45th AFRAA Assembly kicks off at picture perfect Diani Beach
AFRAA MEETING KICKS OFF IN KENYA (Posted 24th November 2013) The 45th Annual General Assembly kicked off yesterday afternoon with the 162nd meeting of the Executive Committee of the African Airlines Association among the picture perfect background of the Indian Ocean. Held this year at the Leisure Lodge Resort in Diani Beach – the last […]
Taita Taveta county – New Road, New Game
TAITA TAVETA EXPECTS TOURISM BOOST FROM NEW ROAD (Posted 23rd November 2013) The planned new highway between the border town of Taveta and Voi will open up the area to more tourist visitors when complete, allowing easier access to the more remote parts of Tsavo West and of course the Taita Hills Game Reserve, a […]
LUX Resorts launch guest blog
LUX RESORTS INTRODUCE PROACTIVE BLOG FOR GUESTS (Posted 24th November 2013) The Reunion, Mauritius and Maldives based LUX Resorts have now introduced a new way to interact with their guests and let them express their experiences while on location or when back home. LUX operates three top of the range resorts on the island of […]
Weekly roundup of ACT News from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean region, Fourth edition November 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’. […]
Kilimanjaro International Airport gets 35 million Euros for modernization work
KILIMANJARO INTERNATIONAL GETS 35 MILLION EUROS FOR OVERHAUL (Posted 23rd November 2013) Kilimanjaro International Airport, in airline circles known as JRO, will undergo further upgrades, expansion and modernization from middle of next year, after a 35 million Euro package was put together for financing the works. Managed by KADCO, short for the Kilimanjaro Airport Development […]
African Airlines meet at Kenya’s Diani Beach
AFRAA BRINGS MEMBER AIRLINES TO KENYA’S DIANI BEACH FOR GENERAL ASSEMBLY (Posted 23rd November 2013) The African Airline Association, in short AFRAA, which is based in Nairobi / Kenya, will this weekend start their annual general assembly and most member airlines are expected to attend, not just for the meetings in the conference room but […]
Brussels Airlines meets Makerere students on campus
BRUSSELS AIRLINES ENGAGES WITH UNIVERSITY STUDENTS (Posted 23rd November 2013) Brussels Airlines’ management team, led by Country Manager Benjamin Puissant and accompanied by several of his key staff, yesterday met with students at Uganda’s main university of Makerere in Kampala. Following a presentation by Brussels Airlines, about the company and their commitment to Uganda from […]
Emirates set for flight reduction to Mahe during 2014 Dubai airport runway repairs
EMIRATES TO DROP FROM 12 TO 7 FLIGHTS PER WEEK DURING AIRPORT WORK IN DUBAI (Posted 22nd November 2013) Information was received from the Seychelles, that Emirates has told the local tourism trade that come May next year, when the runways at the Dubai International Airport will be resurfaced and capacity limitations therefore will be […]
Kenya’s spat with Britain results in meeting ‘buster’
DEFENDER OF THE KENYAN REALM OR JUST A BUFFOON – YOU JUDGE (Posted 22nd November 2013) One participant of a planned workshop at the Sirikwa Hotel in Eldoret sent in his own version of events, which has made the way into the Kenyan mainstream media overnight as well. At least three staff from the British […]
Mombasa County Government hatches new tax assault plans against hotels and resorts
MOMBASA HOTELIERS REJECT NEW COUNTY GOVERNMENT’S TAX IDEAS (Posted 22nd November 2013) More arguments are brewing over plans by the Mombasa County Government to slap yet more taxes on the already overburdened hotels and resorts at the coast. Reeling from low occupancies as a result of poor perception as much as real incidents in the […]
Exploring Uganda’s lakes by dug out canoe
CANOE TREKKING IS THE LATEST ADDITION TO EXPLORE UGANDA’S SOUTH WEST (Posted 22nd November 2013) Uganda’s first ever WSA Award Winner www.gorillahighlands.com has just launched another product aimed to make the exploration of Uganda’s South West more comfortable and more exciting. ‘Edirisa Canoe Trekking’ can now be booked by tour and safari operators as well […]
Airline competition in Africa – and The Winners are: The Passengers
THE BATTLE FOR THE AFRICAN SKIES HEATS UP AS KQ AND ET STRIVE FOR SUPERIORITY (Posted 22nd November 2013) As Kenya Airways’ second nonstop flight from Nairobi to Guangzhou in China is now underway, using the airline’s brand new B777-300ER flagship aircraft – Kenya Airways since the 18th of November flies three times nonstop and […]
Spending holiday season time with mankind’s nearest relatives?
For my Ugandan readers this is an option worth considering. And while the chimps will for obvious reasons NOT put up a Christmas tree, a visit for the family may just be the present they would like to find under YOUR tree at home. Happy Holidays! Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary- end of year offer Come […]
Precision Air announces positive outlook at AGM
PRECISION AIR HOLDS AGM AMID POSITIVE OUTLOOK FOR FUTURE OPERATIONS (Posted 21st November 2013) Precision Air, Tanzania’s only publicly listed airline company, yesterday held their second Annual General Meeting since the company had floated their IPO and was listed on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange. Following a tumultuous year after Chief Executive Ms. Sauda […]
Air Seychelles signs code share deal with Cathay to open up Far and South East
AIR SEYCHELLES INKS DEAL WITH CATHAY PACIFI (Posted 21st November 2013) Air Seychelles has just announced an additional major code share agreement with Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific, one of South and East Asia’s leading airlines. Subject to regulatory approvals, which are expected to be granted without much delay, will Air Seychelles gain access to Australia […]
President Michel continues his advocacy for fighting global warming and climate change
CLIMATE TALK FAILURES CAUSE BOTH THREATS AND DISAPPOINTMENT TO SEYCHELLES (Posted 21st November 2013) When at the start of the just concluded Commonwealth Summit in Sri Lanka HRH The Prince of Wales recognized President James Alix Michel for the groundbreaking environmental policies his government had not just formulated but implemented – just over half of […]
New NFA charges – arbitrary, illegal, extortionist or just shafting rafting for a quick buck?
