Travel agents post decline in bookings over Coronavirus

Anyango Otieno 05th Mar 2020 00:00:00 GMT +0300 Travel agents have posted a 10 per cent decline in bookings since January following the outbreak of coronavirus.

  According to the Kenya Association of Travel Agents (Kata), fears of infections has caused an
unprecedented disruption in the aviation and travel industry characterised by cancelled or rescheduled flights.

“Early indications show that there was a decline of six per cent in traveller bookings for February and 10 per cent to date in March,” said KATA Chairman Mohammed Wanyoike. The association warns that travel bookings might drop further in future until the virus is contained as passengers resort to essential travel only.
SEE ALSO :Travel bookings down 6 per cent over Coronavirus
"We expect the numbers to continue falling as travel restrictions come into effect in our markets and destinations as witnessed to China, South Korea, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Italy,” said Wanyoike. However, travel within Africa is still stable despite the outbreak and Kata remains optimistic that the situation will normalise. “We anticipate the travel restrictions and advisories to be temporary measures to help contain the virus,” said Wanyoike.

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The outbreak has seen a leading world travel trade show scheduled for Berlin this month cancelled.