Game drive lovers forgive, forget and are back in the park

Towards the end of last month, there was an uproar on the Socials. KOT had been pricked by rumours that The Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) had revised the pricing for residents wanting to visit national parks back to the normal/pre Covid-19 rates. In its effort to encourage visitations into National Parks, KWS announced subsidized rates on July 1st 2020. This was to be in place for a period of one year.

However, in late August, there seemed to be some flip-flopping in communication with leading media outlets reporting that KWS would be reverting to the initial rates for residents. This, as expected, rubbed netizens the wrong way and soon, Twitter was ablaze. The heat evidently got too hot for KWS as the body had to do some crisis communication through Twitter- where it was all going down.

On the Tweet seen by The Picnic Site, KWS urged the public to ignore reports that the rates had been increased. They clarified the subsidized rates would remain for a period of one year as stated in the very first statement. Further, they encouraged locals to tour the parks under #DiscoverKWSParks.

The highest entry amount will beat the Nakuru and Amboseli National Parks, which are classified as premium facilities given their popularity. According to the schedule seen by The Picnic Site, Kenyan citizens and non-residents will pay Sh800, down from Sh860, while non-resident adults will pay $35, up from $60 at the two parks.

At Nairobi National Park, which is frequented by visitors within the city, adult Kenyan citizens and residents will pay Sh400, down from Sh430.

While announcing the rates in July 2020, Tourism and Wildlife Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala encouraged Kenyans to help create jobs for those in the hospitality industry. “We want to encourage Kenyans to enter the parks for longer durations. The longer they stay, the more business they give to the tour guides, hotels, lodges as well as the curio dealers,” he said.

Those in the film industry were not left behind either. The ministry is now offering a 50% off discount to both local and international producers filming in parks and reserves.

With the subsidized rates, you can easily take a break and visit our local natural attractions for a bond with the nature. Some of the top ranked parks and reserves you take your loved ones to include: Maasai Mara National Park, Lake Nakuru National Park, Amboseli National Park, Tsavo National Park and the Nairobi National Park.

You can engage in outdoor activities such as, game drives, bird watching, trout fishing, hot air balloon rides among others.