Uganda–Kenya Cross-Border Tourism Tops 750,000 Trips as Mombasa Summit Targets Fares and Red Tape

Uganda–Kenya cross-border tourism has grown into one of East Africa's busiest travel corridors, with more than 750,000 visitor trips between the two countries in 2025, and on 26–27 October tourism officials, operators and investors from both sides meet in Mombasa to tackle what still holds it back: expensive regional flights, slow paperwork and fragmented marketing. The 5th Uganda–Kenya Coast Tourism and Innovation Summit, hosted at the Sarova Whitesands Beach Resort & Spa, is expected to end with a joint declaration on easing the movement of people and services between the two neighbours.

The latest figures, published by Business Today Kenya ahead of the summit, show traffic rising in both directions. Kenya Tourism Board data puts arrivals from Uganda at 234,556 in 2025, up about 16% from 201,623 in 2024, making Uganda Kenya's second-largest source market. Uganda Tourism Board figures show Kenyan visitors to Uganda rising from 466,902 to 519,041 over the same period. For Uganda, Kenya remains the single biggest source of foreign visitors, a point State Minister for Tourism Susan Nakawuki Nsambu repeated at the Magical Kenya Travel Expo in Nairobi on 7 October.

What the Mombasa summit is about

The meeting is organised by Uganda's Consulate General in Mombasa with Kenyan Coast tourism stakeholders and runs under the theme "Unlocking Tourism Opportunities: Resolving Policy Bottlenecks Through Technology, Youth and Seamless Mobility". It is invitation-only, with more than 200 decision-makers expected, according to Business Today.

A policy session will focus on Article 104 of the East African Community Treaty, the provision under which partner states committed to gradually remove restrictions on the movement of persons, labour and services. Delegates are also scheduled to discuss digital tools for visitors along the corridor, tourism investment, connectivity and smart destinations, alongside innovation showcases and business-to-business meetings, Citizen Digital reported.

Uganda's Consul General in Mombasa, Ambassador Herbert Kiguli, told Business Today that the task is to remove what still slows travellers down: cost, access and paperwork. At the summit's launch in Kampala in August, he called for a shift from discussion to implementation, SoftPower News reported.

The summit will be followed in early November by a reciprocal familiarisation trip that takes Kenyan tourism players to Uganda to see its products first-hand. The consulate says more than 450 stakeholders have joined its fam trip programme since the summit series began in 2022, and 2026 marks its tenth year of operating in Mombasa.

Fares and borders remain the sticking points

Officials on both sides have been unusually blunt about the barriers. Speaking at the August launch, Nakawuki said travelling to a neighbouring country can be harder than travelling overseas, and questioned why borders still restrict movement when ordinary East Africans already move freely, according to SoftPower News. Private Sector Foundation Uganda chief executive Stephen Asiimwe named high air fares as a major obstacle, saying a flight between Entebbe and Nairobi could cost around US$800, and one to the Kenyan coast around US$700.

There has been some movement on that front. Kenyan low-cost carrier Jambojet resumed daily Nairobi–Entebbe flights on 2 October after a six-year absence, advertising one-way fares from Ksh 22,950 (about US$170) on a flight of roughly 65 minutes, Citizen Digital reported. Kenya Tourism Board chief executive June Chepkemei said the service would make it easier for visitors to combine experiences across the two countries. Jambojet says it plans to add frequencies as demand grows.

Partners, not rivals

The summit's message is that Uganda's forests, primates and the Nile complement Kenya's beaches rather than compete with them. "Kenya Coast and Uganda are two destinations but one opportunity," Nakawuki said at the August launch. David Kabata, a minister counsellor at the Kenyan High Commission in Kampala, made the same point, saying Uganda complements the coast rather than competing with it.

Both governments have big targets riding on regional travel. Kenya's Tourism and Wildlife Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Miano said at the Nairobi expo that Kenya received 2.7 million international visitors last year and aims for 5.5 million a year by 2028, the Daily Monitor reported. Uganda is chasing its own growth after a record 2025; see our report on Uganda's record tourism year for the full numbers.

Why it matters for the industry

For tour operators, the corridor already supports a classic East African combination: gorilla or chimpanzee trekking and Nile adventures in Uganda, followed by a beach finish on the Kenyan coast. Cheaper and more frequent flights, simpler border procedures and joint marketing would make that package easier to sell to long-haul visitors, and more affordable for the growing number of East Africans travelling within the region. Whether the Mombasa declaration produces concrete changes, such as fare reductions, coordinated promotion or faster border processing, will be the test after 27 October.

What it means for travellers

Nothing changes for visitors immediately; the summit is a policy and trade meeting, not a rule change. Travellers combining Uganda and Kenya today can fly between Entebbe and Nairobi, now including Jambojet's daily low-cost service, and continue to the coast from there. Long-haul visitors planning Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda on one trip should look at the East Africa Tourist Visa; see our East Africa Tourist Visa guide for how to apply and what it costs.

If you are planning the Uganda leg, see our Uganda gorilla permits 2026–2027 guide and our guide to the best time to visit Uganda. Zuri will report on any agreements that come out of Mombasa.

Photo: CT Cooper / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0).