Sustainable Tourism: A Role for Kenya's Hotel Industry

Research reported on in this paper is based on a survey designed to identify the perceptions of overseas visitors to Kenya towards the impact of the hotel sector on the environment. Less than half of the respondents believed that Kenya's parks were managed on a sustainable basis while almost two-thirds felt that hotels exercised some impact on the environment. A significant finding was the willingness of respondents (66.5%) to pay a higher rate for an environmentally friendly hotel. This result confirms a number of previous studies that have shown that there is willingness among tourists to pay a premium for environmentally friendly products and services including accommodation. From these findings it is apparent that Kenya's hotel sector has scope to prepare, develop and market sustainable products and services that promote environmental awareness thus increasing both yield and visitor numbers