Kenya’s tourism sector is undergoing one of its most major transformations in decades as technology disruption comes in to reshape how services are delivered, marketed, and consumed.
Industry players say innovations such as artificial intelligence (AI)-driven booking platforms, virtual reality tours, ride-hailing integrations like Uber Safari, and cashless payment solutions are the core infrastructure driving the growth, efficiency, and competitiveness in the sector.
Recently, ride-hailing company Uber unveiled a service dubbed Uber Safari that allows tourists, foreign and local, to book game drives to the Nairobi National Park directly through the Uber app.
Tourism Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Miano says the industry has embraced digital disruption as a necessary evolution, changing how tourists plan, pay, and experience travel.
“Kenya has moved to e-tickets for national parks and attractions, including Nairobi National Park, which reduces queues, improves planning, and allows advance purchase via platforms like eCitizen,” she says.
This shift is said to have re-engineered visitor management for a sector that attracts millions of domestic and international travellers annually.
The government has also pushed for cashless and contactless payments, which are replacing the once-essential exchange of shillings and dollars at park gates, curio shops, and lodges.
“Through innovations such as TouristTap, which convert NFC-enabled smartphones into point-of-sale devices, foreigners can pay with Visa or MasterCard directly, or via mobile money, without the need for cash, foreign exchange, or traditional point-of-sale (PoS) machines,” said Ms Miano.
The Cabinet Secretary adds that this makes transactions faster and safer, which opens up tourism revenue to informal traders and small-scale vendors who previously had limited access to global payment systems.
The ministry is also betting heavily on the power of virtual reality and AI to position Kenya competitively on the global tourism map.
“Kenya is using AI-powered campaigns, predictive analytics, and chatbots to enhance customer service, provide personalised recommendations, and appeal to younger travellers such as Gen Z. At the same time, virtual tours of parks, lodges, and cultural sites are enabling potential visitors to preview destinations before they arrive, and for those unable to travel, it provides at least a partial experience,” she said.
At the Nairobi National Park, more than 60 percent of visitors during the peak days are using e-tickets, which reduces congestion at the gates and improves the flow of visitors inside the park.
Additionally, the virtual tours have helped tourists make more informed decisions that reduce the mismatch between what they expect and what they experience.
Ms Miano says the ministry is digitising the mapping of national parks and reserves to create mobile apps and smart guides. They are also partnering with companies like Visa to tap into consumer spending data that reveals trends in travel behaviour.
“We must ensure that technology enhances, rather than replaces, the authentic cultural and wildlife experiences that make Kenya unique,” says Ms Miano.
Nicanor Sabula, Chief Executive at Kenya Association of Travel Agents, says the travel industry has been one of the most impacted by technology.
“In fact, players in the industry always feared it because of the way it was sold to us, in a way that suggested it was going to replace most of us. However, it has enabled our businesses by making them more efficient, more effective in serving customers, and it has lowered the cost of doing business. Technology is not a threat, it is an enabler,” he says.
Mr Sabula explains the manual selling of air tickets and tour packages that involved physical offices, paperwork, and the battle with time zones and distances. Currently, the improved websites and platforms allow Kenyan travel agents to sell products to a global audience.
“We have a seamless way to put our content on websites and sell extensively, and we can sell twenty-four hours a day as opposed to the past when everything was manual. Customers can even book and pay for themselves without ever interacting with an agent,” he said.
Mr Sabula points to the contactless payments as an important breakthrough. “The integration of contactless payment systems and the introduction of virtual cards have also helped us manage fraud,” he said.
The emerging financial technologies, Mr Sabula says, are also creating new opportunities, with Kenya eyeing the sale of travel packages using bitcoin like other global agencies that target younger travellers.
Airlines are also moving fast to keep pace with the expectations of hyper-connected travellers. Kenya Airways (KQ), for instance, has adopted eSIM technology to address the high roaming costs and unreliable connectivity that often frustrate international travel.
The national carrier, in partnership with RomBuddy, has recently launched KQ Safari Data, a roaming solution that offers affordable connectivity across more than 180 countries, which will be available to passengers even before departure.
The KQSafari Data operates on a prepaid model, allowing customers to plan, track usage in real-time through the portal, and recharge at any point as needed.
Julius Thairu, Chief Commercial and Customer Officer at KQ, said the airline has been steadily investing in technology to improve its end-to-end customer journey.
“Some of our initiatives are the digital check-in and self-service tools that enable faster, seamless, and more autonomous travel experiences. We also have the enhanced customer communication platforms that keep guests informed with real-time updates,” he said.
“The AI-driven personalisation projects that offer travel options to meet individual guest preferences using hyper-personalisation. These initiatives are all part of our strategy to ensure that technology not only drives efficiency but also delivers meaningful value to our customers.”
