Kenya Airways

Customer Reviews

3 star Skytrax Rating
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Seat Comfort 12345
Staff Service 12345
Value for Money 12345
Customer rating from 456 reviews
4/10
3 star Skytrax Rating
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6/10

"delays were a feature of the trip"

(United Kingdom)

Not Verified | I frequently fly to Kinshasa and chose this time to use Kenya Airways as their business class was the cheapest available and the flight was from Heathrow, only ten minutes from home. The seat was comfortable enough but the inflight entertainment was limited. Cabin crew on the outward flights were charming and attentive, but rather dour on the return flight. Flight delays were a feature of the trip, with NBO-FIH delayed by an hour, then FIH-NBO delayed by 12 (!) hours with no explanation. It meant missing my NBO-LHR connection and waiting for 16 hours in Nairobi airport. Luckily I was in business class so could spend the wait in the well-appointed lounge. In future, although it is more expensive, I will stick to Brussels Airlines.
AircraftBoeing 787/737
Type Of TravellerBusiness
Seat TypeBusiness Class
RouteLondon Heathrow to Kinshasa via Nairobi
Date FlownMarch 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"still no money to our account"

(Madagascar)

Trip Verified | 05 Oct 2023 London-Nairobi. We are a couple and booked mid 2023 for tickets departing London KQ103 at 11:10 a.m. Kenya Airways deliberately put us on flight KQ101 departing 18:25 No prior notification long before as it is the rule. On same day 5 Oct morning as we were on the way to the airport, we noticed an email for the online check-in with the change of time = 6 hours waiting at LHR. Missing correspondence to our final destination. And yet flight KQ101 at 11:10 a.m. did operate and left London at that time. We raised claim/Incident created 13 Oct 2023, after resisting emails from us with objective and justified case, after a first odd reply and full of non sense from Kenya Airways, they offered us a compensation of 600 Eur per person while requiring a list of documents from us. We sent all documents they required - 15 Nov 2023 : KQ confirmed good receipt of our documents all correct, and assured payment to take over 2 months and we are yet to see the amount back in our account-, no answer. We had sent 5 reminders. We also noticed on KQ customer space our case as «Incident closed. 3 Mar 2024 at last email from Kenya Airways pretending excuse and announced payment is actively under process. For a simple bank transfer, 5 months? On 16 Mar 2024 still no money to our account.
Type Of TravellerCouple Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteLondon to Antananarivo via Nairobi
Date FlownOctober 2023
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"incredibly disappointing"

(United Arab Emirates)

Not Verified | My recent experience with Kenya Airways was incredibly disappointing. During a transit from Nairobi to Addis Ababa, the airline made a critical mistake, resulting in us missing our connecting flight. Despite having a transit time of only one hour and 40 minutes, we were left stranded at the airport for over 24 hours without any proper assistance. After the airline acknowledged their error, they offered no immediate solution or support. We were left to fend for ourselves, with no food provided and no accommodation arranged, forcing us to sleep on uncomfortable chairs in the waiting area. Attempts to seek assistance from the manager were futile, as no help was provided. Furthermore, the lack of options for purchasing food at reasonable prices within the airport, coupled with restrictions on bringing food from outside, only added to our frustration. This experience not only caused significant inconvenience but also led to me missing out on a special occasion. I strongly advise against using Kenya Airways and urge fellow travelers to consider alternative options. The lack of basic care and assistance during such a distressing situation is unacceptable, and I have no intention of flying with this airline again.
Type Of TravellerSolo Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteDubai to Addis Ababa via Nairobi
Date FlownMarch 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"Delayed and cancelled flights"

(South Africa)

Not Verified | Delayed and cancelled flights so arrived 10 hours later that originally expected. Given 2 samosas and offered a breakfast because of missing my connecting flight and having to wait 7 hours ... the food packaging was ripped and some of the breakfast removed, everything was cold, old and dry. The attendant were uninterested and offered little information or help. Arrived in Manchester to hear that my luggage was still in Kenya so I had to wait 2 days for it to arrive with no warm clothes or shoes and no medication.
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteJohannesburg to Manchester via Nairobi
Date FlownDecember 2023
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
5/10

"I was given three seats"

(Denmark)

