KATA Coast members have taken an active role in the 2026 UN World Tourism Week celebrations in Mombasa, participating in a series of engagements focused on destination promotion, conservation, industry networking and welcoming visitors to the Coast.
The week has brought together tourism associations, government, hospitality businesses, airlines, cultural organisations, and other industry stakeholders under a shared focus on strengthening Mombasa as a destination.
For the Kenya Association of Travel Agents (KATA), the celebrations have provided an opportunity for its Coast membership to participate directly in activities shaping the destination they market and sell to travellers.
KATA Coast members have been present across four key engagements: the Beach and City Conservation Campaign, the Tourism Stakeholders’ Cocktail, the World Tourism Day Carnival and Procession, and the Meet & Greet at Moi International Airport.
Showing up for the destination
The conservation campaign on 24 September brought tourism stakeholders together for a practical contribution to the cleanliness and sustainability of Mombasa’s coastline and urban spaces.
KATA Coast members joined partners in the beach clean-up, reinforcing a message increasingly important to the travel industry: the destinations tourism businesses promote must also be destinations they actively help protect.
Mombasa’s coastline is central to the city’s tourism identity, supporting a wide network of hotels, tour operators, travel agencies, restaurants, attractions and other businesses. For travel agents, destination sustainability is therefore closely connected to the quality of the experiences they sell to their clients.
The week also created space for the industry to connect beyond the traditional business environment.
At the Tourism Stakeholders’ Cocktail on 25 September, hosted at Alliance Française de Mombasa, tourism associations and partners came together for an evening focused on collaboration, culture, skills and the growing connections between Kenya and France.
Discussions around French as a language of employability for young people also highlighted the importance of skills development in building a tourism workforce capable of serving increasingly diverse international markets.
KATA Coast members were part of the wider tourism fraternity represented at the engagement, reflecting the Association’s continued participation in conversations that extend beyond travel trade operations.
Taking tourism to the streets
The World Tourism Day Carnival and Procession provided another opportunity for KATA Coast members to participate in celebrating Mombasa’s tourism identity.
The procession brought together tourism stakeholders, cultural groups, youth, communities and other partners in a public celebration of the destination.
For the travel trade, such platforms offer an important reminder that destination marketing is not confined to brochures, websites or sales calls. It is also about showcasing the people, culture, creativity and experiences that give a destination its character.
Welcoming visitors at the point of arrival
The celebrations culminated in another highly visible engagement at Moi International Airport on 26 September, where KATA led members of the travel industry in welcoming visitors arriving in Mombasa.
The meet-and-greet brought together KATA Coast leadership and members, Mombasa County representatives, airlines and other tourism stakeholders to welcome arriving passengers and give them a first taste of the destination’s renowned hospitality.
KATA members participated in welcomes for passengers arriving on Jambojet, Ethiopian Airlines and Kenya Airways, with airline teams and crew joining the engagements.
Among those present were Mohamed Osman Ali, Mombasa County Executive Committee Member responsible for Tourism, Culture and Trade; Falmina Firoz, Vice Chairperson of the Mombasa Tourism Council ; Patrick Maina Kamanga, KATA Board Director; Said Tahir, KATA Board Director; and other KATA members and tourism stakeholders.
For a travel industry that often works behind the scenes to arrange a traveller’s journey, the airport engagement brought that work directly to the point where the visitor’s experience begins.
More than participation
KATA Coast’s involvement throughout the week reflects the broader role of travel agents within the tourism ecosystem.
From supporting destination conservation and industry collaboration to participating in cultural celebrations and welcoming visitors, the Coast membership has demonstrated that travel agents are not only distributors of tourism products. They are also destination stakeholders with a direct interest in the growth, reputation and sustainability of Mombasa.
The activities also come as Mombasa continues to strengthen its position as a major tourism and international events destination. Earlier in 2026, the city hosted the 11th Our Ocean Conference, which brought more than 7,500 delegates from around the world to the Coast.
For KATA, continued participation in platforms such as UN World Tourism Week provides an opportunity to ensure that the voice and contribution of the travel trade remain part of Mombasa’s tourism development story.
KATA Coast showed up — for the destination, for the industry and for the visitors who make tourism possible.