NAIROBI JKIA AIRPORT review : 6 September 2008 : by P Dier

Customer Rating : 2/5

In transit from LHR to EBB and return, the most startling thing to find is the lack of seats. Why not put more seats in the airport?!! There were people strewn all over the place. I even came across twenty men lying half asleep on the floor, some covered in blankets, others not. In the transit lounge, we debated whether a pile of bedding material had someone cocooned inside. In the end, to our surprise, there was. Jomo Kenyatta appears to be a strange 1960s building which is need of an upgrade, and seating. Not impressed and poor in comparison to Entebbe.

NAIROBI JKIA AIRPORT review : 5 September 2008 : by Jonathan Beard

Customer Rating : 2/5

I have travelled to Nairobi and used this airport several times. I would add the following warning to those arriving from Egypt or Europe. Be prepared for your bags not to be on your flight. The airport was filled with hundreds of bags chained together from passengers on previous flights. What is more is that the airline will not deliver your bag to your hotel, you must waste time and money to go to the airport and pick it up hoping that it has arrived on the next flight. If flying into Nairobi pack extra clothes in your carry on. The clue that this is a major problem is that the lost luggage counter had five staff and only one stapler.

NAIROBI JKIA AIRPORT review : 2 September 2008 : by M Harrison

Customer Rating : 2/5

The arrangements for security in International Departures mean that passengers who have passed through electronic screening and then buy water or duty free alcohol airside are still very likely to have this confiscated at a second security at the departure gates unless they can produce their receipts for the purchase. No airport signs or verbal warnings from shopkeepers alert passengers to this. This leads to a considerable stockpile of water and alcohol, the destination of which is unclear, while passengers dehydrate in departure lounges which are too small for the planes which they serve.

NAIROBI JKIA AIRPORT review : 15 July 2008 : by Harold Bush

Customer Rating : 2/5

I queued for 45 minutes just to get into the terminal; the attendant dealing with the queue kept letting Kenyan nationals in front of the queue, while there was no one at the receiving end of the screening machine to help passengers. Immigration control was quick. Sadly, the airport facilities are very limited with hardly any seats, but lots of shops. It looks really like a shopping centre. Annoyingly, my BA flight was meant to leave (and left) at 2345 but the screens indicated it was departing at 2320. Having queued for such a long time just to get into the terminal I had no option but to go straight to the special area for BA passengers, after passing through two more layers of security. Extraordinary! This airport needs a serious facelift and more consideration for passengers.

NAIROBI JKIA AIRPORT review : 11 May 2008 : by Noel Dass

Customer Rating : 2/5

JKIA is not the most modern airport in the world. It serves its purpose fairly well but time spent there can be extremely frustrating. Baggage claim at the international terminal is a joke. There are 4 or 5 conveyor belts with TV screens that are supposed to tell you which flight's bags it's handling. Instead, it only displays numbers and one has to go from belt to belt to try to figure out which one has your bags! Immigration is fast and friendly. Security is okay, not as cumbersome as some other airports. Transportation from the airport can be an ordeal. The "authorized desk" for taxis is a joke at best. The "standard prices" listed are grossly inflated and one should be prepared to bargain and argue to bring the prices down. It's best to try to get a rough idea of the fare to your destination ahead of time from friends or hotels. Never accept the response that "it's the standard price since this year" - that's absolute rot. Traffic from JKIA to Nairobi City is an absolute nightmare - as is the case with Nairobi traffic.

Nairobi JKIA Airport review by Andrew Reid

17 January 2008   Customer Rating :

My first experience of Jomo Kenyatta. It was fine for check-in, security checks, immigration etc but terrible gate facilities. Hardly any chairs in the main concourse, and then quite crowded at the gate itself. For both flight legs we had to walk across the tarmac a few hundred metres to board/disembark the plane. They have air bridges but either they were all in use or they chose not to use them. With 2 small kids it was pretty trying really.

