Smoke from the tyre barricades that had blocked the road from Mombasa airport and the main coastal route north wafted towards the Indian Ocean for several hours.

Only a few miles away, thousands of British tourists at the luxury coastal resorts were almost entirely unaware of the tribal violence, the panic buying, the shortages of food and fuel in the nearby city.

But yesterday the largely unreported crisis at the centre of Kenya’s tourism heartland could not be ignored any longer. The Federation of Tour Operators (FTO) announced that it was suspending all trips to the country until tomorrow. The decision followed advice by the Foreign Office against all but essential travel to Kenya.

The FTO announced that its members had suspended all trips leaving for Kenya today and tomorrow, affecting between 300 and 400 people. Further holidays will be cancelled in the coming days until the Foreign Office eases its warning, meaning that thousands could be affected unless the violence and tension quickly subside.

The tribalism that colours Kenyan life

The eruption of violence following Kenya's elections has brought to the fore the latent tribalism present in every day life

Multimedia

• Video comment: Richard Dowden, Africa expert

• Video: violence in Nairobi

Multimedia

• Pictures: Kenyan elections protests

BACKGROUND

• FCO issues Kenya travel warning

• 50 die in blazing church as tribal war looms

• ‘We’ve spent three days hiding in our homes’

• British tourists told to stay indoors

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There are about 6,000 British tourists in the country, about 3,000 on package tours. January is a peak time for tourism as holidaymakers escape the British winter for beach breaks at the Indian Ocean resorts to the north and south of Mombasa and for safaris further inland.

Many hotels in the Mombasa region have already cancelled sightseeing and safari trips and there were reports yesterday that some have been unable to replenish supplies of food and fuel.

Those holidaymakers with Kenyan holidays planned for later this month were left hoping desperately that they would still be able to take them. Brian Jackman, a travel writer due to fly to Nairobi on Monday, said he had no concerns about going on safari but was worried about the prospect of crossing the city from the international airport to a second airport from where his domestic flight leaves.

“I’m apprehensive because the situation is so volatile. I’m going to see at the weekend if I can go. I very much hope I can.”

Tourists who have arranged their own holidays should still be able to travel, as scheduled flights such as those operated by British Airways and Virgin Atlantic were operating as normal last night. However, the FTO said that many travel insurance policies would not cover anyone who went against Foreign Office advice.

Across Mombasa the violence left residents facing lengthy queues to buy cooking fuel and spiralling costs for food and other essentials as suppliers refused to bring deliveries in to the city. Rose Vihenda, 36, a single mother of three children, had been queuing for three hours to buy kerosene from the Kobil petrol station in central Mombasa, the only one in the area to continue selling the fuel.

“People have been queuing since dawn,” she said. “We are fearful. The petrol stations think the kerosene will be used to burn down Kikuyu homes and the refineries think their trucks will be hijacked. The price of maize has doubled in the past three days, if you find a shop open. It is very, very difficult.”

Mombasa is a stronghold for the Orange Democratic Movement of Raila Odinga, the defeated presidential candidate. Across the city graffiti proclaims “No Raila, No Peace”.

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