Rift Valley Railways confident of future
RIFT VALLEY RAILWAYS EXPECTS 20 NEW GE LOCOMOTIVES (Posted 09th July 2014) Rift Valley Railways, the concessionaire for the two railway systems of Kenya and Uganda, has confirmed that delivery of 20 new locomotives, manufactured by General Electric, is expected during the second half of 2014, as are an additional 1.400 rail wagons. This capacity […]
Kenya Tourism Board publishes statement on recent events in Kenya
Press Release Nairobi 8/07/2014…….The government will intensify security patrols in the environs of tourism facilities across the country for the safety of tourists. Commerce and Tourism Principal Secretary Dr. Ibrahim Mohammed said though adequate security has been provided within tourism facilities, their surroundings needed security vigilance. The PS was reacting to the Sunday incident in […]
Cheaper tickets? Try Flyezee.com
FLYEZEE.COM TO SHOWCASE CHEAPEST FLIGHTS ACROSS EASTERN AFRICA (Posted 08th July 2014) The cost of air travel in the East African region has in particular on routes to and from Entebbe rocketed of late, in part as a result of the stubborn resistance by the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority to restore U7’s Air Operator Certificate […]
More flights planned between Colombo and Mahe
MIHIN LANKA EYES MORE SEYCHELLES FLIGHTS (Posted 08th July 2014) Sri Lanka’s low cost carrier Mihin Lanka, presently connecting Colombo with Mahe twice a week on Tuesday and Saturday, seems set to add more frequencies in due course. Since starting the flights has the airline added a business class section in their planes and passenger […]
Tanzania’s opposition demands prosecution of errant hunting companies
HUNTING OPERATOR’S EXCESSES LEAD TO FRESH CALLS TO BAN HUNTING (Posted 08th July 2014) The opposition in parliament has demanded that the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism cancel the hunting license of one company, which in a promotional video clip – played to members of the sessional committee – is seen to violate several […]
Reunion launches Visa waiver for Chinese and Indian tourists
REUNION DROPS VISA REQUIREMENTS FOR CHINESE AND INDIAN VISITORS (Posted 08th July 2014) Ile de la Reunion, a French island territory in the deep of the Indian Ocean, has announced the easing of Visa requirements for tourist and business visitors from China and India. A formal government notice published last Saturday confirmed what the grapevine […]
Sharp rise in passenger numbers in June for Fastjet
FASTJET’S TRAFFIC UP BY NEARLY A QUARTER OVER PREVIOUS MONTH (Posted 08th July 2014) Africa’s cheapest low cost carrier, and number 5 on a global scale as per news recently published here, Fastjet, has just announced their month on month financial and operational data. The company is listed at the London Stock Exchange as Fastjet […]
Will Hells Gate National Park lose its protected area status?
WILL HELLS GATE NATIONAL PARK GO TO HELL? (Posted 07th July 2014) HELLS GATE NATIONAL PARK National Parks, game reserves and national monuments and treasures are having a hard time anywhere to stand up against the so called ‘progress and development’ and East Africa is no exception. Regular readers of course will associate that topic […]
Growing challenges beset Kenya’s coastal tourism industry
THE AIR IS GETTING THINNER FOR KENYA’S TOURISM MARKETERS (Posted 07th July 2014) The challenges are mounting for Kenya’s tourism fraternity to put on a brave face to yet more reports of killings in the wider Lamu County, where in a spate of attacks dozens of people were killed in recent weeks, the latest incidents […]
South Africa’s City Lodge Hotels buys remaining shares in Fairview Hotel
FAIRVIEW NOW FULLY OWNED BY SOUTH AFRICA’S CITY LODGE (Posted 07th July 2014) Following the partial acquisition of Nairobi’s Fairview Hotel in 2012 has South Africa’s City Lodge Hotels been granted permission by Kenya’s competition watchdog to buy the remaining 50 percent of the shares, now fully owning one of Nairobi’s landmark hotels. City Hotels […]
Mogadishu welcomes new airline
SKYGREECE LAUNCHES FLIGHTS TO MOGADISHU (Posted 06th July 2014) Greek private airline SkyGreece has according to information received started flights between Athens and Mogadishu, operating once a week on a B767-300ER, the only aircraft presently on their fleet. The airline was formed in 2012 and has since last year been operating from Athens to Stockholm […]
Bujagali – a mere shadow of its former self
BUJAGALI – A STORY OF ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND LOSS OF BIODIVERSITY (Posted 04th July 2014) Following a recent article here on the likely impact of the Isimba hydroelectric plant, should, as it is much feared, the maximum height dam option be pursued by the developers and financiers, did a large number of comments and information […]
UCAA under continued fire for AOC suspensions
AIR UGANDA REMAINS ON THE GROUND – FOR NOW (Posted 06th July 2014) The preliminary conclusion of the parliamentary committee, which had summoned official of the disgraced Uganda Civil Aviation Authority, that the regulators had misled the public and used the withdrawal of the Air Operator Certificates of three affected airlines as a smokescreen to […]
Passengers to wait a little longer for the opening of the new Terminal T1A
NEW TERMINAL T1A – NOT QUITE THERE YET (Posted 05th July 2014) Coinciding with the arrival of Kenya Airways’ new B777-300ER did the Kenya Airport Authority sanction trial runs in the new Terminal T1A, formerly referred to as Terminal 4. National carrier Kenya Airways will begin to use the new terminal facility when it is […]
Reunion’s day of water sports
REUNION TO STAGE THE 15TH EDITION OF THE ANNUAL SAILING FESTIVAL (Posted 05th July 2014) This Sunday will see the annual Sailing Festival take place on Reunion with a range of water sports, from sailing over rowing to diving available to watch by those who are not actively participating on and in the water. The […]
