Nairobi Travel Forum

Hello everyone,

I will be going to Kenya in 3 weeks. I know I can get visa when I arrive at the airport. The only problem is, I will be arriving at 2am on Saturday. Does anybody know if I will be able to get visa at that time of the night?

Thank you

Hey guys,
Im gonna be in Nairobi in a week (!) and my accommodation plans were just cancelled.
Im looking for an apartement that I could rent for 1-2 weeks. Preferably in the area Westlands or perhaps around Yaya center. Ive checked the internet but most things I find seem more expensive then i can afford (100$ or more per night for a 1 bedroomed apartement)
Does anybody have any cheaper suggestions for a 1 bedroomed apartement on such short notice?

I'm very lucky! My husband has to travel to Nairobi in Nov on business. He is anxious that I travel with him as this may be his last trip down. However, it is a holiday I have not budgeted for so am trying to do as much as I can as cheaply as possible. We were hoping to travel to Masai Mara but flying tours are too expensive, if I can come up with a good overland camping trip for 1 or 2 nights at a good price I know we will go.

So please help - can anyone recommend a good budget camping trip? I am bogged down going through the internet and most don't display any prices either.

Will be very thankful of any help and assistance I get and thank you in advance

Hey, I'm a charity director from Texas, and I'll be doing field research this June in along eastern Africa for microcredit banking and micro-health insurance. My question is does anyone know the best and cheapest ways to get to Johannesburg from Nairobi (i.e. bussing (yes i know it's not going to be fun) or maybe finding a group to truck with)? Thanks for the time.

Spencer

Hi to all,
I’m traveling to Nairobi and I will be there few days only, so if you can suggest me must see places and good restaurants.
Thank you a lot:-)

I don't want to sit in the airport. Would like to have a look around and a nice dinner -- it will be late afternoon and evening. Where should I head?

Hello everyone,

I am flying into Nairobi from LAX this saturday arriving early in the morning around 7am and am wondering if I can get advice about transportation from the airport to my hotel. I am staying at Sarova Panafric in Nairobi. I have read mixed reviews, should I make an advanced booking for a taxi or just wait to get there and find a taxi?

Also, I will be in Nairobi all day saturday and leaving sunday morning for Arusha, what could anyone recommend I do for my full day and evening in Nairobi? What are some must see things to do that are easily accessible from downtown for a first time visitor?

Thanks for all of the input!!

Jimmie

Another volunteer and I are teaching basketball skills as a way to educate teenagers about HIV/AIDS awareness. Last year we stayed with host family and wish to stay in a hostel this time around. Is there a nice hostel somewhere near Nakumatt Junction? Thank you!

How come all your ratings were done more than 3 years ago. Do you have any current guests who love your services or this great service ended in 2006.

Will be visiting Nairobi reaching afternoon . Is there a reasonably priced and reliable public transport to the city from the airport ? What are the major departmental stores where we can buy milk , bread etc ? Which is the best place in Nairobi to buy small souvenirs like T shirts , fridge magnets etc ? thanks for your efforts and best wishes

Hi,

I am from India.

I have to travel to Nairobi next month for around 8 weeks.I have few queries,

Food-I am a complete vegetarian.Are vegetarian food available/easy to find in Nairobi? Do you get Indian food in Nairobi? Can anyone share details on this.

Travel from Airport-What is the normal Taxi charge from Airport-City centre?

Is it easy/difficult to get the money exchanged ( USD-Lenya Sh.) ? Do all ATMs' have money exchange option?If anyone can share from Personal experience.

How is the climate during Apr-May months?

any othere special care I should take? Please help me with all your comments.

thanks
Bibhu

Hello!
I'm planning on studying abroad in Nairobi this spring and my program is stressing the importance of below the knee shorts and skirts. How do college age women dress in Nairobi? Would wearing shorts above the knee be inappropriate and what about dressing up for going out at night?

Thanks!

Hi there, Im interested in doing a safari of Kenya / Tanzania / Zanzibar in the near future. Im finding it difficult to match up my hols with organised safari dates on the internet and was wondering how easy it was find tour operators in Nairobi?

I've recently returned from Nepal and wish I hadn't bothered pre-booking as I could have picked up a tour at half the price if I'd just gone into one of the many tour companies in Khathmandu.

If these local tours exist, would they incorporate all of the above or whould I have to mix and match at the borders?

Many thanks in advance!

Dalton

I'm hoping somebody could help me. We're trying to decide whether to fly directly to JRO in Tanzania from LHR or stop the night in Nairobi and then shuttle bus to Moshi. The first option requires changing planes in Nairobi. Now, since we'd not be leaving the airport, with this option, we should only need a Transit visa right? Can anybody tell me how this works? Where would we go in the airport? The flights would be with Kenya Airways connecting to a Precision Airways flight. I believe they are codeshare, so do we have to get our bags and checkin again or no?
Thanks for any advice.

Hi, i am going to Kenia in december/ Looking for people who was there earlier or who is going to go.

