The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has advised 7,000 British tourists in
Kenya to stay indoors and avoid parts of Nairobi and Mombasa.
Despite the warnings, many Britons are continuing their holidays. Tour
operator Kuoni, which organises trips to Kenya, said that it had not yet
received any requests from customers wanting to come home or cancel their
holiday.
“We have cancelled excursions into Nairobi and Mombasa but all the safaris are
going ahead as normal,” a spokeswoman said. “We will continue to monitor the
situation and would look into any requests to come home on an individual
basis.”
Other tour operators are also continuing their Kenya holiday programmes as
normal according to the Association of British Travel Agents (Abta). This
means that normal booking conditions apply, so holidaymakers who want to
cancel Kenyan trips owing to the troubles may have to pay cancellation
charges or other penalties if they are stated in terms and conditions.
These normal booking conditions will continue to apply, according to Abta, as
long as main tourist areas continue to be unaffected, transfers to and from
Mombasa and Nairobi airports are secure, transfers have precautionary police
escorts, and there continues to be no reports of tourists asking to be
repatriated.
Flights continue to Kenya, with both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic
operating normal schedules between London and Nairobi. Kenya Airways flights
between Kisumu and Nairobi have been suspended although other airlines
continue to operate the route. Further to this, Mombasa ferries are
operating as usual.
The Foreign Office said that there could be up to 30,000 Britons in Kenya at
any one time, including expatriates, and added: “We are not aware of any who
have been injured or killed.”
Ian Newman, who is still staying at a beach resort south of Mombasa with his
family, described the atmosphere there as relaxed. “There’s a news blackout
here — the Government seems to have stopped the newspapers; there’s not much
happening on the radio either. We’re in a very resorty sort of place. It
looks as though most of the violence is limited to the urban areas.”
One problem reported by British residents in parts of Kenya is shortages of
food and fuel, and cash in ATMs. In many parts of the country supermarkets
and petrol stations remain closed.
For full details on the Foreign Office advice, including a list of areas that
tourists are being told to stay away from, click
here.
The resort area of South Coast, Diani Beach etc may seem ok but just up the road in Ukunda wher most of the staff to the Hotels live there is mayhem! Gangs are roaming the area looting houses and burning houses and businesses. The poor are hardest hit with gangs of cowardly men taking what little they have. The women in particular are terrified and rape is not uncommon but not reported. Much of the looting is criminal rather than ethnic, burnings and beatings are often ethnic. Homes at Corna ya Musa were robbed this afternoon and residents beaten. There are just a few Police garding banks and petrol stations and seem very weak and uncaring in protecting citizens. In Liconi, gangs are going house to house beating, looting and raping. Much of this goes unreported. In the Mombasa area there is little evidence of the Armed services. In Bombalulu close to the north coast Resorts of Nyali and Bambouri shooting is rife / Looting Burning is rife. Police have abdicated responsibility
Brice Burgum, Chester, UK