DOES GREED KILL THE GOLDEN GOOSE OF UGANDA’S RAFTING TOURISM (Posted 21st November 2013) The National Forest Authority, together with the Adrift Adventure Company, were yesterday all but accused to have connived to extort rafting companies and their clients, who are now subject to a steep fee for needing to walk a 50 metre distance […]
AUTO voices their concerns
AUTO RAISES MORE CONCERNS AMID CALLS FOR CLARIFICATION (Posted 21st November 2013) Uganda’s tour and safari operators are bracing for another controversy with the Uganda Wildlife Authority, not long after UWA announced that they would put their gorilla permit sale on line, a decision which was met with anger, at times outrage and broadly disappointment […]
New CFO for Air Seychelles as Tara Murphy joins the team
AIR SEYCHELLES WELCOMES NEW CFO (Posted 20th November 2013) It was ‘Good Bye Shelley and Welcome Tara’ earlier this week as a key change at the top level of the Air Seychelles management took place. Shelley Cole, who arrived together with CEO Cramer Ball when Etihad bought 40 percent of the Air Seychelles shares and […]
More trouble for Air Tanzania
AIR TANZANIA’S WOES CONTINUE (Posted 20th November 2013) Past sins are catching up with Air Tanzania once again as creditors are moving to have, what appears the sole asset of Air Tanzania, their head office building, auctioned off to raise the cash to pay up million dollar debts owed for many years. The Commercial Court, […]
Uganda’s best guides meet at 5.109 metres
NKURINGO GUIDES MEET RWENZORI MOUNTAIN GUIDES AT 5.109 METRES HIGH (Posted 20th November 2013) In a remarkable private sector led cooperation initiative did the guiding teams of Nkuringo Walking Safaris and of the Rwenzori Mountain Services come together to not just meet and talk but to climb and walk, in each others’ territory. Rob Brierley […]
Four nights and five days on Ol Pejeta – An eye opener
OL PEJETA – KENYA’S MOST COMPLETE WILDERNESS AND ADVENTURE EXPERIENCE (Posted 19th November 2013) Every visitor to Kenya, be it a first timer or a repeater, and the country got plenty of aficionados who keep coming back to explore more and to enjoy the sundrenched beaches of Diani or Watamu, will have a story to […]
Quo Vadis Kenya Coast Tourism
THE GLOVES ARE SET TO COME OFF AS KENYA’S TOURISM GURUS TAKE ON GOVERNMENT (Posted 19th November 2013) Unease and frustration are growing among the Kenyan tourism fraternity over the intransigence shown by government to their plight, especially in the light of yet another drop in occupancies at the Kenya coast. The initial warm welcome […]
FastJet’s October performance given at 70 percent loadfactor
FASTJET PUBLISHES OCTOBER STATS (Posted 19th November 2013) FastJet yesterday published their latest passenger statistics from Tanzania but also for the group overall, including the Fly540 operations in Kenya, Angola and Ghana. The company also confirmed the departure of Lonrho from the list of shareholders after a sale of the Lonrho shares in FastJet. The […]
Uganda Community Tourism news updates for November
For those of my readers interested in more than my ‘usual stuff’ here is an update from the Uganda Community Tourism Association, in short UCOTA, with their regular newsletter for the month of November. Find out more about what is going on at the grass root levels of Uganda’s community based tourism and enjoy the […]
Precision Air CEO Ms. Sauda Rajab sets the record straight
PRECISION AIR’S CEO PUTS THE RECORD STRAIGHT (Posted 18th November 2013) Following a great many misconceptions and misperceptions, besides outright mischievious comments made in the local Tanzanian and regional media, ATC News took the time to get in touch with Precision Air to give the airline through CEO Miss Sauda Rajab the opportunity to set […]
Uhuru meets her siblings and peers at Ziwa
UHURU GETS TO MEET HER FAMILY AND PALS (Posted 18th November 2013) After 5 months of self styled isolation has one of Ziwa’s adult females, Nandi, formally ‘introduced’ her latest calf, a little girl named Uhuru, to the rest of the Ziwa rhinos. 11 of the overall now 13 Southern White rhinos came together and […]
New proposals could raise cost of Kenya’s domestic departure taxes by 150 percent
KENYA’S DOMESTIC DEPARTURE TAX COULD MORE THAN DOUBLE UNDER NEW PROPOSALS (Posted 18th November 2013) The national assembly appears to have revived a proposal shot down during the last parliament which will, if passed, open the door to raise the domestic departure tax from presently 200 Kenya Shillings to as much as 500 Kenya Shillings, […]
Qatar Airways adds another 55 aircraft at Dubai Airshow buying frenzy
QATAR AIRWAYS SIGNS LOI FOR 50 BOEING B777X (Posted 18th November 2013) Overshadowed but not quite outdone will aviation observers think of Qatar Airways’ signing of a Letter of Intent with Boeing, which confirms their interest to purchase 50 of Boeings’ latest birds, the B777X, which until a few days ago appeared to have been […]
Emirates places record breaking aircraft order worth 99 billion US Dollars
EMIRATES PLACES LARGEST AIRCRAFT ORDER IN AVIATION HISTORY (Posted 18th November 2013) Emirates, the award winning national airline of Dubai, has on opening day of the Dubai Air Show placed the largest order ever made by a single airline, on a single occasion throughout aviation history. At list prices, it is assumed though that they […]
