Kenya’s tourism sector has high hopes of reaping big from the WRC Safari Rally which will take place during the Easter weekend, allowing more fans an opportunity to attend
The hospitality industry in Kenya is rubbing its hands with glee in anticipation of a major windfall from the 2024 World Rally Championship (WRC) Safari Rally which will take place during the Easter weekend.
Unlike the last three years which have seen the Safari Rally held in June since Kenya was readmitted to the WRC, the 2024 event will take place from March 28-31 coinciding with the Easter weekend.
It is the first time in 27 years that the Safari Rally is reverting to the Easter weekend and the switch has left stakeholders in the tourism industry expecting a big harvest given the huge number expected to grace the event.
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“We have been working behind the scenes for months now and we are raring to go. Foreign drivers will arrive 10 days before the rally. After that, they are planning to visit the Maasai Mara game reserve in Narok and Diani at the coast,” event director Jim Kahumbura told Nation.
Over 6,000 people are expected to attend the Safari Rally, with over 300 rally crew among them, besides visiting media personnel and fans which will pump nearly Ksh7 billion into the country’s economy.
“Our tourism and hospitality sector will greatly reap from the WRC. Most of our three and four-star hotels in Naivasha and along the main section of the rallying circuit will greatly benefit,” said Nakuru County Tourism Association Chairman David Mwangi.
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The Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) World Motor Sport Council unveiled the 2024 WRC calendar last year with the iconic Safari Rally Kenya securing its place as the third round of this adrenaline-fueled motorsport extravaganza.
With the event now set to happen during the holidays, Kenyans can watch and follow it uninterrupted, unlike the last three years when it was held in the last weekend of June.
Safari Rally, which returned to the WRC after a 19-year hiatus, had been held during the Easter weekend until 1997 when it was moved to June before again switching to July up to 2002 when Kenya lost its hosting status due to safety concerns.
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The Easter timing will coincide with the onset of Naivasha's rainy season, promising an even more grueling test for the world's most talented rally drivers.
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