RWANDAS ARRIVALS UP BY 28 PERCENT
The Rwanda Development Boards Tourism and Conservation division staff went to Londons WTM armed with good news: Arrivals are up, AGAIN, by over 28 percent compared to the previous year, manifesting the result of hard work and creative approaches to marketing the country and keeping it in the spotlight of the global travel media.
Amongst the fastest growing markets were East Africa, South Africa and West Africa, no surprise here as RwandAir is now flying increasingly often to these destinations, especially now that the airline has taken delivery of two B737-800 aircraft, bringing the total fleet to 7.
RwandAirs marketing efforts though go hand in hand with RDB and the private sector, which have been fielding a united front when going out to promote the country and in the process being mentioned alongside such marketing giants like the Seychelles.
Small but oh la la comes to mind when talking Rwanda and the nature experience of the three national parks is complemented by forest reserves like Gishwati, birding trails and now the Congo / Nile Trail, which traverses the continental water divide feeding into Africas two most important rivers.
The sharp increase has also in part be attributed to the market entry of KLM, which now operates 5 times a week between Amsterdam and Kigali, and the return of South African Airways on the route from Johannesburg will add further arrival numbers. Once Turkish Airlines will commence flights in April next year, and considering the interest in Kigali of such giants like Qatar Airways, this will only further improve the performance of the tourism industry which in recent years has become an economic cornerstone of The Land of a Thousand Hills. Watch this space for all current news on tourism and conservation, brought to you right here as and when things happen in Rwanda.
