Tourism off to a good start as cruise ship docks in Mombasa

Some of the 971 tourists who arrived at the Mombasa port on January 4, 2018 aboard luxury cruise ship Ms Nautica signalling a good start to Coast tourism in 2018. Many were from the United States and the United Kingdom. PHOTO | KEVIN ODIT | NATION MEDIA GROUP

By  MATHIAS RINGA  &  Charles Lwanga

What you need to know:

  • The visitors were expected to depart later in the evening for Mahe, Seychelles.

  • Some tourists flew to the Amboseli National Park for game drives while others remained on Mombasa Island for sight-seeing.

  • In November, MS Nautica brought to Mombasa more than 1,000 passengers and crew.

Cruise tourism has started the year with a bang after a luxury ship arrived at the port of Mombasa Thursday with 971 passengers and crew.

The MS Nautica, run by US-based shipping company Oceania Cruises, arrived in Mombasa from Zanzibar with 576 tourists and 395 crew members.

The visitors were expected to depart later in the evening for Mahe, Seychelles.

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In November 2017, MS Nautica brought to Mombasa more than 1,000 passengers and crew while MS Silver Spirit came with more than 800.

A majority of the holidaymakers were from the United States and the United Kingdom, while others were from Germany, Australia, France, Spain, Mexico, Brazil, Belgium, Holland, Denmark and South Africa.

GAME DRIVES

Upon arrival, some tourists flew to the Amboseli National Park for game drives while others remained on Mombasa Island for sight-seeing.

American holidaymaker Daniel Dole and his wife Yvette said they were overjoyed after arriving in Kenya for the first time. They said they were heading to Amboseli to see lions, elephants, giraffes, leopards and buffaloes.

“For years, we had planned to visit this beautiful country which is world-famous for safari. We can’t wait to get to Amboseli to view wildlife in its natural habitat,” said the tourists.

MALINDI

Elsewhere, Italian billionaire Flavio Briatore says he is not pulling out his investments in Malindi despite poor business.

However, the ex-Formula One boss who owns the luxury Lion in the Sun and Billionaire beach resorts in Kilifi County said he was dismayed by the poor hygiene and infrastructure of Malindi.

Speaking to the press at Billionaire Resort, Mr Briatore said the stinking and filthy town and the poor condition of roads are some of the factors discouraging investors.

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