The tourism arrival numbers during the period of Jan- April
2022 already record a 55 percent growth with 22,532 arrivals compared to 11,884
during the same period in 2021.
This growth in numbers can be attributed to Kenya's
continued investment in the Indian market through marketing campaigns as well
as Kenya's conformance to the Covid-19 protocols that provide assurance to
travelers of their safety while at the destination.
Speaking during a dinner held to receive visitors from India
at the Nairobi National Park, Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) CEO Dr Betty Radier
said the board would continue to market Kenya in India and that she was
optimistic of further improvement by the end of the year.
"We are seeing a lot of interest from the Indian market
and we want this to continue, this is the reason we have employed a strategy
specific to this market which is slowly evolving to be a key source market for
Kenya.
In 2019, prior to the pandemic we had 122,649 travelers
coming into Kenya and this year we already have a 55 percent improvement
compared to last year during this period. We anticipate that we shall see about
80,000 travelers from India by close of this year which will be a major coup
bearing in mind how India was hit by the pandemic" Said DR Radier.
The visitors were the second batch of an incentive travel
group from Reliance Industries (RIL's), an Indian multinational conglomerate
company, headquartered in Mumbai. The first group arrived in the country three
weeks ago and have so far visited attractions in Nairobi and the Maasai mara.
"We are happy to see more visitors coming in from
India, three weeks ago we had a group of around 150 people coming in and today
we are hosting a similar number. The interest here is a combination of Business
and Leisure and Magical Kenya has a lot to offer. Through the groups we shall
showcase the destinations preparedness against Covid-19as they sample the best
from the destination.
Recently in march, India resumed International scheduled
flights following a suspension instituted to curb the spread of Covid-19, the
resumption has had a positive impact on travel between the two countries.
In 2019, India's flag carrier Air India relaunched its
direct flights to Nairobi, a move that sought to boost tourism between the two
countries. The airline had earlier stopped operations on the route for eight
years due to low volume of business.
Destination Management Company (DMC) Safari Trails CEO Rajay
Thethi, says "Kenya is an important destination for Indian visitors with
Kenya having a big Indian community.
The decision to remove PCR testing and resuming daily
flights to India has been key in attracting the visitors to this market.
Indians are interested in wildlife and this is the reason we are today seeing
many Wildlife photographers from India. This group shall be visiting
attractions in Nairobi and Maasai Mara" Said Thethi.
India is currently a top five market for Kenya's tourism and
the two countries continue to have cordial relations bound by both history and
culture.
This relationship has grown over the years as both countries
share a common interest in promoting economic growth through trade and
investment. To this end, India has been one of Kenya's major trading partners
since independence in 1963 with bilateral trade between the two nations growing
steadily over the years.