Why Diani Beach will be ultimate place to be this Christmas holiday

Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala (front) in a tandem sky jump assisted by professional sky diver Angelo Vuletic from Croatia after a free fall from a Baron aircraft that was at 10,000feet above sea level, January 28, 2017 .This was during the unveiling of a sh3.1 billion Pride Inn Paradise Beach Resort Convention Centre & Spa, located in Shanzu, Mombasa North mainland on Friday evening. [PHOTO BY GIDEON MAUNDU/STANDARD.

The Diani Beach Festival (DBF) will go down from December 9 to January 2, 2018. The month long-event, according to organisers, will showcase to the world the incredible experience the beach resort town has to offer.

And when Diani throws a party, everybody comes, even the fish from the ocean. DBF Director Sandip Patel said the event will be an extreme sports and entertaining festival running throughout the holiday period.

“Our main target are skydivers and it is now evident that sky diving is becoming popular all over the globe. We are keen on using sky divers to showcase Diani Beach to the rest of the world during the festival,” Mr Patel told Weekend Business.

HOLIDAY SEEKERS

He said already 500 skydivers from more than 32 countries have confirmed participation. There will be what he called a 10-day Skydive Boogie.

There will also be surfing competitions, water sports, kids adventure and an air sport exhibition. Patel said that overtime the Kenyan coastal tourism destination has been losing out to neighbouring Zanzibar and South Africa, which seem to be attracting more tourists.

“We have a world acclaimed beach and a host of star rated beach resorts and hotels from where holiday seekers can have a memorable experience. The DBF is just the right event to bring about excitement and real fun for holiday seekers,” Patel said.

He said the festival, which is sponsored by Moet Hennessy, will also host a huge entertainment menu incorporating international, regional and domestic talent. The organisers will spend about Sh300 million.

They have also earmarked a new venue for upgrading along the pristine white sandy beaches of Diani to host vast restaurants that will offer international cuisine, Christmas shopping villages, bars, lounges, a pool retreat and VIP areas.

MONEY INTO ECONOMY

The venue has capacity to host between 3,000 to 3,500 people. Patel said air and aerial shows will be during the day while nightlife will begin after sunset.

“During the duration of the festival, there shall be potential to create 250 community members with close to $3 million injected directly into the local economy,” he said.

He anticipates that there will be approximately 22,000 people filling hotels in the South Coast with guests from Nairobi and upcountry extending to over 250,000 visitors stretching through Mombasa and the rest of the Kenyan coast.

Patel, who is co-hosting the event with his business partner, Garry Lincoln, also said they are working closely with the Kwale County Government, the Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) among others.