Chinese tourists to Kenya to double in 2017

The number of Chinese tourists visiting Kenya is set to double in 2017, the tourism marketing agency said late on Thursday.

Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) CEO Betty Radier told Xinhua in Nairobi that approximately 69,000 Chinese tourists arrived in the country in 2016.

"We have experienced a spike in the number of Chinese visitors in Kenya for the first six months of 2017 and we are confident we could double last year's number," Radier said when KTB and the Kenya Wildlife Service signed a Memorandum of Understanding.

Radier said that if the current trajectory for Chinese visitors continues, the Asian nation will be largest source market in three years. Currently, the number one source market is the U.S., followed by Britain, India and China.

Government data indicates in 2016, the number of international tourists via air hit 874,385. Kenya has classified the tourist sources markets and China is in the number one tier.

The East African nation will also deploy different techniques to lure Chinese tourists.

"We have found out that we can't treat the Chinese market, the same way we handle our traditional markets of the U.S. and Europe," the CEO said.

The tourist marketing agency plans to increase its presence on the Chinese social media sites.

（From Xinhua Net)