MOMBASA, Kenya, Oct 22 – More than 50 Ugandan tourism operators, travel agents, hoteliers and influencers have arrived at the Kenya Coast to explore tourism sites and build partnerships with Kenyan businesses ahead of a regional tourism summit next week.

The delegation is on a familiarisation trip organised by the Ugandan Consulate in Mombasa and coastal tourism stakeholders ahead of the fifth Uganda-Kenya Coast Tourism and Innovation Summit, scheduled for October 26 and 27 at Sarova Whitesands Beach Resort in Mombasa.

The visitors will tour beaches, marine parks, cultural sites, hotels and resorts in Mombasa, Kilifi, Kwale and Taita Taveta counties before returning to Uganda to market the destinations to their clients.

The programme also includes the Uganda-Kenya Coast Open golf tournament at Vipingo Ridge on October 24.

The trip comes as travel between Kenya and Uganda continues to grow. Kenya Tourism Board data shows that arrivals from Uganda rose by 16 percent, from 201,623 in 2024 to 234,556 in 2025, making Uganda Kenya’s second-largest source market for international visitors.

Meanwhile, Ugandan tourism figures show that the number of Kenyan visitors to Uganda increased by 11 percent, from 466,902 to 519,041 over the same period.

Together, the two countries recorded more than 750,000 visitor trips between them in 2025. Kenya earned Sh501.3 billion from tourism last year, while Uganda recorded tourism receipts of 5.83 trillion Ugandan shillings, equivalent to about US$1.62 billion.

Kenya is targeting 300,000 visitors from Uganda in 2026.Ugandan Consul General in Mombasa Herbert Kiguli said the visit would help tour operators gain first-hand knowledge of coastal attractions and package them alongside Ugandan tourism products.

“Regional integration becomes real when a Ugandan tour operator can stand on a Kenyan beach, meet the hotelier, and go home ready to sell,” Kiguli said.

Kisuule Sulaiman, director of Karibu Adventure Safaris in Uganda, said the visit would help operators respond to growing demand for trips combining wildlife experiences in Uganda with holidays on the Kenyan Coast.

The summit is expected to bring tourism businesses from the two countries together to establish formal partnerships and promote joint travel packages.

The annual programme began in 2022, and organisers say more than 450 tourism stakeholders have taken part in familiarisation trips since then.

Kenyan tourism stakeholders are scheduled to visit Uganda from November 1 to 8, with activities including chimpanzee and gorilla tracking, visits to the source of the Nile and game parks, and cultural experiences.