British tourists trickle in as travel bans lifted

Tourists from Europe have started making bookings since the United Kingdom lifted travel bans against the Coast region two weeks ago.

Hoteliers say even British tourists have been making reservations since their government reversed the travel advisories it had issued against Mombasa, Kilifi and Kwale counties.

Yesterday, Mr Nabeth Mabeya, a manager at Nyali International Beach Hotel, said bookings from the UK market are picking up.

“Some British tourists have made bookings for the August-October while others for November - December periods,” Mr Mabeya said.

He said tourists wants to visit Mombasa because insurance costs are low after the travel bans were lifted.

“It is cheaper to get insurance covers now compared to the time the travel advisories were still in force and this is also playing a key role in attracting tourists,” added Mr Mabeya.

He said German tourists are also expected to visit after Condor Airline announced plans to introduce flights between Munich to Mombasa.

The new route will increase Condor’s flights to four per week since it already has three flights per week from Frankfurt to Mombasa.

Diani’s Baobab Beach Resort general manager Sylvester Mbandi said they will start receiving Italian tourists late July.

He said an Italian chartered airline, Francorosso, is expected to resume flights from Milan to Mombasa starting July 29. “We are also expecting tourists from Germany and Britain between November and December.”

“We’ve started making bookings for Italy, German and Britain tourists. We expect tourists to pour in for holiday late in the year,” he explained.

The resort which had been closed for renovations in May reopened last Tuesday after bookings from Europe started to trickle in.

Mr Max Cheli, the managing director Medina Palms in Watamu said: “Tourism is on its way to recovery.”