I'm making my first visit to Africa in October, am knowledgeable about crafts and ignorant about African crafts, which, I guess, amounts to being ignorant for this trip. However, I'd like to do my looking and buying not primarily at shops or stands that sell standard souvenirs but somewhere that offers more select items. In short, I want someone to have done the mental triage work that craft hunting involves, but for which on this trip I don't have the time or the expertise. So, where in Nairobi do you look for such things (It would be good if the shop or shops covered more than just Kenyan crafts)? Also, when out in the rural areas where tourists pass should I expect to see just more of the stuff that standard tourist shops sell in Nairobi, or are there surprises? Of course, the question is whether I'll recognize something unusual when I see it. But that's always the trick.

Am just a local tourist. How can i get my fellow Vt members so that i can learn more about them. Carol Kenya.

Hi all!

I'm considering going to Nairobi in a few months to volunteer. I'll probably be stationed somewhere near Kibera, or elsewhere in rural Nairobi.

Has anyone done this before in Nairobi? Anything I should be aware of?

Thanks!

Is there a bus or train that goes from Nairobi to johannesburg. I would love to travel with the locals and see the real country. I am going to be traveling in november. I am also looking for a place to do some volunteer work while I am there. I am a backpacker so I cannot afford to pay to volunteer. Appreciate any assistance that you can give. Thank you

I'm going to be in Nairobi next month and have heard Haveli is a good restaurant - what's it's location and price range for a good Indian meal.

My wife and I are flying out to Nairobi in July where we will have almost 2 spare days at a small hotel near Nairobi University before embarking on a 10 day overland truck drive through Kenya and Tanzania games parks.

Before we set off on the safari we really want to have a day at the David Sheldrick elephant orphanage and the Giraffe Centre to see the Rothschild giraffes plus, whilst we are in the area, a visit to the Karen Blixen Museum would be good. At present I am not sure how to get there and don't know if our hotel in Nairobi (Boulevard Hotel) will have such tours on offer.

As many of you have been there on this forum, please could you let me know how you go there - taxi, tour from hotel etc. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks
Lee

Hi - which is the better time to travel to Nairobi between September and October? September seems to be less rainy but will we find sunny skies in mid-late September? Want blue skies! Thanks.

Does anyone know which Hotel,The New Stanley or the Norfolk,asked Karen Blixen to leave the bar as it was men only and on her departure allowed her in ??
Thanks

Hi, I'm volunteering in Kenya 30th March to September but was hoping to do some travelling in East Africa before I start. The only problem is that I will have 2 sets of luggage, 1 of which will be work clothes/materials that I'd prefer not to lug around on my travels. Does anyone know anywhere I could safetly store a suitcase thats near, if not in, Kenyatta airport? I may be travelling 2-4 weeks so not sure how long hostels would be willing to hold onto it for me.

Thanks!

I am flying into Nairobi in only two weeks. I am doing a wildlife safari and traveling to Tanzania for a few days and then returning to volunteer at an orphanage in rural Kenya.

Can anyone who is currently in Nairobi or any other place in Kenya please share their thoughts on the current violence and protesting that is happening. Is there violence throughout the country or is it concentrated in more places than others?
Githunguri in Kiambu is where I will be volunteering. Does anyone know how things are there?

Any thoughts and helpful opinions will be much appreciated.

I will be staying in rural Kenya with a host family. I would like to bring them some gifts from Canada. I would like to get them things that they would be able to use and that may not be available to get in Kenya. I am sure they will be grateful for anything but I would appreciate any ideas people have in case there are some things that maybe I take for granted and wouldn't think of bringing them.

Thanks

My friend and I are staying in Nairobi from Jan. 16 - 18 and have narrowed our choices of hotels between the above mentioned two. We would appreciate other people's opinion and experiences with these hotels.

Are they located close to Kenyatta Airport? Would we need to book a room in advance? Does anyone know if the Terminal Hotel has an email contact?

Thanks in advance.

Hi
I am travelling from Perth to Nairobi (via Dubai) to travel for a month with my brother and sister in law. I would like to bring them some good WA wine (duty free in my hand luggage) but need to know if I can bring it from Perth to Dubai (where I am in transit for a few hours) and then to Nairobi. If I can get through Dubai - how much spirits/wine can I bring into Nairobi - some say one bottle, others say one of spirits and one of wine. Your help would be greatly appreciated as I am having trouble finding the answer on the net.
Thanks
Mel

While I realize that this question gets posted every few weeks, as my husband and I are about to embark on our first trip to Kenya, he's starting to read all the web sites that warn travelers of car jackings, terrorist attacks, kidnappings and the possibility of dying in a car accident. I am trying to keep an open mind but since I haven't been, I can't really say. But how worried should we be be about all this? I read somewhere that one American dies every week in car accidents in Nairobi.

Hi all,

I will be travelling to Nairobi in a week and as I will meet some local friends there, I am thinking of buying a suitable and needed gift for their children.

What I am thinking of is a bike, but please do let me know if this is appropriate. Also, some details about a bike shop in Nairobi and average price for a bike would help me alot.

Thanks!