KQ’s new B777-300ER to introduce WiFi, better seats and more
KENYA AIRWAYS READY TO SET NEW AVIATION STANDARDS FOR AFRICAN AIRLINES (Posted 15th October 2013) When Kenya Airways’ latest addition to their growing fleet, a Boeing B777-300ER arrives in just about three weeks from now, it will bring with it a range of new features and innovations hitherto unheard of in Africa. A sneak preview […]
Kigali’s Pearl Lounge braces for ‘Bigger and Better’ as airport reconstruction work nears completion
KIGALI’S PEARL LOUNGE TO CHANGE LOCATION AND RETURN IN A NEW ‘BIG LEAGUE LOOK’ (Posted 15th October 2013) (Ongoing work on the new Pearl Lounge at Kigali International Airport) As work progresses at the Kigali International Airport, to create space for additional check in counters and departure lounges, for more shops and outside parking too […]
FastJet to start Jo’Burg service this Friday
FASTJET SETS NEW DATE FOR JOHANNESBURG FLIGHTS (Posted 14th October 2013) In a breaking news development it was just learned that the South African civil aviation department has at long last finished their ‘review’ of additional documents, demanded from Tanzania’s low cost airline on the eve of their planned inaugural flight from Dar es Salaam […]
AFEX pulls out of Rumbek over tax and other issues
AFEX FORCED TO SHUT DOWN RUMBEK CAMPS (Posted 14th October 2013) Yet another Kenyan company has fallen foul of the murky legal, regulatory and taxation regimes in South Sudan, after that country, by refusing to allow ticket sales proceeds to be repatriated, forced Jetlink late last year into first suspending operations and then closing down […]
Zanzibar’s Old Stone town set to get a Heritage Foundation Centre
ZANZIBAR LAUNCHES NEW HERITAGE FOUNDATION CENTRE IN ANCIENT STONE TOWN (Posted 14th October 2013) The island’s government has launched a new project to promote Zanzibar’s long history when announcing the formation of a Heritage Foundation Centre in the old Stone Town, itself a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Minister for Information, Tourism, Culture and Sports […]
Kigali’s free internet is for real …
KIGALI’S INTERNET REVOLUTION TURNS OUT TO BE REAL, AND REAL FAST (Posted 14th October 2013) A weekend trip to Kigali allowed a firsthand experience with the Rwandan internet revolution, which is currently unfolding in the capital city but may eventually spread across the main urban centres of the country. Already in the past were signals […]
Air Arabia prepares for China flights
AIR ARABIA’S CHINA PLANS BOUND TO EXCITE KENYA’S LCC FANS (Posted 08th October 2013) Cheaper flying options are always a matter of keen interest and it was no surprise that queries started to come in when news broke a few days ago that Air Arabia, currently operating daily flights between Sharjah / UAE and Nairobi, […]
RwandAir’s raffle prize winners get free stay at the Kigali Serena
KIGALI SERENA ADDS VALUE TO RWANDAIR’S RAFFLE PRIZE WINNERS (Posted 13th October 2013) Charles Muia, General Manager of the Kigali Serena Hotel and Country Manager for Serena Hotels in Rwanda, took no time to announce that Kigali’s finest hotel will be happy to host the winner of two business class tickets from Juba to Kigali […]
Juba welcomes RwandAir’s inaugural flight with traditional water cannon salute
RWANDAIR OFFICIALLY LAUNCHES JUBA – DESTINATION NUMBER 15 AND COUNTING (Posted 13th October 2013) ‘We are not the kind of airline which is here today and gone tomorrow, RwandAir is here to stay’ said John Mirenge, CEO of RwandAir when he addressed the invited guests at Juba’s Transit Hotel, comprising government and business leaders including […]
Weekly roundup of news from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean islands, Second edition October 2013
AVIATION, TOURISM AND CONSERVATION NEWS from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean islands. A weekly roundup of breaking news, reports, travel stories and opinions by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang H. Thome You can get your daily news updates instantly via Twitter by following @whthome or join me on www.facebook.com/WolfgangHThome where the articles also ‘cross load’. Read […]
