Vacations Blog

A new strategy to improve beach security along the Kenyan coastline has started to yield results with many more tourists deciding to visit the beach instead of staying in their hotels. The plan to streamline beach operations which has consistently been a perennial source of conflict between the government and various beach operators, has begun to take shape courtesy of a beach management programme costing Sh150 million. Stake holders in the tourism industry, curio sellers, beach operators and market traders have all begun to relocate their activities from Mtwapa Creek all the way to Tudor.

This buoyed up security has not only enticed tourists to the beach but it has also attracted more people in Kenya’s coastal region to take a Kenya safari. 2000 operators have been designated to prevent tourists being hassled on one of Kenya’s most popular beaches in a joint project set up by the Kenyan government and the Kenya Wildlife Service.

Unlike taking a Namibia safari last year, the safari industry in Kenya took a battering in tourist numbers, as the threat from the Al Shabab militia, the Somali based terrorist organisation was at an all time high with 2 kidnappings of tourists from Kenya’s northern eastern coast.

Many of the larger hotels along Mombasa beach front including the Sarova, Voyager Beach, Travellers, Whitesands & Neptune Beach have now begun to put their sun beds back out onto the beach in the wake of new and improved security, rather than only confining them to the hotel compounds.

It seems as though Kenya’s quick actions regarding it’s security may have saved it’s tourism industry and whilst the end of 2011 was somewhat of a bleak year for the country, 2012 looks as though it may be one of the most successful yet. Instead of heading out to Africa next year on a Botswana safari don’t disregard Kenya as a destination just because of the threat from the Al Shabab Militia.

The owner of one of Mombasa’s beach front hotels said that over the 2011 festive period there were no incidents involving the harassment of it’s guests which in comparison to last year when 50% of the guests complained is a great turn up for the books.

A state spokesman for Kenya recently said that representatives from two top U.S. tour operators travelled to the region and told Tourism minister Najib Balala they are very happy with the government’s efforts to restore security to the countries border with Somalia. The CEO of the top US tour operator, Abercrombie & Kent says that ‘Kenya is still one of Africa’s safest countries’ in a reassurance to tourists that all was being done to secure the border with Somalia to prevent any further attacks. These words have been echoed by the U.S. ambassador to Kenya, Scotts Gration on a tour to the affected region.

The important thing to not here is that since the Kenyan army have moved into the affected region their haven’t been any other incidents and it’s believed Al Shabab are resorting to kidnapping as their efforts in the Indian Ocean are being hampered by international efforts to stop piracy. Kenya is an extremely popular tourist destination for traveller’s solely visiting Kenya and those combining their trip with a visit to Zanzibar. The accommodation the tourists were kidnapped from in Kenya were very close to the Somali border so resorts in Zanzibar like the Sunshine Hotel are now prospering as a result.

Safaris, whether it be a Kenya safari or a Tanzanian safari are amongst some of the main reasons for many visiting the African continent. With so much diversity in scenery and wildlife it comes as no surprise this is where the money is in the countries’ economies. From Sudan to Botswana safari tourism is a big earner especially for those who are in the high end tourism business including many lodge owners who run the Abu Camp in Botswana or the management behind the Serena Lodges in Kenya and Tanzania. Security around the lodges and camps that were targeted by the Al Shabab militia have since stepped up and the Kenyan National Army have now begun heading over the border into Somalia to remove the Al Shabab Militia for good.

When booking a trip to Kenya check with the foreign office as to where is safe and not so safe to travel and providing you are nowhere near the Somali border your holiday will be a pleasant and memorable one.

In today’s world, although sometimes a little risky, females travel solo and freely all of the time. Whilst travelling it’s very common to bump into a female who has been travelling solo without coming across any problems at all. There are a wide range of myths that you constantly hear suggesting that travelling solo as a female is amongst one of the most dangerous things you can do. Below you will find 3 common myths that we don’t believe to be true at all.

In this 24hr media bubble we all seem to live in these days, it’s easy to think that leaving your own country is unsafe, when most of the countries in the world are a lot safer than the UK or the USA. If you adopt the same approach you do at home regarding money and your possessions to when you are travelling on say a Kenya Safari or an overland adventure in Africa there is no reason you should find yourself in jeopardy. It’s important to research a destination before you travel to it, not just for your safety but for the simple fact you don’t want to waste time when you’re abroad finding out where everything is.

Perhaps the biggest concern surrounding solo women travellers is the possibility of getting raped or attacked whilst away. Statistics do actually prove that it’s a lot more likely that someone will be attacked at home by someone they know rather than a stranger in a foreign country. As with most things in life, don’t do anything you wouldn’t do at home, don’t walk down dark alleys at night by yourself and get a good padlock for your belongings at your accommodation even if you are staying somewhere absolutely magnificent like the Plantation Lodge in Tanzania.

Another hot topic is local men being aggressive towards solo female travellers. This is a bad stereotype and there are a thousand and one ways to ensure behaviour like this doesn’t take place. Don’t wear revealing clothes, even if you are on holiday in Africa and at a plush resort such as the Selinda Camp as you never know who’s watching. Both Indian and African man have a bad reputation when it comes down to this but if you have the correct dress you are half way there… and remember not every man that approaches you will have bad intentions.

While you should always take precautions and follow your instincts there is no reason why as a solo female traveller you shouldn’t travel alone just because of what ‘might happen’. If you’re careful then you have as much chance of getting into a sticky situation as any other traveller, male or female.

Africa is the second largest continent in the world and has three of the world’s largest deserts, the Sahara Desert, the Namib Desert and the Kalahari Desert. Together these vast array of diverse land masses cover a large area of the African continent and hold the key to millions of years worth of history. These regions are areas of natural beauty but it doesn’t take away the fact they are hostile, treacherous regions that hold very little life. The only people who live in the desert regions are nomads who travel from village to village trading goods.

Most tourists travel to Africa on one of three types of trips, a Botswana safari or a safari in South Africa or they travel to the continent on an adventure trip to locations including Victoria Falls and the Garden Route where bungee jumping, canyon swinging and sky diving are all activities people can sink their teeth into. More and more tour operators are now offering trips to the more desolate desert regions to take part in sand boarding and quad biking and in some cases stay in the desert for up to a week at the time.

Although the majority of tourists still prefer the typical Zambia safari there are a lot more people looking for extreme adventure in Africa, whether its paragliding, skydiving or camping out in the desert for a week or so. The deserts of Africa are now beginning to attract as many tourists as those who climb Kilimanjaro every year. Due to the African deserts being so vast it’s highly unlikely there will be any confrontation between local nomadic tribes and tourists especially in the nations of Algeria, Morocco, Libya and Tunisia.

The Namib Desert is the most visited by tourists simply because the majority of the Namibian coastal region is dominated by desert. In Namibia the main attractions are the Namib-Naukluft National Park and the Skeleton coast that are all located in the oldest desert in the world. The Namib Desert is also home to the highest sand dunes on the continent that are frequently visited by tourists.

The deserts in Africa are ever changing environments, expanding their reaches for few years and then retracting and becoming home to an abundance of new flora and fauna when the occasional rains do fall.