Kenya tries to focus on business tourism and international meetings, waiting for the recovery of the holiday sector, scheduled for July 2021, if all goes well.
The conference and convention sector in the past years has been a very profitable factor in Kenya, especially for hotels and resorts which at the same time filled the rooms with important numbers and offered optional services also on payment, with modern "conference rooms" and state-of-the-art audio and video systems.
Many facilities invested capital by focusing on larger meeting rooms or building them from scratch, as in Malindi for example Dream of Africa and Driftwood.
Now, as Nairobi is suffering more from the pandemic effect, hoteliers on the coast are trying to promote conference and meeting tourism again, albeit with reduced capacity in accordance with Covid-19 protocols, and the response is weakly positive, thanks mainly to local, private and governmental organisations.
"We are witnessing an increase in the number of guests in Mombasa hotels," said President of Kenya Coast Working Group Husnain Noorani, "and this is a positive sign. The return of conference tourism, incentives and events is fundamental, as well as meetings or team building of NGOs and companies".
This time of year for the coastal region coincides with the beginning of summer and holidays, but obviously the pandemic is holding everything back.  The turnout, which in 2019 had recorded an average of 90% of hotel occupancy in December, will not exceed 50 this year.
The President of the Kenya Coast Turism Association, Victor Shitakah, asks the Government to clarify as soon as possible the decisions it will make in view of the Christmas holidays.
Two days ago the Minister of Commerce Betty Maina advised the citizens not to move from Nairobi, Nakuru and Mombasa during the festivities, and also issued a decree on the matter.
"The government should clarify what it intends to do," said Shitakah, "so that people can plan ahead, we on our side have prepared negotiable rates and reduced prices to entice local tourists.
The industry continues to rely heavily on Kenyan travellers, with the railway (SGR) playing an increasingly important role in transport between Mombasa and Nairobi.
But bookings are still too low to predict a decent year-end.