Celebrity tourism the new buzz in the wild

Business

By Joe Kiarie

After being rocked by one of its worst spells in history, the tourism industry is struggling back to its feet courtesy of high profile visits by celebrities.

Top track, tennis, motoring, basketball, soccer and even Hollywood stars have visited Kenya, mostly on charity missions, in recent times.

Local tourism stakeholders say celebrities have been a core part of the drive that has seen the industry emerge from the doldrums to register an impressive Sh36.6 billion in the first nine months of this year.

The tours have been receiving global publicity on news outlets like CNN, Reuters, BBC, AFP, Xinhua and AP.

Serena Williams and Usain Bolt are among the recent celebrities to tour Kenya. Photo: File/Standard

One of the most publicised visits was that of Jamaican super sprinter Usain Bolt this week.

Accompanied by former Olympic and world 110 hurdles record holder Colin Jackson, Bolt made the tour symbolic by adopting the world’s fastest animal, a cheetah.

But his visit was just the climax of a spell that has seen other global icons tour the country since last June.

The List is enormous

It started last June with the tour of England and West Ham FC goalkeeper Robert Green, who spent his holiday in Kenya and Tanzania and helped raise more than Sh2.3 million for the African Medical and Research Foundation (Amref).

Green’s stint in Kenya saw him work with Amref’s staff to speak on HIV/Aids, health, and peace in Dagoretti and Kibera slums in Nairobi.

The main focus of his stint in Kenya was the Amref Football Tournament for Peace, set up following the post-election violence.

In the same month, Inter Milan and Cameroon top striker Samuel Eto’o visited Kenya on a charity mission.

Then came November and American tennis superstar Serena Williams, the current World Number One, came knocking for the first time on a three-day charity tour.

The American tennis superstar made the tour as a global ambassador for Hewlett Packard (HP), a computer manufacturer.

Serena opened a secondary school named after her in Matooni, Makueni constituency.

In December, Renault Formula One driver Fernando Alonso celebrated his New Year Holiday in Malindi with his family.

The two-time Formula One world champion’s Kenyan holiday got more publicity after his private jet hit a wall at the Malindi Airport terminal, forcing him to cancel his journey back to Italy.

Charity mission

After motoring, came August and soccer greats landed in the country. A team comprising of retired Brazilian internationals — among them World Cup winners — toured Kenya on a charity mission.

The 16-member team was led by former Bayern Munich star Paulo Sergio, ex-Barcelona superstar Giovanni Silva, defender Ze Carlos and midfielder Ailton dos Santos.

The tour, which was organised by Association of Evangelicals, was expected to include some stars in the current national team such as Real Madrid’s Kaka, but the timing was inappropriate because most European clubs had started their pre-season training.

August also saw NBA Basketball star Juwan Howard of the Charlotte Bobcats visit Mukuru slums. He was in Kenya for the Basketball Without Borders camp selection to be held in South Africa.

In September, Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie visited Kenya and travelled to the Dadaab refugee camp.

The tour of the UN goodwill ambassador was used to highlight the plight of Somali refugees in the camp.

In January, British Pop Star Jamelia also toured the country.

Jamelia, who is supporting The Really Good School Dinner campaign, was in the country to witness the progress of the World Food Programme school-feeding initiative.

Tourism Minister Najib Balala says the visits by celebrities have been the ministry’s initiative.

"Promoting sports tourism is one of the new tourism products that the ministry is undertaking. Given that Kenya is renowned globally as a sports powerhouse, this gives us an edge in as far as attracting sports celebrities to Kenya is concerned," he states.

Niche products

And he notes that with sports tourism among the niche products identified in the vision 2030, the Tourism ministry and the Kenya Tourist Board have been part of some of the visits, co-organising and hosting the sports idols.

He says the Brazilian soccer team was conducted on a tour of the Masai Mara by the ministry.

"These visits have contributed to the recovery of the industry. After experiencing the Kenyan tourist products, the celebrities serve as our goodwill ambassadors back home," says Balala.

Jake Grieves-Cook, the KTB chairman, says the visits have given Kenya a massive boost in a critical period.

"They indicate that we are getting back to normal and that we have rapidly improved. Above all, it is greatly enhancing our image as a leading destination in Africa," Cook told The Standard on Saturday.

He says the visits have wiped out fears among tourists that Kenya is unsafe, and opened room for the growth of the industry.

"It is not a surprise that you will see these personalities coming back here on holiday with their families. Usain adopted a cheetah, which he will come back to check," says the chairman.

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