Nairobi JKIA Airport review by E Rowlands

9 January 2008   Customer Rating :

I pass through Nairobi from time to time. It is difficult to get information such as what gate to go to for ongoing flight. Also Gate 6 is an abomination. I once waited in line for 2.5 hours there for my ongoing boarding card - folks were missing their flights because of the wait. However - the staff are friendly and helpful once you can get hold of someone who knows. For folks with a long in airport wait for ongoing flights its wise to book into one of the special lounges. The restaurant on floor 5 is good. By the way - if you have to wait for a connecting flight you won't get a meal voucher unless you ask for it, that is if your flight qualifies for one. The airport is too small for the amount of traffic it now gets.

Nairobi Airport review by Jim Wood

15 August 2007   Customer Rating :

I have traveled into and out of Kenyatta over the past 4 years and have found the experience palatable. They try but the best thing is not too spend too much time there. Not modern by any means; shops are plentiful but tend to be limited to liquor (including Tusker!), chocolate and tea and coffee. Food has improved. It can be crowded for evening departures. The lines to get in can be long, especially for evening flights, so allow yourself 3-4 hours. Once past ticketing (everyone has to check in at the ticket counter), it fairly fast. Immigration and customs are quick and friendly. Remember that rush hour in Nairobi runs from 8-10 in the morning and 4-8 in the evening and traffic is VERY congested on the way to and from Kenyatta. I would be close to the airport if I have a flight anywhere close to rush hour. Any little thing can bring traffic to a halt and add hours (yes, hours) to the trip. Oh, visas can be purchased for the regular price at the airport. Very convenient and quite fast in my experience.

Nairobi Airport review by Pierre Leblache

3 July 2007   Customer Rating :

The Nairobi National Park is within 20 mnts drive of the airport, opens at 5.15 AM to 5 or 6 PM and can provide very nice views of wild animals, from baboons and gazelles to lions and giraffes. The problem is whom to go with and at what time. Do not go with touts or soliciting drivers (VERY dangerous, anything can happen as you'll be alone on thousands of acres). If you cannot arrange ahead for a professional guide to meet your flight, go to the Kenatco window outside customs, rent a taxi by the hour, 20$/hr plus entrance fees and tip should be accepted). Just be aware that you'll need a visa and you'll pay the airport tax. Also, while dawn and dusk are very good, there is little to see during the day, everything sleeps. Without an experienced guide, you anyway most likely won't see anything dramatic. And it will be hot. Take water.

Nairobi Airport review by S Abs

30 June 2007   Customer Rating : n/a

Bernd Olssen below mentioned paying 10 euros to use a nicer airport lounge at Nairobi airport - I have a 10 hour stop (eek) - does anyone know about this option as the KLM Transit lounge is pretty uncomfortable. Is there anywhere to go for a walk outside or is that out of the question?

Nairobi Airport review by Ingvar Backéus

22 January 2007   Customer Rating : n/a

There is already a lot of information about NBO here. On the good side: good shops and cafés; usually short queues at check in and passport control. On the poor side: very poor information on flights as the screens do not work. I could add an advice for those who intend to buy a visa at the airport: download the form from the internet and have it ready before arrival. You will then be at the counter before the huge crowd of people who are still busy filling in the forms. If you are not among the first in the queue, it may take a considerable time to get through. Another advice for those who need to take a taxi: Do not listen to the guys who promise you cheap price. If you want a reliable taxi (and reliable driver), go to the left after you have passed the doors beyond the customs desks. After som 20-30 m you will find a roundish kiosk in the middle of the corridor. There you can book a taxi and pay at the counter against a receipt, usually cheaper than those offering "cheap price".

Nairobi Airport review by Norman Jacobs

19 January 2007

I was somewhat dismayed by the lack of information displayed. The departure screens were blank and even the screens at each individual terminal were blank. To find out any information you had to go and find someone to ask. The departure lounges are quite small as well which made life a bit uncomfortable when our flight was delayed. Also there were no announcements regarding the delay to our flight. No information about why or when it might leave. Apart from that the airport was ok. Plenty of retail outlets and places to buy food etc. But they really could do with being a bit more informative.