Zanzibar launches tourist police patrols
ZANZIBAR INTRODUCES TOURIST POLICE (Posted 12th October 2013) Tourism stakeholders in Zanzibar have hailed the move by the islands’ government to introduce dedicated tourism police patrols, aimed to reassure visitors of their safety after some less than desirable negative publicity over incidents involving tourist visitors aside from the general reporting about the security situation on […]
Kigali introduces metered taxis
VISITORS TO KIGALI WILL SOON HAVE EVEN MORE TO SMILE ABOUT (Posted 12th October 2013) When tourists and business travellers arrive in Rwanda by air, their first impression at the airport is one of some serious expansion work going on, which started a year ago and, according to the work schedule available, should be completed […]
Nairobi buzzes with excitement towards two key tourism events next week
KENYA’S TOURISM MARKETERS LOOK AT THE FUTURE NOT THE PAST (Posted 12th October 2013) ‘The only way to go is forward and to go forward means we need to leave the past behind us’ wrote a regular contributor when discussing the direction Kenya Tourism was taking after recent events in the country. ‘SKAL gave us […]
Precision Air left hanging as TZ government turns down request for help
TANZANIAN GOVERNMENT REJECTS PRECISION AIR BAILOUT (Posted 11th October 2013) The Tanzanian government has again played their Kenya card when explaining why, after initially agreeing to support a financial bailout package for struggling Precision Air, they ultimately decided not to come to the aid of Tanzania’s largest private airline, quoted on the Dar es Salaam […]
Another crash ends in tragedy
NO ESCAPE FROM YET ANOTHER LIGHT AIRCRAFT CRASH (Posted 11th October 2013) A Cessna 172 Skyhawk trainer aircraft crashed yesterday shortly after taking off from Nairobi’s Wilson Airport, it was learned overnight. The aircraft, owned and operated by Skylink Ltd, aka Skylink Flights, reportedly nosedived after takeoff just two minutes into the flight and crashed, […]
Conservancy versus Balloons …
MARA NORTH CONSERVANCY WANTS BALLOONS BANNED FROM THEIR SKY OVER THE MARA (Posted 11th October 2013) An epic legal battle is shaping up between the Mara North Conservancy and Transworld Safaris’ balloon operations, according to information received from Nairobi, to determine who owns the skies over the Masai Mara. The High Court in Nairobi earlier […]
KICC Nairobi is the venue for the 2nd Ideal Hospitality Exhibition
IDEAL HOSPITALITY EXPO SHOWCASES PRODUCTS AND SERVICES (Posted 11th October 2013) Another major hospitality exhibition is now underway at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre in Nairobi, just days prior to the Magical Kenya Travel Expo which is organized annually by the Kenya Tourism Board. The second edition of the IHE was formally launched yesterday by […]
CTO and VIO launch Island Tourism Investment and Development meeting at World Routes
By Alain St. Ange, Minister for Tourism and Culture, Seychelles Islands Tourism Investment & Development Meeting at World ROUTES Meeting in Las Vegas It has been a lot time in the making and it was finally at the 2013 World ROUTES Meeting that was held this week in Las Vegas that a dedicated Islands Tourism […]
UCOTA @ 15 – News from Uganda’s Community Tourism Association
As I periodically do, here is a shared version of UCOTA’s latest news broadcast. Enjoy the insight this provides into the grassroots of tourism across the country. Dear Reader, Dear Reader, We are in the last quarter of this year, it has so far been a great year for us not only because we have […]
Tourism in South Sudan – apparently there is and lots of it … the sites at least are there even though the tourists are lacking
This is a re-posting of an interesting article I came across … enjoy Tourism To Boost State Economy South Sudan Wildlife Conservation Ministry is laying strategies to develop a vibrant tourism industry to improve the economy. 05 October 2013 A potential tourism area in Katire mountain zone. Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa made $36 billion last […]
