Kenya’s tourism sector has received a major boost after the first chartered flight from Bulgaria arrived yesterday at the Moi International Airport (MIA) in Mombasa.
The charter flight, which flew in over 160 Bulgaria tourists for a 10-day holiday, is an indication of the continued recovery for the ailing international tourism market source that has slumped since the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Speaking in Mombasa after receiving the aircraft, operated by European Air, Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) Marketing director Fred Okeyo said the flight arrival signaled hope for Kenyan tourism, which has suffered heavily due to the pandemic.
“The new charter from Bulgaria has shown confidence with Kenya at a time that this sector is recovering, for us we want to assure our tourists that we are ready for attracting many guests,” he said.
The flight, European Air chartered by Abax Bulgaria limited arrived with over 149 travellers on board who included 35 travel agents from Bulgaria.
Speaking in Mombasa after receiving the aircraft, operated by European Air, landed yesterday morning, KTB Marketing director Fred Okeyo said the flight arrival signaled hope for Kenyan tourism, which has suffered heavily due to the pandemic.
“The new charter from Bulgaria has shown confidence with Kenya at a time that this sector is recovering, for us we want to assure our tourists that we are ready for attracting many guests,” he said.
The arrival happened amid French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs issued a security advisory January 27, warning of a terror threat facing Western nationals in Kenya.
Okeyo stated that public spaces frequented by foreign nationals are notably at risk, including restaurants, hotels, entertainment venues, and shopping centres, particularly in Nairobi.
With the onset of the pandemic, the government banked on such flights in order to attract visitors from the Eastern European region, not deemed traditional source markets for Kenya’s tourism.
Bulgaria is the latest European market following a significant growing interest in Kenyan’s tourism products.
The second charter flight will come in on February 26, 2022 in the new rotational charter program.
The arrival numbers from Bulgaria have been incremental over the last few years with Kenya receiving 1,272 visitors in 2019, 277 visitors in 2020, and in 2021 362.
