Survey: More Kenyans booking vacations online

An average 32% of Kenyans prefer to book and pay their vacation services online, research from Jumia travel has indicated.

Jumia Director of Travel in East and Southern Africa Estelle Verdier noted that there has been an improvement in the use of mobile payments recorded in the last one year with overall hotel payments made through the mobile platforms.

Verdier also said that 52% of the guests still opt for direct payments despite the move by the company encouraging customers to book tickets online.

“Customers in Kenya are now making payments using e-commerce or mobile payment, a trend that has gained ground due to the unique mobile transfer method M-Pesa in the country,” Verdier said.

Speaking at a Nairobi hotel during a media briefing, Verdier said that for the third time now, they sought to compare how the local tourism sector was competing with their counterparts in the region such as Tanzania, which has been a competitor to Kenya on the tourism front.

Jumia Travel Country Manager Cyrus Onyiego said that many hotels across the world have embraced the use of technology so as to improve the service delivery to their clients.

He also noted a remarkable increase in domestic travel that he says could be attributed to lower travel cost.

“More than 2, 500 hotels in Africa partnering with Jumia Travel have shown not only an increase in the absorption of technology in the sector but also a growth in domestic travel spending,” said Onyiego.

The report also discussed various challenges facing the sector such as poor roads in some areas in Kenya which made it difficult for tourists to access some areas.

Political tension was also cited as a major problem to the industry since it does not provide a good environment to visitors. Besides, there are sometimes travel advisories issued by some countries against Kenya.

The event was also attended by various stakeholders in the tourism sector such as Jambo Jet, Skyworld Express and Tourism Credit Finance Co-operation.

Story credit: Obare Rodney/Wandera Dylan