Trip Verified | Kigali to Amsterdam via Nairobi 4th Feb. 2024. Ticket cheap, promotional, purchased instantly after KQ resumed their NBO flights to China via Bangkok. Trip started well, check-in in KGL clear though tedious (20-40 minutes per person in Skypriority line!). Luggage inscribed the whole way inclusive of an additional leg to Hanoi on another ticket with Vietnam Airlines, another SkyTeam alliance member. That would ease my transfer in BKK. Later, the trip became an unreasonable lengthy Odyssey over 4 days: due to just a two hours delayed departure from KGL, I missed connection NBO-BKK which was closed at gate (or cancelled; I have different information on this). First, KQ sent me from the now closed gate 11 in NBO to gate 8 to board with Qatar Airways to DOH and then to HAN (final destination). However, I had to decline as only NBO-DOH was booked and acknowledged by QR. The remaining sector was not booked and QR refused to book me through to Hanoi. Then I had to queue up at KQ-transfer desks, who eventually told me that they alternatively would provide me hotel in Kenya until their next departure 2 days later (!!). On top, they further needed a supervisors approval to this long stay. I would go on next direct flight, but had to await ticket re-issuance. In the meantime they sent me to their Prime Lounge in NBO to wait for details. Went airside/landside/airside and had to endure 2 security checks. The details dragged on; however, at 4 a.m. I was, without any dialogue, laconically, sent a rebooked itinerary NBO-AMS by KQ and then AMS-BKK by KLM. That detour implied a 2-3 times longer trip with arrival in BKK a day later than planned. They then saved on hotels but added on flight costs. I thought I better accept this solution as to discuss options seemed not easy and I was too tired to make a fuss, and would then arrive a day earlier than feared. Those two trips went well; I narrowly managed transfer in AMS, but my luggage was not following me. It apparently stayed on in Nairobi; this I arrived BKK without my luggage. It only arrived there with KQs own flight the following day. I had in the meantime postponed and rebooked my onwards tickets with Vietnam Airlines who of course could not sent my luggage with me as it had not yet arrived Bangkok yet. However VN did a great job to retrieve it and eventually submitted it to my private address in Vietnam upon an extra day and some ongoing actions from my side. Not to the benefit of Kenya Airways… Flight 1 Apart from the delay, it was a fine trip on a well occupied B737-800. Lounge in Kigali was accessed through my Flying Blue Gold Card and was a pleasure. Food is good, including several hot dishes and savory snacks. Drink options are very sparse but well stocked. As usual, gate calls in Kigali are done way too early and even before arriving aircrafts have landed. If adhered to, one would sit in the dull gate area for 1-2 hours instead of enjoying the lounge to a maximum. Thus, I refused to be chased out of lounge early as there were no reason to rush for nothing. Boarding easy. Onboard, I got my wanted seat and preordered seafood-meal. Wines onboard are drinkable as compared to those served in the lounge. Flight 2 a Boeing 787 aircraft, a bit worn. On time. Flight was not full; I was given three seats to flat out as I was deprived sleep struggling in the airport the previous night. Flight crew were very good. Two full meal servings. IFE is OK.
AircraftBoeing 787
Type Of TravellerSolo Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteNairobi to Amstrdam
Date FlownFebruary 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
yes
2/10

"All legs on this flight were delayed"

(South Africa)

Trip Verified | All legs on this flight were delayed. From Johannesburg to Accra the journey took 18 hours and from Accra to Johannesburg it took 20 hours. Staff seldom gave correct information. On the left from Accra to Nairobi we asked the crew how much longer. She replied an hour and a half. within 5 minutes the captain states we are ready to descend.
Type Of TravellerCouple Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteJohannesburg to Accra via Nairobi
Date FlownJanuary 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
4/10

"not even safety is respected"

(South Africa)

Trip Verified | The boarding was late, the service onboard very average for a business class product, connecting flight was chaotic, onboard services hardly had options. What is concerning is the Captain of the flight had his 2 sons on the flight from Nairobi to Cape Town and allowed them access to the cockpit for both take off in Nairobi and landing in Cape Town on KQ784 for 18 January, so not even safety is respected.
AircraftBoeing 787
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeBusiness Class
RouteLondon to Cape Town via Nairobi
Date FlownJanuary 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"Avoid this airline like the plague"

(United States)

