US Leads in the Number of International Tourists to Kenya

Kenya received a total of 305,635 international arrivals between January and June 2021.

96,003 of the visitors were female while 209,632 were male, according to the latest data from the Tourism Research Institute.

The United States was the leading source market in the period under review with 49,178 visitors followed by Uganda (31,418), Tanzania (31,291), China (18,069), and the United Kingdom (16,264).

The highest number of international arrivals were recorded in the months of January and June at 40,003 and 40,842 respectively

Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala said the US accounted for 11.12 percent of market share while arrivals from the UK dropped due to the effects of the unfair travel restrictions imposed on Kenya.

“We are encouraged by the numbers although we are not there yet. Because this is only a fifth of the two million visitors we received in 2019. But we understand this is because of the Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdowns that ensued which affected the travel trends this year,” Balala said in a statement.

“We are still engaging and we hope these travel restrictions will be lifted not only by the UK but across the world. Meanwhile, we are still continuing to observe safe travel protocols.”

Most of the visitors (94,241) came to Kenya to visit family and friends; 92,828 for meetings, incentives, and conferences, and 87,629 for holidays. 15,811 were on transit, 8,637 for education, 3,592 for medical purposes, 1,722 for religious purposes, and 1,175 for sports.

The Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Moi International Airport Mombasa, and Wilson Airport were the major points of entry in terms of air transport.