Valentine Rugwabiza appointed to cabinet and to head RDB
PRESIDENT KAGAME APPOINTS AMB. RUGWABIZA AS NEW CEO OF RDB (Posted 10th October 2013) The former Deputy Director General of the World Trade Organization, Ambassador Valentine Rugwabiza, was yesterday appointed to the position of Chief Executive Officer of the Rwanda Development Board and in addition also made a member of the Rwandan cabinet. Amb. Rugwabiza […]
Auric Air continues expansion drive across Tanzania
AURIC AIR INCREASES FREQUENCIES TO KEY TOURISM LOCATIONS (Posted 10th October 2013) Auric Air has just announced a number of increased frequencies to some of Tanzania’s best tourism destinations but also to destinations mostly traveled to by local Tanzanians on missions of trade and commerce. New are flights to Kigoma and Njombe, flights to Pemba […]
Seychelles leave World Routes with their head held high
SEYCHELLES TOURISM MINISTER ENGAGES GLOBAL MEDIA AT JUST ENDED WORLD ROUTES (Posted 10th October 2013) Seychelles’ Minister for Tourism and Culture Alain St. Ange, one of the key note speakers at the recently ended World Routes meeting in Las Vegas, used his presence in the United States to engage with the global and local media […]
Rwandan hospitality and tourism delegation in Nairobi for a working visit
KENYA ASSOCIATION OF HOTEL KEEPERS WELCOMES RWANDA DELEGATION IN NAIROBI (Posted 10th October 2013) Members of the Rwanda Hospitality Association and the Tourism Chamber are presently in Nairobi, where they started a counterpart visit to get acquainted with standards of operation and a range of other details, aimed to align Rwanda’s hospitality industry to the […]
Serena Hotels invest in lodge upgrades, ready for the future
SERENA HOTELS PRESENT THE NEW LOOK MARA SERENA SAFARI LODGE (Posted 10th October 2013) Extensive refurbishments and upgrades have taken place over the past year at two of Serena Hotels’ most popular lodges and camps, Sweetwaters Serena Camp on Ol Pejeta and their Mara Serena Safari Lodge. The latter’s transformation has caught wide attention as […]
Risso’s Dolphins spotted off Reunion for the first time
NEW DOLPHIN SPECIES SEEN OFF REUNION BRINGS OVERALL NUMBER TO 22 (Posted 10th October 2013) The scientific mission Ce`TO (Cetaceans Turtles Birds) announced that a new species of dolphins was recently found in the waters Reunion after the Risso’s Dolphin was observed for the first time to the island of La Reunion. Dolphins lives in […]
Hyatt set for expansion in Tanzania
HYATT HOTELS COMMIT TO TWO MORE HOTELS IN ARUSHA AND ZANZIBAR (Posted 09th October 2013) Hyatt Hotels have confirmed their interest to put up two more hotels in Tanzania, in partnership with ASB Holdings, over the space of the next year. One of the new properties will be located in East Africa’s safari capital of […]
Tanzania waives Visa for South African citizens
TANZANIA WAIVES VISA REQUIREMENTS FOR SOUTH AFRICANS (Posted 09th October 2013) Tanzania’s tourism sector has welcomed the government’s move to abolish Visa requirements for South African citizens, as stakeholders see new opportunities arise to market safaris and beach holidays in the South African market place. Already is Mango, one of South Africa’s low cost carriers, […]
South Supreme launches Juba – Entebbe flights
SOUTH SUPREME AIRLINE COMMENCES ENTEBBE FLIGHTS (Posted 09th October 2013) Recent South Sudanese start up airline South Supreme has, in what has been termed an ‘ambitious move’ launched flights from Juba to Entebbe, which will for the time being be served three times a week, according to a source close to the Uganda Civil Aviation […]
UWA set to combat poaching with new intelligence unit
UGANDA WILDLIFE AUTHORITY LAUNCHES INTELLIGENCE UNIT (Posted 09th October 2013) 80 rangers were selected by UWA to take part in an intelligence course conducted for them by leading intelligence experts from the Uganda People’s Defense Force, to form the core of a new unit tasked with gathering information on poaching, illegal trade, smuggling of wildlife, […]
