Nairobi Getting there & around

Getting there & away

Land

Bus

Most long-distance bus-company offices are based in Nairobi’s River Rd area. Numerous companies do the run to Mombasa, leaving in the early morning or late in the evening; the trip takes eight to 10 hours. Buses leave from outside each company’s office, and fares cost KSh400 to KSh700. Coastline Safaris (217592; cnr Latema & Lagos Rds) buses are the most comfortable.

Akamba (340430; akamba_prs@skyweb.co.ke; Lagos Rd) buses serve Eldoret, Kaka­mega, Kisumu, Kitale, Mombasa, Uganda and Tanzania, leaving from Lagos Rd; there’s a booking office (222027; Wabera St) near City Hall.

The government-owned Kenya Bus Service (KBS; 229707) is another large operator. It’s cheaper than Akamba, but the buses are much slower. The main depot is located on Uyoma St, and there’s a KBS booking office (341250; cnr Muindi Mbingu & Monrovia Sts) in the city centre.

Easy Coach (210711; easycoach@wananchi.com; Haile Selassie Ave) is a reliable new company serving western Kenyan destinations on the Kisumu/Kakamega route.

The Country Bus Station is a hectic, disorganised place that has buses running to Busia, Eldoret, Kakamega, Kisumu, Malaba, Meru, Nakuru, Nanyuki and Nyeri.

Train

Nairobi train station has a booking office (221211; Station Rd; 9am-noon & 2-6.30pm). Trains for Mombasa (1st/2nd class KSh3160/2275, 14 to 16 hours) leave at 7pm on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The return services depart at 7pm on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.

For Kisumu (1st/2nd class KSh1415/720, 13 hours), trains depart at 6.30pm on the same days as the Mombasa services. It’s advisable to book a few days in advance for either of these routes.

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Air

The national carrier Kenya Airways (3274000; Barclays Plaza, Loita St) operates international and domestic services out of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.

Airkenya (501601; Wilson Airport, Langata Rd) and Safarilink (600777; Wilson Airport, Langata Rd) offer domestic services to many smaller destinations at competitive prices.

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