Nairobi Airport review by Samantha Titterington

17 November 2006

I found Nairobi airport to be a pleasant surprise, not the disaster I expected. There were more retail outlets than I expected, friendly staff, clean toilets and decent outlets to purchase food and drinks. Aside from the lack of screens displaying departure information, I found the whole experience to be reasonably enjoyable.

Nairobi Airport review by Iain Read

8 October 2006

Recently transited via Nairobi en route to Zanzibar and then return to London. Outward stopover was 3 hours, spent in the KLM transit lounge - seemed to be only more local passengers who used it so we felt a bit out of place. Very limited seating, especially as many people used the seating as beds and took up 3 seats each. Return stopover was longer (8 hours). We were dreading this but it wan't that bad. There are a surprisingly large number of shops to browse in, albeit mostly selling similar stuff, but it whiles away some time. We tried two different coffee bars and found them both to be fine. The larger one (near Gate 14) served a nice selection of food and the best coffee I'd had on the entire trip. Also had Sky tv so managed to catch up on the Premiership action! All staff were friendly and helpful, toilets were at least as clean as at UK airports (if not cleaner) and boarding gates were efficient and security was good. Only down sides were lack of visual departure information and the fact we were called for our flight two hours before departure, so we left the relative comfort of the cafeteria only to spend two hours sitting in the small departure lounge. Overall, a surprisingly acceptable experience, given the length of the stopover.

Nairobi Airport review by Ben Harding

6 September 2006

I have used NBO on occasion while flying from Heathrow to the beach resorts in Mombasa. Arrivals are fairly smooth and fast. Generally, those with visas to hand usually take the least time to exit. Getting visas at the airport can be time-consuming and adds an extra layer of bureaucracy to negotiate with. If you can, get your visas beforehand at Kenya Embassies or Consulates abroad. If you are flying in from or onward to Asia, South America or Africa also keep a valid yellow fever jab certificate on your person, just in case the port health authority ask (which is rare). Check-ins can be slow and painful, the advice is to arrive in plenty of time. Do ask for a print-out coupon of your return flight whenever you can if flying on an e-ticket from Asia /Europe / North America. Check-in staff can vary in their training and this will come in handy if needed. Check carefully if you need visas for the country you are flying to or transiting, as the exit passport control officer will routinely ask you to confirm this. Be prepared for multiple security checks (customs will x-ray all your bags before check-in, hand baggage is additionally x-rayed at the gate, and some airlines insist on their own security check including a body check just before boarding). Seating in lounges is a rare commodity and generally uncomfortable. Otherwise the airport is clean, has a good trolley service and liaison offices of the major hotels.

Nairobi Airport review by Jonathan Beard

18 July 2006

I passed into and out of Kenya through Nairobi. Arrival was swift. Departure had three surprises: lack of seating in the departures area multiple security checks, and a request to see my Yellow Fever vaccination stamp in my vaccination travel booklet. The first time I have ever been asked in trips to 64 countries. I was travelling on to another African country. Travellers please note - have your vaccination booklet completed and on your person.

Nairobi Airport review by Barry Hodge

3 June 2006

Reply to Isaac Monari. I did not complain about security checks. If a security check is done properly, as at most airports in most countries then once is enough. The only reason to have four is if there is doubt that the previous one(s) was competently completed.

Nairobi Airport review by Isaac Monari

1 June 2006

Some of the comments are true, for example the number of seats being few and thus the area is crowded. E-tickets are unknown to security men. It is not true to say it is dirty and that there are no people to ask for directions. Barry Hodge should not complain about security checks, it is normal, if there was none he was to complain of lack of proper security checks. The airport officials however need to expand it.

Nairobi Airport review by Nick Serpell

15 March 2006

By African standards this was not a bad experience but it stil is way behind most European airports. A major rebuilding project has begun so perhaps things will improve. Many people have already higlighted the lack of seats throughout the airport. This includes the fnal departure lounges which seem to have been designed for 737 payloads. Our flight was a 777 and at least 20 people had to sit on the floor prior to boarding. The so called transit lounge run by KLM/Kenya Airways has the comfort of the average prison cell. hard seats, and not enough of them. The duty free prices for drink must be among the highest in the world. Most of the spirits on offer would be cheaper at Waitrose. Must try harder if you want to be seen as Africa's gateway.

