Kenya Targets 32% Growth in North American Tourist Arrivals by 2025/26
Kenya is enlisting the influence of North America’s leading travel advisors to drive a 32% growth in arrivals from the market in the 2025/26 financial year.
The push comes as Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) intensifies its efforts to grow visitor numbers from the United States from 310,050 in 2024/25 to 408,458 in 2025/26, alongside similar projected growth from Canada – from 50,789 to 66,909 visitors.
According to KTB CEO June Chepkemei, strategic engagement with travel professionals remains central to Kenya’s market development strategy in North America.
“Professional travel advisors are a big cornerstone of success in tourism marketing and promotion,” said Chepkemei. “Their ability to craft personalized experiences that align with Kenya’s diverse tourism offerings is invaluable as we work toward our ambitious growth targets.”
KTB recently conducted a targeted West Coast Roadshow from May 27-29, 2025, engaging with travel advisors across key markets in Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco. The initiative brought together 20 Kenyan trade partners to showcase Kenya’s diverse tourism portfolio and develop stronger business relationships with influential North American travel professionals.
Hope Smith a travel agent from Born to Travel, an affiliate of Montecito Village Travel of Virtuoso, emphasized on the value of face-to-face interactions with tour operators from Kenya highlighting the need to engage and have consensus on the client needs.
“As much as I already sell Kenya, and have been to Kenya, we come to these workshops and meet new suppliers and tour operators who are here to help us sell the destination to potential visitors. It is great to meet all these suppliers, with different price-points and budgets, but the end result is our clients are going to come to Kenya,” Smith remarked.
“Our clients are particularly interested in adventure travel and authentic cultural experiences which we know Kenya excels at offering,” said Katie Hunter, APTA (Association for the Promotion of Tourism to Africa) board member in San Diego, reflecting growing consumer interest in experiential travel.
The travel advisors consistently expressed desire for more opportunities to connect with Kenyan industry representatives, whether through expanded roadshows in the US or participation in travel fairs in Kenya such as the Magical Kenya Travel Expo (MKTE). Particularly sought after is information about new developments in conservation initiatives, sustainable tourism practices, and unique adventure experiences.
For Kenyan tour operators, the roadshow provided valuable market insights. Andrew Kitema, Managing Co-Owner of African Adventure Specialists noted: “I always enjoy coming to the US West Coast markets. Advisors are very knowledgeable as they know the destination and are very curious to come and visit Kenya and send guests into the future. We have been engaging with tour operators and independent travel advisors who are very enthusiastic about what we are doing. I have learned a lot from them in terms of the market and we have given them detailed product training on Kenya.”
The three-day event focused on re-engaging the Western USA travel industry, driving sales through increased destination knowledge, showcasing Kenya’s “Real Deal” brand positioning, and highlighting Kenya’s diverse travel experiences including conservation efforts, adventure opportunities, wellness retreats, coastal attractions, and cultural engagement.
A key component of the roadshow was educating travel advisors about the various airline options now available for their clients to access Kenya from West Coast gateways.
