Kenya woo Nigerian tourists

By Jimoh Babatunde

Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) has continued to showcase the country's tourism attractions to Nigerians as the board in collaboration with Kenya Airways and KQ Holidays met with trade partners in Lagos recently.

Speaking at the forum, the Marketing Officer - Africa, Kenya Tourism Board, Betty Ingwe disclosed that the KTB is set to market Kenya as one of the foremost tourist destinations for the Nigerian market.

Betty Ingwe explained that the meeting with Nigerian stakeholders which started in Abuja is an opportunity to sell Kenya to Nigerians .

"Kenya is a great destination year round. Kenya is where you can experience a different safari every day. The country offers an endless array of activities for travellers", Ingwe said.

She noted that in the last five months that Kenya Tourism Board has held trainings for Nigerian tour operators and other trade partners who will be working with an arm of the board, Kenya Holidays in Lagos to sell Kenya as a preferred destination, “outside Kenya, Nigeria is the only country with an office of the Kenya Holidays, which shows the importance of Nigeria market to us.”

Betty Ingwe added that Kenya as the heart of African tourism market has cutting edge tourist attractions such as; the ultimate safari experience, wide beast migration between July and October every year, white pinstripe beaches, rich wildlife experiences and a very developed destination for golfers with 40 world class golf courses.

While adding that Kenya offers 99% Halal food for Muslims, she said KTB offers tourists the Magical Kenya App which is specifically designed to make the visitor’s experience more flawless, “the mobile application strengthens the tourist arrivals to the country by providing tourists a platform in which they can get all the relevant information about Kenya at their fingertip.”

Ingwe added “ Kenya has six UNESCO Heritage sites, international shopping malls, elephant sanctuary and availability of affordable quality education in institutions of higher learning.

Speaking at the parley, Kenya Visa Consular in Lagos, Karlus Maluta advise that tourists should not allow terrorists to define their way of life as the country is safe for tourists as the government has taken all necessary and preventive steps against terrorist attacks.

He added that the government has made it easy to secure the country visa for tourists as they have introduced an online visa service platform .