Nairobi Airport review by Eileen Sutherland

9 March 2006

For the past 6 years I have used Nairobi airport once or twice a year. I have found that there are never enough seats in the airport to cope with people using night flights.It was therefore disappointing to find that chairs along the shopping mall have been removed and no replacements provided. This meant that even more people had to sit on the floor. As many people choose to arrive early for night flights rather than travel through Nairobi in the dark would it not make sense to try and provide at least seats for those passengers?

Nairobi Airport review by John Kotsopoulos

26 February 2006

Getting out of this airport was smooth and easy. Ground staff were courteous and efficient. If taking a taxi, make sure to speak to the airport staff near the exit who will charge you a flat fee to get in to downtown Nairobi and escort you to a licensed taxi. We had the same positive experience checking in. The airport's shortcomings are in its amenities. For one, there are incredibly few seats outside of the specific gates where one can sit and pass the time. There are also very few windows with views on to the tarmac (or anywhere else). It all feels claustrophobic!

Nairobi Airport review by Barry J Hodge

21 February 2006

Arrival in to NBO was a doddle - we had purchased visas in advance and breezed through - no problems with the number of desks. Departure rather different. We showed our e-ticket document a total of three times, presented our passports three times and had our hand baggage x-rayed four times. Each time it was x-rayed they found something that previous checks had not - or should I say picked on something other than what had been previously examined. The last two checks were farcical - we exited an x-ray check, walked across the room and joined the queue for another x-ray check. We had a small nail file (an inch long) snapped off some nail clippers, had tweezers confiscated (both have flown with me for years and all over the world) and even told to check in a small wooden mask as hold baggage while being told, with a grin, "of course it will get to UK intact". And the best bit - the captain and crew were subjected to similar searches - presumably they would confiscate tweezers from the captain in case he did any harm with them and then sit him in front of the controls and say (not literally) "do your worst but at least you don't have any tweezers".

Nairobi Airport review by Bernd Olssen

8 January 2006

Just passed through NBO connecting from JNB to AMS/OSL and I found the airport better than expected. I had a layover of 5 hours - went to one of the lounges, paid 10 euros and had a good sleep. Immigration isn't a hassle - of course outdated as it remains an African airport, but friendly nevertheless. Don't expect a European/US airport, but for African standards this one is efficient.

Nairobi Airport  by H Hann

7 July 2005

After reading comments submitted on Jomo Kenyatta I A, was not looking forward to having to use it but was pleasantly surprised. Arrival in the middle of the day, staff were efficient and helpful and friendly. The airport may be old but we didn't find it dirty. Left on a midnight flight and had some problems with check in computers but staff handled it in a professional manner. Immigration officer looked grim but when we said that we had enjoyed our visit she became very friendly. Toilets had been cleaned but were old and tired. We didn't find the experience unpleasant. 

Nairobi Airport  by Elijah Walsh

7 July 2005

Of all the African airports I've been, apart from Johannesburg airport, Nairobi airport is one of the most efficient, clean and hussle free airport. The design is outdated and the airport certainly needs expansion and modernisation in relation to the increased international traffic. I don't agree with the complaint about toilets and lack of water.

Nairobi Airport  by Mitesh Shah

29 May 2005

If you're departing from JKIA Nairobi Airport and have an e-ticket make sure that you have a printed copy of it - the security personnel will not let you through to the check-in area without seeing it as most of them don't understand the concept of the "e" in e-ticket. Another problem is that after the pre-boarding security checks you have to sit in a small area with no access to the cafes and toilets and the seats in this area are very uncomfortable. As for the shops, like all international airports, they sell "local" overpriced items in addition to the usual duty free alcohol and tobacco products. Arriving here can be a nightmare especially if two or more aircraft from Europe land within an hour or two of each other. The number of immigration desks are inadequate and long queues can form; there are usually bun-fights at the baggage reclaim carousels. The airline staff working at the airport are polite and friendly; the staff working for the airport itself tend to be surly. A lot of the other criticisms made on here are a bit unfair or outdated. For example, it is not a dirty airport. The toilets are clean and sometimes they do lack water but this is a common problem in Kenya as a whole.

