RwandAir promotes first Rwandan to CRJ900NextGen captain
RWANDAIR INTRODUCES THEIR FIRST EVER RWANDAN CRJ CAPTAIN (Posted 29th January 2014) RwandAir just announced that they have promoted the first ever Rwandan to captain on their CRJ900NextGen aircraft, when Jean Paul Muvunyi received his fourth stripe yesterday in a ceremony at the Kigali International Airport after landing flight WB 401 from Nairobi to Kigali. […]
East African Tourism Platform promotes regional destination workshops
DESTINATION KENYA COMES TO UGANDA AND RWANDA (Posted 29th January 2014) The East African Tourism Platform, the regional tourism private sector apex body, will in conjunction with the Kenya Tourism Board launch a series of workshops in Uganda and Rwanda, offering Kenya Destination specialist training programmes. Three sessions have so far been announced, one each […]
Air Seychelles announces the appointment of Manoj Papa as new CEO
AIR SEYCHELLES APPOINTS NEW CEO (Posted 28th January 2014) The announcement by Air Seychelles just now, that they have appointed Mr. Manoj Papa as their new CEO, succeeding Cramer Ball who earlier today made the formal announcement of his departure by the end of February, suggests that this change of guard has been in the […]
Air Seychelles set to bid good bye to CEO Cramer Ball after a perfect run of good fortunes
AIR SEYCHELLES CEO CRAMER BALL ANNOUNCES HIS DEPARTURE FROM THE AIRLINE (Posted 28th January 2014) In what has been described as a shock announcement for the staff at Air Seychelles, who apparently apart from less than a handful of trusted individuals did not know about this development, has Cramer Ball announced his departure from the […]
India drops opposition to A380 use by foreign carriers
EMIRATES FINALLY SEES SILVER LINING TO USE THE AIRBUS A 380 TO INDIA (Posted 28th January 2014) News broke overnight that the Indian aviation authorities have at long last come to terms with the reality of today’s aviation world, which includes the growing use of the largest passenger aircraft in service, the Airbus A380, and […]
Annual 10to4 Mountain Bike Challenge set for February 14/15
MOUNTAIN BIKE CHALLENGE PRESS BRIEFING BY MOUNT KENYA TRUST (Posted 28th January 2014) The Mount Kenya Trust will tomorrow, 29th of January, hold a media briefing ahead of the Mountain Bike Challenge to provide information about the event and its purpose. The briefing will be held at the Fly540 hangar at Wilson Airport from 14.30 […]
Serena goes ‘Chinese’ on latest website edition
SERENA’S WEBSITE GOES ‘CHINESE’ IN LATEST SITE REVAMP (Posted 28th January 2014) Serena Hotels’ latest website upgrade which went ‘live’ a few days ago, now features the option to read the content in Mandarin, the official language in China, allowing millions of potential travelers to Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Mozambique to find out more […]
Outright lies or innocent mistake – why name Kenya for a South African incident
WHAT AGENDA DOES THE TELEGRAPH.CO.UK HAVE AGAINST KENYA (Posted 28th January 2014) The authors of an article with a deliberately misleading headline, suggesting an incident in South Africa, where a tourist got gored by an elephant actually took place in Kenya, has immediately led to suggestions that the publication has a hidden agenda against Kenya. […]
Vanilla Island TV set for April launch
VANILLA ISLANDS SET TO LAUNCH VANILLA TV (Posted 28th January 2014) News just broke that the Vanilla Islands will in April this year launch their first joint TV station under the name of OI7. Aimed to promote the various islands’ tourism attractions the station will also heavily feature cultural events, economic and general interest news. […]
Boeing uses B777-300ER delivery to Ethiopian to ship donations to Ethiopia
BOEING AND ETHIOPIAN PARTNER TO USE B777-300ER DELIVERY FLIGHT FOR DOING GOOD (Posted 28th January 2014) Ethiopian Airlines’ latest aircraft delivery, a B777-300ER which the airline will receive via GECAS on a long term lease, will carry over 3 tons of medical and educational supplies for projects in Ethiopia. Beneficiaries will be the Black Lion […]
