The Status of Kenya’s Tourist Attractions: A Case for Regional Tourism Development Strategy.
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Date
2014-06-13
Authors
Waudo, Judith N.
Ndivo, R. M.
Waswa, F.
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Abstract
Kenya is endowed with a unique combination of tourist attractions, comprising tropical beaches, abundant wildlife in natural habitats, scenic beauty and a geographically diverse landscape classified into tourist regions. However, such regions have not received due recognition to enable them stand out as destinations on their own right. This study sought to determine the perception of the domestic tourists’ on the status of Kenya’s domestic tourist destinations using a framework of destination choice sets by Hill (2000). The findings of the study indicated that tourism in Kenya is almost exclusively centered on the south coast beaches and a handful of game reserves or national parks with Mombasa and the Coral Coast being the most popular tourist circuit while the Northern Tourist circuit was found to be the least popular. The study thus recommends adoption of a Regional Tourism Development Strategy in the development of Kenya’s tourism industry that should recognize the varied needs, level of maturity and vision of each region and be supported within the context of the existing regional political/administrative units, as it is the case in countries that have successfully applied the strategy.