Promoting sustainable festival events tourism: a case study of Lamu Kenya

Purpose – Tourism has been a key force in promoting festival growth and expansion. Towns, villages and cities are increasingly keen to share their culture, environment and spending opportunities with visitors by the promotion of festivals. One such festival is held annually in Lamu Old Town, a world heritage site in Kenya. The purpose of the paper is to highlight the importance of hosting sustainable events in Kenya. Design/methodology/approach – The subject scope is on maintaining sustainable events within local communities with an aim of improving the local economy. Findings – Results suggest that although festivals may have the potential to provide opportunities for sustainable local economic development, such opportunities frequently remain unexploited. For these reasons, festivals' engagement with tourism forces in Lamu need to be carefully managed, both in the interests of sustaining festivals and of promoting sustainable approaches to tourism development. Practical implications – In addition to their cultural and social values, cultural festivals have emerged as an instrument for tourism development, tourism seasonality expansion, city image improvement and boosting regional economies. Therefore, the implications will be to invest in festivals development and community engagement and present the tourist with authentic experiences. Originality/value – This article is valuable to policy makers as not enough research has been done on the importance of this festival and the need to provide a significant role to the local people in Lamu in communicating their identity, history and cultural practices.