Another rhino killed in Kenya
RHINO KILLING IN NAIROBI NATIONAL PARK SHOCKS KENYA’S CONSERVATIONISTS (Posted 27th January 2014) News emerged late yesterday, Sunday 26th of January, that a rhino was shot dead by poachers inside the generally well protected Nairobi National Park, as rangers found the carcass with the horns already removed. A similar attack had taken place just 5 […]
ZanAir plane in slight landing mishap on Pemba island
ZAN AIR PLANE IN MISHAP ON LANDING IN PEMBA (Posted 27th January 2014) Zanzibar based Zan Air was reportedly suffering a landing mishap last Friday when landing on the island of Pemba in the late afternoon. The plane, after touching down, apparently slid off the main runway but came to a halt without causing any […]
To pay or not to pay – that is now the question for Mombasa hoteliers
KNIVES ARE OUT BETWEEN COAST HOTELIERS AND MOMBASA COUNTY GOVERNMENT (Posted 27th January 2014) Emotions are running high, and rightly so, between coast hoteliers with properties falling under the Mombasa county government and that very same devolved government, many now wish to hell and beyond. The dispute arose when the county assembly passed a new […]
Shockwaves spread as Africa’s membership numbers on UNWTO Affiliate platform become known
EAST AFRICA’S PRESENCE ON UNWTO AFFILIATE CATEGORY DESCRIBED AS ‘ABYSMAL’ (Posted 27th January 2014) Information has come to light that out of the over 400 UNWTO affiliate members only three are presently from East Africa while the continent overall only has 17 members. All three East African members are notably from Kenya, namely the Kenya […]
Groundbreaking for new Nile bridge announced for Tuesday
TUESDAY IS D-DAY FOR NEW NILE BRIDGE GROUNDBREAKING (Posted 27th January 2014) According to information received will President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni perform the ground breaking ceremony for the new bride over the River Nile in Jinja, in the presence of the Japanese Ambassador and the head of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, in short known […]
South Coast bypass – finally some good news
NEW BYPASS ROAD FROM NAIROBI HIGHWAY TO SOUTH COAST SET FOR START IN LATE 2014 (Posted 26th January 2014) Approximate new time frames were given yesterday by the Kenyan government for the long overdue bypass road to the South Coast, which is due to connect the international airport in Mombasa as well as the Nairobi […]
Conde Nast Gold List 2014 includes the Sarova Mara Game Camp
SAROVA MARA MAKES IT ON TO THE CONDE NAST GOLD LIST (Posted 26th January 2014) It is this time of year when hospitality businesses are keenly checking their mail inboxes to find out, some as expected and others perhaps a little more surprised, if they got news from TripAdvisor or Conde Nast about their rating […]
Now Logo New Game for Uganda Tourism
UGANDA TOURISM SEEKS NEW LOGO FOR ‘THE PEARL OF AFRICA’ (Posted 26th January 2014) In a renewed effort to rebrand Uganda, known around the globe as ‘The Pearl of Africa’, after quietly discarding an earlier slogan coined in the middle of the last decade ‘Uganda – Gifted by Nature’, is the Ministry of Tourism in […]
Tropical rainstorm lashes La Digue
SEYCHELLES ISLAND OF LA DIGUE HIT BY TORRENTIAL RAINS (Posted 25th January 2014) The Seychelles’ third largest island, La Digue, was yesterday at the centre of an epic rainstorm, which brought down 220 millimetres of rain in the space of just 7 hours in the deep of the night, lashing the island like hardly any […]
Ngorongoro Marathon – Running against Malaria
NGORONGORO MARATHON SET FOR 19TH APRIL (Posted 25th January 2014) This now annual race, first organized in 2008, will take to the road on 19th of April this year with an expected record attendance as the Ngorongoro Marathon has gained stature and recognition and become a hugely popular sporting event. Organized by the Rift Valley […]
