Fire destroys Malindi resort

EDEN ROC RESORT IN MALINDI BURNS DOWN (Posted 18th December 2013) Reports have come in from the Kenyan beach resort town of Malindi that the Sai Eden Roc Hotel burned down last night, after a fire broke out at the resort’s restaurant. Most guests escaped the fire unharmed though at least two, according to the […]
Jetlink gets lifeline thrown as ASL renewed by KCAA

JETLINK HOPES TO BE BACK IN THE AIR BEFORE EASTER NEXT YEAR (Posted 18th December 2013) It was Christmas come early for the owners of Jetlink when news emerged yesterday in Nairobi that the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority has granted the grounded carrier a renewal of their air service licence, prerequisite to eventually resume operations. […]
News and updates from across Africa
Travel Africa is one of the best magazines showcasing the wide range of safari options visitors to our continent have and I am always looking forward to their latest editions, which also include Travel Zambia, Travel Zimbabwe and Travel Namibia, the latter three entirely dedicated of course to showcasing those three exciting destinations. Enjoy looking […]
Crashed LAM Embraer E 190 ‘mechanically sound’ according to latest reports

LAM CRASH INVESTIGATION’S PRELIMINARY FIND SAYS EMBRAER E190 WAS ‘SOUND’ (Posted 18th December 2013) Preliminary air accident investigation findings appear to confirm that the aircraft used by LAM for the stricken flight TM 470 from Maputo to Luanda on 29th November, with all 33 passengers and crew on board killed on impact, was mechanically sound. […]
FastJet reports 73 percent loadfactor for November

FASTJET ANNOUNCES NOVEMBER DATA (Posted 18th December 2013) FastJet has just published their latest statistics, showing a yearly average loadfactor of 73 percent and a November loadfactor of 72 percent across the board. The airline upped their schedule to daily flights to Mbeya effective 16th December, after only launching the route a few weeks ago […]
Here is your chance to sell commercials for the eTN Group
Aloha from your eTN team in Haleiwa, Hawaii: eTN is looking for sales representatives in various parts of the world AND/ OR for a global coordinator. This is a commission only opportunity (25%). See what we’re selling: http://www.eturbopr.com If you’re interested to work with the oldest and most established online Travel & Tourism Media company […]
Foreigners in Juba anxiously wait for flights to resume and borders to open

JUBA HOTELS RUN OUT OF DIESEL FOR GENERATORS AS BORDERS REMAIN CLOSED (Posted 18th December 2013) As the night time curfew continues in Juba and the borders, including the airport remained closed for a second day yesterday, hotels have started to feel the pinch as diesel deliveries have dried up and they are now faced […]
Briatore’s Billionaires Resort ready for the official opening
BILLIONAIRES RESORT DUE TO OPEN IN MALINDI THIS WEEKEND (Posted 17th December 2013) Flavio Briatore last weekend arrived at his Billionaires Resort in Malindi, his second hospitality venture after the award winning ‘Lion in the Sun’. Initially due to open earlier in the year, demand for top quality in construction and finishing led to a […]
KTB looks at West Africa for more visitors

KENYA TOURISM MAKES MARKET PUSH FOR MORE NIGERIAN VISITORS (Posted 17th December 2013) The Kenya Tourism Board yesterday announced that they are now launching a major marketing campaign in Nigeria to have more visitors from that country come for safaris and to enjoy Kenya’s beach resorts. The following statement was released and is shown below: […]
Kenya Tourism cancels ATM 2014 participation for lack of funds

HOUSTON MARKETING COMES TO THE RESCUE AFTER KTB CANCELS ATM2014 APPEARANCE (Posted 17th December 2013) Derek Houston of Houston Marketing, Africa Representative of Reed Travel Exhibitions, a close ally to the East African tourism sectors and in particular to Kenya, was swift to step into the breach when news broke that the Kenya Tourism Board […]
Meet RwandAir’s first B737 captain

RWANDAIR PROMOTES FIRST RWANDAN PILOT TO B737 CAPTAIN (Posted 17th December 2013) Rwanda’s national airline RwandAir yesterday announced the promotion of First Officer Bosco Murabukirwa to the rank of Captain, the first time a Rwandan national has made it to the left seat in the cockpit. This development is part of a sustained effort to […]
Juba airport closed after overnight fighting
NO FLIGHTS IN OR OUT OF JUBA / SOUTH SUDAN The fighting overnight in Juba, South Sudan’s capital city, has caused the closure of the international airport in Juba, with flights from the region, i.e. Nairobi, Entebbe, Kigali, Addis Ababa and beyond cancelled. This has left passengers in Juba stranded who tried to leave the […]
Tourism industry decries strikes
KENYA’S TOURISM INDUSTRY GURUS UNHAPPY WITH STRIKES AND STUDENT UNREST A number of Kenya’s tourism stakeholders have over the weekend voiced their concern over the present strike by hospital staff and outright condemned the riotous behaviour of students of the University of Nairobi, which went on rampage again in the capital, stoning cars and causing […]
More tourism news from across Africa
In the ongoing series of re-broadcasting interesting newsletters here is the latest from the ‘Good Safari Guide’ … Enjoy 12/15/2013 Good Safari Guide Newsletter Safari News from the Safari World in Africa and Beyond Latest News from the Safari World What do Tourists Want? A Tripadvisor survey confirms that we all want free stuff and […]
Weekly roundup of ATC News from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean islands, Third edition December 2013

AVIATION TOURISM & CONSERVATION NEWS EAST AFRICA A weekly roundup from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean islands 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 @whthomeor join me on www.facebook.com/WolfgangHThome where the articles also ‘cross load’. […]
January 2014 given for ground breaking of new airport rail line

