The tourism sector in Kenya registered improved performance in 2023 mainly attributed to growth in aviation sector and hosting of prominent conferences in the country.
- The number of international visitor arrivals grew by 35.4 per cent from 1,541.0 thousand in 2022 to 2,086.8 thousand in 2023, against a set target of 2.5 million in 2022.
- The sector experienced a noteworthy surge in the growth of tourist arrivals in 2023 reaching a recovery rate of 102.5 per cent compared to 2019, and surpassing the global pre-pandemic recovery rate of 88.0 per cent.
- Hotel bed-nights occupancy rose by 23.2 per cent to 8,632.8 thousand in 2023, of which 53.5 per cent were occupied by Kenyan residents, pointing to a growing domestic tourism.
The number of international conferences increased by 9.0 per cent to 977 while that of local conferences grew by 11.0 per cent to 10,725 in 2023. This was partly attributed to high profile international conferences and meetings such as the Africa Climate Summit 2023 and EU-Kenya Business Forum leading to Nairobi City being honoured as the top city in the world in the “Best in Travel 2024” by United States-based travel agency, Lonely Planet.
The number of international visitors who arrived through Moi International Airport grew by 82.3 per cent to 157.0 thousand, while arrivals through Jomo Kenyatta International Airport rose by 32.9 per cent to 1,478.4 thousand in 2023. Arrivals through the two international airports were higher in all months of 2023 compared to 2022.
During the period under review, 4,136.9 thousand passengers arrived at JKIA indicating that for every 100 passengers landing 36 are inbound tourists.
The visitor arrivals through MIA and JKIA grew by 36.4 per cent compared to a rise of 31.9 per cent recorded through other border points in 2023.
During the same period, the number of visitor arrivals on holiday accounted for 44.8 per cent of all international visitor arrivals, while those on business accounted for 23.7 per cent.
The number of departing visitors increased by 36.4 per cent to 1,952.4 thousand in 2023 from 1,431.8 thousand in 2022. The growth was mainly due to an increase in the number of holiday visitors that increased significantly from 390.0 thousand in 2022 to 661.0 thousand in 2023.
Residents of United Kingdom and Germany jointly accounted for 43.1 per cent of the departing residents of Europe. Departures by residents of African countries increased by 52.1 per cent to 477.1 thousand in 2023.
The number of visitors to national parks and game reserves went up by 43.0 per cent to 3,637.3 thousand in 2023. The number of visitors to Masai Mara game reserve rose by 67.7 per cent to 419.1 thousand in 2023. Notable increases in visitors were also recorded at Haller’s Park, Tsavo (East), Lake Bogoria, Nairobi Safari Walk and Lake Nakuru national parks.
A decrease in number of visitors was recorded in the Mombasa Marine national park in 2023.
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