Breaking the daily fast in style – Sheraton Kampala style
IFTAR AT SHERATON – A REWARDING MEAL AFTER A DAY OF FASTING (Posted 05th July 2014) Sharing an Iftar meal is now a treasured tradition in Kampala and it is no wonder that the Sheraton Kampala Hotel once again organized such a daily meal, which will be served to the Faithful and their friends and […]
Another brand new B777-300ER enroute to Nairobi
KENYA AIRWAYS’S THIRD B777-300ER ENROUTE TO NAIROBI (Posted 04th July 2014) Kenya Airways has yesterday taken formal delivery of their third B777-300ER, a 400 seat aircraft in dual class configuration of 28 Business Class and 372 Economy Class seats. The ferry flight from the Paine Field in Everett is now underway, taking the aircraft home […]
Precision Air to go double daily from Mwanza to Nairobi
PRECISION AIR SAYS RETURN TO KIGOMA IMMINENT (Posted 04th July 2014) Precision Air will return to Kigoma with three flights per week by middle of July, the airline announced yesterday in Dar es Salaam. Flights will operate out of Mwanza every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, offering convenient connections both ways to a number of domestic […]
Tune Hotels eye East Africa
TUNE’S PLANS FOR KENYA SIGNALS THE ARRIVAL OF THE FIRST BUDGET HOTEL GROUP (Posted 04th July 2014) When Tune Hotels will open their first African property in Nairobi next year it will signal the arrival of the first budget hotel group of global standing in Kenya, as all other global investments in the hospitality sector […]
News from Porini Safari Camps
#WhyILoveKenya – as seen by Porini Safari Camps June 2014 Dear Reader, Greetings Porini Enthusiast! The United Nations Environmental Assembly that took place during the last week of June between the 23rd and the 27th, has now come to an end. The result: Kenya received a huge endorsement from the head of the United Nations […]
Are rhinos now a liability to South Africa?
More news updates from the Conservation Action Trust which asks if rhinos are now a liability to South Africa? Conservation Action Trust www.conservationaction.co.za Are rhinos now a liability to South Africa? Are rhinos now a liability to South Africa? The Cape Times | 27 June, 2014 | Ian McCallum I have recently read the May/June […]
ATA opens registration for Uganda congress
AFRICA TRAVEL ASSOCIATION IS NOW REGISTERING FOR KAMPALA MEETING (Posted 04th July 2014) The Africa Travel Association has announced that on line registration for the upcoming 39th Annual World Congress, this year taking place in Kampala / Uganda, is now open for prospective participants. The meeting, which will bring together several hundred tourism industry stakeholders […]
Emirates announced capacity increase for Mauritius
EMIRATES SET TO UPGRADE SECOND DAILY FLIGHT TO MAURITIUS FROM B777 TO A380 (Posted 04th July 2014) Good news emerged yesterday for the tourism sector in Mauritus when Emirates announced that they will from 01st December this year operate both daily flights with an Airbus A380. The extra 165 seats a day constitute a capacity […]
AFRAA’s 2014 Annual General Assembly heads to Algiers
AFRAA STARTS REGISTRATION FOR ANNUAL ASSEMBLY IN ALGIERS (Posted 04th July 2014) The 46th Annual General Assembly of the African Airline Association, in short AFRAA, will this year take place in the Algerian capital Algiers from November 09th to 11th. ‘Winning Together through Innovation and Collaboration’ was given as the theme of this year’s assembly […]
Reserve your Fastjet seat – and pay for it
FASTJET LAUNCHES PAID FOR ADVANCE SEAT SELECTION (Posted 04th July 2014) Fastjet, recently named as Africa’s cheapest low cost airline and as the 5th cheapest low cost airline worldwide, has today launched another innovation which will make travel easier for their passengers. Effective immediately has the airline launched a pre-paid seat select option for all […]
Major security alert underway in Uganda
WARNING ON UGANDA’S AIRPORT SECURITY PROMPTS MAJOR SECURITY SWOOP (Posted 03rd July 2014) The warning by Ugandan security agencies to embassies in Kampala about a potential threat to aviation security this evening at the Entebbe International Airport has led to immediate warnings by the US embassy to their personnel to review their travel plans while […]
MV Spice Islander accused let go free
MV SPICE ISLANDER OWNERS GO SCOT FREE DENYING HUNDREDS OF VICTIMS JUSTICE (Posted 03rd July 2014) Tanzania’s prosecutorial system has come under widespread attack when news emerged yesterday that maritime bureaucrats, the owners and the crew of the killer ship MV Spice Islander are apparently going scot free, following the arguably worst ever maritime disaster […]
KLM prepares for routing change enroute to Kigali
NEW ROUTING FOR KLM FLIGHTS TO KIGALI COME NOVEMBER (Posted 03rd July 2014) There will be major changes in the routing of some of KLM’s flights to Eastern Africa, when the winter schedule goes into effect in November this year. Presently does the Dutch national airline combine their daily flight to Dar es Salaam with […]
The survival of the African Heritage House hangs by a thread
AFRICAN HERITAGE HOUSE UNDER THREAT OF DEMOLITION (Posted 03rd July 2014) A few days ago did one of my friends from Kenya, Emma Too – recently applauded here for her single handed effort to beautify sections of the Mombasa CBD – alert me to the going on’s about one of Kenya’s greatest architectural treasures, the […]
Monthly Trumpet – June 2014
News update from Save the Elephants web version | tell a friend | donate The Fall of One of Africa’s Finest Ten days before the news hit the headlines, Richard Moller of the Tsavo Trust was already fearing the worst. He’d spotted the carcass of a large bull, face hacked off and ivory gone. Satao, […]
