Jambojet has kicked off an aggressive campaign to capitalize on the Government’s new policy to stimulate domestic tourism industry through tax rebates for the private sector.
The awareness drive targets bus termini used by passengers travelling to Mombasa, Eldoret and Kisumu.
“A 50-minute flight to Mombasa is much better than a laborious eight-hour drive,” said Willem Hondius, the Jambojet Chief Executive Officer.
Hondius said Jambojet is focusing on winning a portion of the estimated 26 million to 35 million overland travels made each year between Nairobi and Mombasa, Kisumu and Eldoret.
Jambojet’s return ticket from Nairobi to Mombasa of about KshSh6,000 is more than 60 percent cheaper compared to rival airlines while fares on “luxury” buses go up to Ksh4,000.
Jambojet’s campaign comes against the backdrop of the Government’s new measures to rejuvenate the tourism industry, the key one being a directive that will see all private companies get a tax rebate, from June 12, if they cater for vacation trip expenses for their employees in Kenya during their annual leave.
The Government expects at least 25,000 Kenyans will get an opportunity to travel for a week’s holiday every month creating over 300,000 additional Kenyan guests in local hotels countrywide.
The tourism industry has also recently received a lease of life after tourists started flocking Maasai Mara ahead of the Wildebeest migration, despite travel warnings premised on recent terrorism incidents.
Hondius estimates that 30 to 40 per cent of their new customers are people who have not travelled by air before. “With fares of as low as Ksh2,850 one-way from Nairobi to Mombasa, Jambojet has definitely brought air travel within the reach of many Kenyans,” he added.
Concerted efforts from various industries, he said, will spur trade, investment and tourism by easing movement of people, especially young Kenyans in search of much needed business opportunities between our towns, cities and counties.
Hondius said the airline is relying on increased regional integration which is rapidly blurring the borders and laying a foundation for a more interconnected Africa. The budget airline eventually plans to venture into Bujumbura, Kigali, Juba, Goma, Mwanza, Zanzibar, Kilimanjaro and Addis Ababa in less than a year.
