in Paris next December for the 21st Session of the Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21/CMP11) and following the approval of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by the UN General Assembly in September 2015, sustainability must be at the forefront of the tourism agenda”, he added.

Regional Results

1331150A very busy summer season contributed to the remarkable results of Europe where international arrivals increased by 5% between January and August 2015. The euro area continues to benefit from a weaker currency and a sustained economic recovery. Central and Eastern Europe (+7%) rebounded from last year’s decline. Northern Europe (+6%), Southern Mediterranean Europe (+5%) and Western Europe (+4%) all recorded sound results for subregions with many mature destinations. The 28 countries of the European Union (EU-28) boasted 6% more arrivals this period, exceeding the regional average.

Asia and the Pacific recorded a 4% increase in international arrivals through August. Oceania (+7%) led growth, followed by South-East Asia (+6%), with Thailand showing a strong rebound after weaker results last year. Arrivals grew by 4% in South Asia and by 3% in North-East Asia, where Japan continues to show extraordinary growth.

International arrivals in the Americas grew by 4% between January and August 2015, consolidating last year’s strong results. The appreciation of the US dollar has stimulated outbound travel from the United States. The Caribbean and Central America (both +7%) saw the highest growth in the region fuelled largely by the US and European markets. Results in South America (+4%) were in line with the regional average, while in North America (+3%) growth was weighed down by weaker arrivals in the United States.

Limited available data for Africa points to a 5% decline in arrivals, with North Africa decreasing by 10% and Sub-Saharan Africa by 3%. International tourist arrivals in the Middle East grew by an estimated 4%, consolidating the recovery that started in 2014. (Data for both Africa and Middle East should be read with caution as it is based on limited available data.)

Currency fluctuations impact tourism demand

Although demand has been positive overall, tourism flows have been determined to some extent by the comparatively strong currency fluctuations. Many destinations are benefitting from more favourable exchange rates, while others have become more expensive, but seen their purchasing power abroad increase.

Among the world’s top source markets, China continues to report double-digit growth in outbound travel, benefiting Japan, Thailand, the United States and various European destinations. Among the other emerging markets, India, South Africa and Egypt reported double-digit growth in tourism expenditure. Meanwhile expenditure from the Russian Federation and Brazil was significantly down, reflecting the economic constrains in both markets and the depreciation of the Ruble and the Real against virtually all other currencies.

As for the traditional advanced economy outbound markets, data on international tourism expenditure reveal robust demand from the United States (+9%) and the United Kingdom (+5%), reflecting the strength of their economies and their currencies. Expenditure from both Germany and Italy grew by 3%, while demand from France, Canada and Australia was rather weak, partly as a result of the depreciation of their currencies against the US dollar.