WORK ON AIRPORT RAILWAY LINE TO START IN JANUARY (Posted 14th December 2013) In time for the celebrations of Kenya’s 50th anniversary of Independence has the Kenya Railways Corporation confirmed that work for the new commuter line from the city centre to the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport will commence in January next year. Groundbreaking is […]
Opening tomorrow – the new Loisaba Wilderness Camp

LOISABA WILDERNESS GETS NEW CAMP (Posted 14th December 2013) Only 6 weeks after a devastating bush fire destroyed the Loisaba Wilderness Lodge and the Loisaba Private House on 30th October this year is a new camp preparing to open tomorrow, 15th of December, allowing visitors back to one of Kenya’s most scenic wilderness areas. Set […]
No let up to promote Reunion
MORE FAM TRIPS SHOWCASE REUNION’S WIDE RANGE OF TOURISM ATTRACTIONS (Posted 14th December 2013) Efforts continue from Reunion Tourism and the island’s private sector to showcase the rugged beauty of this French Indian Ocean island, as a group of 12 Spanish travel agents, organized by Viajes El Corte Ingles and local handling agency Papangue Touris, […]
The latest ATTA News – and more reasons to join

The Africa Travel and Tourism Association, arguably Africa’s leading private sector platform aimed to promote travel to Africa and avail sound factual information for members and those who should be members, has just published their latest newsletter. Enjoy all the updates – and click on their website link and sign up for membership, if you […]
Where size does matter – eTN leads the global travel news pack
I often casually mention that eTN is the global market leader for news to the world wide travel and tourism community, and periodically I am challenged to ‘prove it’ … Normally I refer to the links on the eTN websites, where the numbers are published, but the latest Google rankings speak not just volumes but […]
Kenya announces easing of Visa rules for Africans
KENYA TO ADOPT RWANDAN MODEL GRANTING VISA TO AFRICANS ON ARRIVAL (Posted 13th December 2013) Like Rwanda did in January this year, will Kenya follow suit and begin to grant Visa on arrival to all citizens of the African Union memberstates, come January 2014. President Uhuru Kenyatta, among many other announcements of significance, made the […]
Bad weather causes Nairobi’s Tusker Airshow to be postponed

TUSKER AIRSHOW POSTPONED DUE TO BAD WEATHER CONDITIONS (Posted 13th December 2013) The organizers of the Tusker Airshow at Wilson Airport Nairobi have decided to postpone the event due to the prevailing poor weather conditions, to ensure the safety of both spectators and flyers. They issued the following release yesterday late afternoon and in view […]
New organizational structure seen as major game changer in Seychelles’ tourism promotion

SEYCHELLES COUNCIL OF MINISTERS APPROVE CHANGES IN TOURISM INSTITUTIONS (Posted 13th December 2013) 2014 will be a landmark year for Seychelles’ tourism and culture public sector institutions, as major reforms, realignments and organizational changes are coming into effect, after the Council of Ministers approved the proposals made. The Ministry of Tourism and Culture, led by […]
Come January Come Dodoma

AURIC AIR ANNOUNCES DODOMA FLIGHTS (Posted 13th December 2013) Tanzania’s Auric Air (IATA H8 / ICAO AUK) has announced the launch of flights to Dodoma from January 2014 onwards, adding to the already impressive number of 19 destinations across East Africa’s largest country. No other airline covers Tanzania, with scheduled flights and charters, as extensively […]
Swahili Fashion Week says ‘Asante Sana’
And the 2013 Winners are … The Swahili Fashion week has now published the list of winners in the various categories of the competition and congrats to not just them, but to every single participant who helped to make this one of East Africa’s premier fashion events. Watch out for details in early 2014 when […]
New airport Holiday Inn on Mauritius now open for business
NEW HOLIDAY INN OPENS NEAR SSR INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT ON MAURITIUS (Posted 13th December 2013) The new Holiday Inn Mauritius Airport at Plaine Magnien is now open for business, offering a full range of services for travellers, those on business and those coming for leisure alike. Located less than a kilometre from the Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam […]
Immediate Past UTA President makes serious allegations about planned misuse of tourism marketing funds

STOP THESE FRAUDSTERS AND THIEVES SAYS UTA’S IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT (Posted 13th December 2013) Quote: ’Help help……the government of Uganda is borrowing 25 million Dollars to support the growth of tourism and this money is going to be approved by parliament next Tuesday. 12 million is for developing Jinja tourism training school, 3 million is […]
100 and counting – MV Liemba still going strong

MV LIEMBA TURNS 100 AS CENTENARY YEAR OF THE GREAT WAR APPROACHES (Posted 12th December 2013) (The former Graf von Goetzen, now known as MV Liemba, still going strong after 101 years) The MV Liemba, a Swahili word for Lake Tanganyika, has a long history of dominating the waves of Lake Tanganyika, since she was […]
Three weeks to go to passport free travel for CoW citizens
COALITION OF THE WILLING PUTS FINAL TOUCHES ON PASSPORT FREE TRAVEL (Posted 12th December 2013) Experts from Uganda and Kenya will meet in Kigali before the end of the week to put final touches to the commitment made by the three Heads of State that come January 01st next year, now only three weeks away, […]
Seafood comes to the Sheraton at the new Seven Seas Restaurant

SHERATON KAMPALA OPENS NEW SEAFOOD RESTAURANT (Posted 12th December 2013) In time for the festive season has the Sheraton Kampala Hotel launched their latest restaurant venture, the Seven Seas, a dedicated sea food eatery offering the latest catches of crustaceans and ocean fish flown in daily from Mombasa and Dar es Salaam, from Mozambique and […]