The Foreign Office advice against all "non-essential" travel to Kenya and the suspension of flights by UK-owned airlines has had a massive impact on tourism to the East African country. But travel companies are counting on the resilience of British travellers in the face of terrorist threats, writes Desmond Balmer.

British tourists on safari or beach holidays in Kenya showed little sign of panic in face of the warnings. Kuoni said that none of its 178 clients in Kenya asked to leave early when the warning was given, while Somak said all 119 of its passengers chose to continue with their holidays. They flew home via Entebbe in Uganda only when their holidays had finished.

Ash Sofat, chief executive of Somak, which specialises in holidays to Kenya, said: "The suspension of flights by the UK Department of Transport had a chain reaction through Europe - other countries like Germany have stopped flying. This is a huge blow to Kenya tourism. There has been a lot of criticism there of the sudden change, which they believe to be extreme and unfair.

"But the impact has not been as bad as it could have been because this is low season. Three times as many people travel to Kenya in the main seasons, July to October and December to Easter. We have still taken bookings this week for the autumn and 2004. The Kenyan government has reacted positively, too, getting security in place to reverse this chain reaction."

Ian Coghlan, managing director of Abercrombie & Kent, which has Kenyan interests, said: "If nothing actually happens despite the warnings, I believe that Kenya can bounce back quickly when flights resume."

Travel companies are offering refunds or alternative holidays to passengers due to travel to Kenya. This is being applied to bookings in June - the cut-off dates vary between companies. It will be reviewed week by week until the FO advice is changed.

Sue Biggs, managing director of Kuoni, said: "The British are very resilient - and we have a lousy climate. People still want to travel. We have experience of terrorism ourselves and common sense tells us that attacks are not predictable. Despite the negative publicity surrounding the bombings, we have had our strongest week for bookings since September 2001. There have been some good bargains around."

Sean Tipton, a spokesman for the Association of British Travel Agents (Abta), said: "Despite a history of terrorist activity since September 11, the impact on people taking holidays has been minimal. A Mori poll in March showed that only a tiny percentage of people would not take a foreign holiday due to the fear of terrorism. The only exceptions have been where tourists have been the direct targets as in Egypt in 1997 and Bali last year. Then there has been a big fall in business, which has not picked up for some years."

Although the FO has raised the level of its advice to other African countries, including Tanzania and Morocco, warning of a "clear terrorist threat", it has not advised against travelling. In such circumstances, travel companies are not obliged to offer refunds or an alternative. Some will at least reschedule holidays in these cases but this has to be individually negotiated through a travel agent or direct with the company.

Biggs said that Jules Verne, a Kuoni subsidary, had received no cancellations to Morocco despite the increased level of warning. Travellers switching from Kenya have been choosing South Africa, where they can combine a safari with a variety of other holidays, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. The Indian Ocean islands of Mauritius and the Seychelles have also been booming this year.

Philip Grierson, marketing director of Cox & Kings, said: "While the Far East has suffered this year, South America has been really hot. Mexico has had a comeback year and there are also signs of a renaissance in India, especially in the autumn."