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Kenya international airline bookings up 16.4 pc ahead of Easter

JKIA

Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on October 18, 2016. PHOTO | DIANA NGILA

Kenya’s international airline bookings grew 16.4 per cent between September 2016 to January this year compared to the same period the previous year, buoyed by preparations for Easter and other upcoming holidays.

Kenya’s popularity as a tourist destination has been rising. making it a preferred choice for travellers in search of safari expeditions according to ForwardKeys, a research firm that monitors global travel patterns and has the capacity to analyse 16 million flight reservation transactions each day.

Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi and Tanzania are growing similar at the same pace as Kenya.

ForwardKeys noted that African countries that were hit by Ebola and insecurity like Egypt and Tunisia are also fast rebounding and feature prominently in the top 10 Africa destinations for international tourists.

Morocco, which announced a visa waiver for Chinese tourists beginning June 2016 also recorded robust growth in bookings.

The findings follow another report released last Thursday by Infomineo, a global business firm, saying Kenya is among the top destinations for Fortune 500 firms seeking to set up in Africa.