Nairobi Airport  by H Nguyen

23 May 2005

NBO is rather disappointing and could use an overhaul! Immigration procedures upon arrival could be vastly expedited with a few more counters and staff. Soon thereafter, you then get to practice your bartering skills amongst the five or six "official" tourist bureaus offering taxis. Passport control on exit was quick and efficient. The departure area is a lifeless and overpriced sauna with shops and restaurants selling goods at inflated (USD) prices. The most disturbing fact about the departure area was that there was no air conditioning nor even fans! Not a pleasant experience when it is 35C outside and crowded inside.

Nairobi Airport  by Elizabeth Adongo

14 March 2005

I think Simons comments are rather harsh, however I agree with the poor design and over protection. Nairobi airport whilst not the best has remained consistent in service delivery and the immigration and check in service are good. Restaurants are okay too.

Nairobi Airport  by Dave Johnson

4 December 2004

JKIA is not charming, but it does get the job done. Compared to other African airports, such as Abidjan, Banjul or Addis Ababa, it is pretty good. In eight years of regular travel through, I have not been asked for a bride or hassled by officials or cops, more than what can be said for many African airports. Furthermore, neither I nor any of my company have ever lost baggage through here. Check out Java House at the far end of the Departures Terminal for coffee and snacks. The shopping is cheap curios, but that is what you get in the rest of the country's tourist areas. In short, not up to international standards, but a solid performer in the region.

Nairobi Airport  by Ben Lai

2 November 2004

NBO airport is a nightmare. The check-in is slow and inefficient. Immigration is slow, queue is long. The entry visa application areas is not sufficient and the immigration staff tries hard to get you to pay the highest visa fee no matter what. I been then over 20 times, and there are visa for transit and regular visitors. Each time I go I got a different explanation for the rules for transit and regular visitors visa. Transit is 17 US$ while regular is 50US$. There is no restaurant facilities to speak of, all payment in US$ - poor seating area. Airport business lounge is poor, internet is slow, food provided is all but some nuts and coffee and tea with a few soggy sandwiches.

Nairobi Airport  by Martin Novak

22 September 2004

I dont agree with the statement about the poor restaurants. The one on the second floor is quite fine, clean and even inexpensive.

Nairobi Airport  by S Kobayashi

3 September 2004

The Nairobi Airport is a nightmare to travellers. Not enough seating, poor restaurants, dirty toilets without flush, no water to wash hands, out-of-order flight schedule board. The check-in area is confusing and as dirty as you may think the floor had not been cleaned for years. The passengers had to wait in a very small waiting room after pre-boarding security checking. However, the rooms were too crowded considering the fact the flight has been delayed for more than 1 hour. However, I think the passport control and baggage claim was OK and the staff was quite friendly. Despite the fact that my family and I enjoyed a good vacation in Kenya, the airport failed to mark a good ending for the trip.

Nairobi Airport  by Daniel Beach

10 August 2004

Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International airport is the worst at which I've ever had the misfortune of arriving. There is no departure information after passport control apart from badly-piped PA announcements. There is no-one available or willing to offer you information. There is a restaurant. It's run by the guys that make the economy meals they serve on the flights. Don't go there - in the restaurant they're under no pressure from an airline not to kill passengers. There are shops. They all sell the same pseudo-African tat. All of them! There's a coffee bar which, if it were three times the size, and was air-conditioned, would be charming. Never fly from, to or through this airport. Simon's comment below, whilst accurate, does nothing to illustrate the discomfort, both physical and mental, of having to spend time in this revolting building.

Nairobi Airport  by Simon Jenkins

15 April 2004

Probably one of the worst Airport, most inefficient, most beuraucratic, unfriendly setting in the world. When you get dropped, there is no where for those you leave behind to come anywhere near, with a glass barrier all the way to the roadside. A very very poor design and creates long lines with armed policemen.

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