Kenya turns to biking safaris to promote domestic travel

NAIROBI, May 3 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's tourism marketing body said they plan to promote domestic travel by undertaking three mountain bike races beginning this weekend.

Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) said Thursday it has partnered with cycling events organizer, Ngong Hills Individual Time Trial (NHITT), to promote the sporting event.

KTB chief executive officer Betty Radier said the first bike race dubbed "Arabuko Sokoke Forest Challenge with Tembea Kenya," set for this weekend in coastal Kilifi county, has attracted hundreds of local and international cyclists.

"Kenya is a perfect destination for biking safaris due to the favorable weather throughout the year. The outlying touristic attractions along the competition routes attract the spectator audience that follows the riders," Radier said in a statement issued in Nairobi.

She said the 64-km bike race in Kilifi will take place in the largest and most intact coastal forest in East Africa.

According to KTB, the Arabuko Sokoke forest has 20 percent of Kenya's bird species, 30 percent of butterfly species and at least 24 rare and endemic bird, mammal and butterfly species. The race is also part of the campaigns geared towards conservation.

Radier said that the sporting event provides a new and exciting experience especially for the young and middle-aged segment of the population who increasingly seek out an active lifestyle, both for leisure and for fitness and networking.

She said that adventure tourism is fast-growing with millennials developing more interest in authentic experiences through travel.

"Our aim is to showcase the attractions in the selected regions and push the adventure segment of travel that is increasingly attracting interest among the millennials," said Radier.

Other biking challenges have been lined up for the months of June and July in Machakos in eastern Kenya and the Great Rift Valley.

Radier said KTB will continue to explore partnerships and collaboration with industry players in order to reap maximum benefit from the domestic segment.

The CEO further noted that the domestic tourism segment has continued to cushion the sector during low seasons and that its performance is on the increase.

In 2017, Kenya recorded a total of 4.05 million bed nights being taken up by Kenyans compared to 3.5 million in 2016, denoting a 15.9-percent growth, KTB said.

NHITT CEO Alex Tibwitta said the planned cycling events will showcase Kenya's diversity as a destination while promoting cycling as a means of keeping fit.

The partnership came a week after KTB concluded a month-long series of training workshops across the country targeting domestic travel agents across the country. Enditem