Bag snatching crime hits foreign diplomat in Dar es Salaam
CRIME GETTING OUT OF CONTROL IN DAR ES SALAAM SUGGESTS DIPLOMAT’S RANT (Posted 25th January 2014) A rant taken from Facebook about yet another bag snatching incident on a busy street of Dar es Salaam brought back recollections of a number of similar reports last year, including one where a tourists was killed as she […]
Lucy Mbugua confirmed as KAA Chief Executive
LUCY MBUGUA CONFIRMED AS NEW KENYA AIRPORT AUTHORITY CEO (Posted 25th January 2014) (Picture via LinkedIn) Grapevine talk was finally confirmed yesterday when the Transport cabinet secretary Eng. Michael Kamau gave the green light for the KAA board chairman to formally announce the appointment of Ms. Lucy Mbugua as the new KAA Chief Executive Officer. […]
The ‘Chui’ and the Aberdare Country Club among the 2014 TripAdvisor winners
KENYAS LODGES AND RESORTS SCOOP TRIPADVISOR ‘TRAVELERS CHOICE 2014’ AWARD (Posted 25th January 2014) Two old ‘friends’ are among the 10 TripAdvisor winners already announced for 2014, which scooped the coveted ‘Travelers Choice Award’ for the current year, affirming again the quality these properties consistently deliver to their faithful clientele. The Leopard Beach Resort and […]
Hong Kong to destroy 28 tonnes of seized ivory after advisers endorse plan
Good news was received from one of the best sources available, Melissa Groo of ElephantNews, who regularly shares her global ‘media finds’ with me and many other conservation minded individuals and organizations around the world. This is an opportunity at last to recognize Melissa’s tireless efforts and work at ElephantNews.org from where she highlights on […]
Lake Victoria island for sale
EVER WANTED TO OWN AN ISLAND ON LAKE VICTORIA? (Posted 25th January 2014) Many of the visitors I met over the years who came to Uganda to find investment opportunities, or simply to live or retire in the Pearl of Africa, expressed their desire to own an island on Lake Victoria, but for most that […]
Africa must sort out Visa requirements and air connections says Dr. Taleb Rifai
UNWTO NAMES VISA AND AIR CONNECTIVITY AS KEY ISSUES TO GROW AFRICAN TOURISM (Posted 25th January 2014) UNWTO Secretary General Dr. Taleb Rifai has on the occasion of FITUR and INVESTOUR in Madrid taken the opportunity to once again speak to the assembled tourism ministers from the African continent who had come to lead their […]
Atta News Roundup 14th – 24th January
And hot on the heels of the Volcanoes news comes the news update from Atta in London, giving a broad overview of events and developments in Africa, covering aviation, hospitality, travel and conservation news – Enjoy! Atta News Roundup 14th – 24th January Atta News Atta’s Photography Competition – List of entries available:We are, […]
New VSPT Projects – Soap and Tea Time!
As part of sharing sectoral news, this news flash reached me yesterday from Volcanoes Safaris and is worth sharing with my readers. Enjoy! UG Tel: +256 (0) 414 346 464/5 Mail: vsptstaff AboutVirungaKyamburaBwindiGahingaSupportContact Happy New Year from the VSPT! 2013 was full of success stories for us, mostly centred on the Batwa community in Mount […]
Kenya government finally wakes up to tourism sector problems
KENYA GOVERNMENT REACTS TO TOURISM STAKEHOLDER CONCERNS (Posted 25th January 2014) Earlier in the week news broke that President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto will be carrying out a performance review for each of their cabinet secretaries – formerly known as ministers – in a few months after the first full year in […]
FastJet expands GDS presence to the key 7 systems
FASTJET EXPANDS GDS PRESENCE TO 7 KEY SYSTEMS (Posted 24th January 2014) If declared intent is to be followed by purpose and harbinger of things to come, the announcement by FastJet that they are now ‘live’ on the 7 most important global reservation and flight information systems surely must be one of those eye openers. […]
