MOMBASA, Feb 3 : A luxury cruise ship carrying 2,500 foreign tourists including 200 Chinese docked at Kenya’s port city of Mombasa on Saturday as senior officials reiterated the sector’s revival was on course after pandemic-related hiatus.
Alfred Mutua, the cabinet secretary for Tourism and Wildlife, was among officials who received the cruise ship, MSC Poesia, whose 1,000 crew members included 20 from Kenya.
“As a country, we are proud to receive visitors aboard the cruise ship who have reaffirmed that we remain a top notch tourism destination,” Mutua said, adding that in 2023, Kenya received 3,123 tourists who travelled via luxury ship.
Since January, Kenya has already received more than 5,000 luxury cruise liner passengers, Mutua disclosed, noting that cruise tourism has experienced a post-COVID-19 revival.
“We are expecting in excess of 12,000 visitors coming here through cruise ships. Kenya should be receiving 140,000 visitors by cruise shippers annually,” Mutua said.
He added that Kenya is negotiating with cruise ship companies to market the country’s scenic attractions, boost tourist arrivals, generate jobs and spur economic growth.
Kenya is committed to diversifying tourism products, conducting targeted marketing and improving security in order to increase annual tourist numbers from an average of 1.5 million to 10 million by 2030, Mutua said.
He said the government targets to generate 2 billion shillings (12.46 million U.S. dollars) from cruise tourism in 2024 while strengthening public health has been prioritized to attract additional luxury ships.
Mutua said that discussions are ongoing with owners of cruise ships to ensure their passengers are inoculated against yellow fever before they embark on the journey to the Kenyan coast, in line with World Health Organization(WHO) protocols.
He observed that visa exemption combined with seamless clearance procedures at the port of Mombasa has enhanced growth of cruise tourism in Kenya.
The cruise liner from Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC Poesia), one of the biggest luxury vessels to dock at the port of Mombasa measuring 294 meters, has been making brief stop overs at various ports across Africa. (UNI)
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