Tourist numbers in Kenya may hit the 1.5 million mark by the end of this year, according to Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) officials.

Last year, international tourist arrivals to the country increased by 16.7% to 877,602, up from 752,073 in 2015.

The country also received 429,749 cross-border visitors, putting the total combined arrivals last year to 1.3m tourists, a 10% growth from the previous year.

KTB Chairman, Jimi Kariuki, and KTB CEO, Betty Radier, expect tourist arrivals to jump to 1.5 million by the end of the year, bolstered by a rise in international arrivals.

Kariuki attributed the increase to the peace after last month’s general election, adding that security improvement had made Kenya a preferred holiday destination. He also attributed the boom to lower park entry fees, visa waivers for children under 16, a charter incentive programme and the waiving of landing fees for Moi and Malindi international airports.

“A number of international airlines have increased flights to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi and Moi International Airport in Mombasa following a surge in tourists visiting the country for holidays,” he said.

Airlines that have increased flights from Europe to Nairobi include Lufthansa and SWISS.

German holiday airline, Condor, and Turkish Airlines have increased flights to Mombasa due to a rise in passengers coming to the coast for holidays.

“In the last two months, wildlife enthusiasts have been pouring in to the Mara to witness the wildebeest migration from Tanzania to Kenya,” Kariuki added.

International tourist arrivals have increased at the coast after charter airlines such as Neos Air, Meridiana Fly and Blue Panorama from Italy resumed flights to Mombasa.

According to Radier, the industry’s growth has been boosted by visitors from the US, UK, Germany, India and China.

 “In the last five years, KTB has been focusing on tourism recovery campaigns by convincing the international markets that Kenya is safe for holidays in a bid to overcome the challenge of insecurity perceptions,” she said.

Radier said this financial year, the government had allocated Khs2 billion ($20m) with 80% of the funds to be spent on marketing activities. “We have been aggressively marketing the country in the traditional markets of the UK, the US, Germany, Italy and France and our efforts are paying off.”