Trip Verified | This is our first time flying with Kenya airways & will be the last. We are in Africa for a 25th anniversary trip & we were flying (KQ flight 471) from Kigali to Nairobi on 19th Jan 2024. We arrived at the airport at 7 am for the 9.10 am flight. Minutes after take-off, the pilot announced that we were returning to the gate, as a "door latch wasn't closing" & they needed to have it looked at. At around 10 am, after half an hour sitting on the flight, they said we needed to get off & they would give us an update. After sitting around for 3 hours, at 1 pm, we were told that we would be put on a flight at 7 pm, and that they were going to bus us to a hotel for lunch & to wait. We had a flight to Zanzibar at 6.30 pm on Jan 19th, but since we weren't even supposed to leave Kigali till 7 pm, we knew we would not make our connection. The Kenya Airways rep assured all of us that all of us would "automatically" be booked onto connecting flights & we didn't have to worry about a thing. Since matters were out of our hands at that time, We left with our fellow passengers & were taken to a not so nice hotel, where we were told to have lunch & wait for an update. At around 5 pm, the reception informed us that Kenya Airways had updated them that we were no longer going on the 7 pm flight, but were going to be out on a 3.40 am flight to Nairobi, the next day, January 20th. It would be more 17 hours past our original departure time, but we had no option but to wait it out, as our bags were still at the airport. Somehow, we all made it to 1 am at night, when a bus arrived to take us back to Kigali airport. Upon arrival, we were told that the 3.40 am flight(KQ 479) was delayed till 4.40 am. To make things even more chaotic, our connecting flight to Zanzibar(KQ 490) was also already delayed from 8 am to 11.20 am. I'm writing this as I sit at the airport, hoping to finally get to Zanzibar today. The total flight time from Kigali to Nairobi & Nairobi to Zanzibar is 3 hours or so, and thanks to Kenya Airways, we have already spent 27 hours at the airport & the hotel & we still don't know if we will actually get to Zanzibar today. And if our bags will be on the Zanzibar flight. Time will tell. It's only now that I'm reading all the terrible reviews of Kenya Airways. We experienced the terrible customer service first hand, with agents not having any replies to questions, absolutely no apologies from any staff for the agony caused, and long lines of angry customers at every counter. The horror stories are real. Avoid this airline like the plague, if you value your peace of mind. Anyone can understand one aircraft having "operational issues". But from what we saw and experienced, cancellations, delays, no accountability & no apologies are a daily way of life for Kenya Airways. How can an airline get it so wrong, so many times? Bottom line-run as fast as you can from Kenya airways, you will thank yourself that you did. If you still choose to book with them after reading all these reviews..- well, you were warned.
Type Of TravellerCouple Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteKigali to Zanzibar via Nairobi
Date FlownJanuary 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

“Absolutely disgusting service”

(South Africa)

Trip Verified | Absolutely disgusting service. Our outbound flight from Johannesburg in December 2023 was delayed by 8 hours, only to land in Nairobi and be delayed a further hour. On arrival in Bangkok our luggage was missing. No help, response, or apology from Kenya Airways. Fortunately Bangkok luggage staff sorted out the issue after 4 days. Our return flight from Bangkok started with no sign of any staff at the closed boarding gate until 2 hours before an international flight. Patrons were left confused and uncertain of what next to do or if they could eat etc. On arrival at Nairobi in January 2024 our flight to Johannesburg was once again delayed. The staff are arrogant and not helpful. Horrible experience.
Type Of TravellerCouple Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteJohanneburg to Bangkok via Nairobi
Date FlownJanuary 2024
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

“ignores all customer service requests”

(Singapore)

Trip Verified | Do yourself a favour and don't ever fly Kenya Airways. The airline didn't load ANY of the passengers luggages onto the flight from Nairobi to Cape Town (which we later found from other passengers online that it is a frequent occurrence to anywhere). Neither did they inform the arrival airport so passengers were left waiting more than 3 hours after landing wondering what caused the baggage delay. To rub salt to the wound, Kenya Airways did not provide any update on luggages and was practically uncontactable via phone, its official whatsapp, email, social media, messenger. So we were left stranded with very little on us and no idea at all if our luggages will ever be delivered (they did eventually deliver after 3-4 days). Follow-up calls for documentation for insurance purposes also hit a brick wall. The airline simply ignores all customer service requests. Do yourself a favour and do not fly with Kenya Airways. Despite their promise of being customer centric it's all a lie and facade. t's simply not worth the anguish that you will experience.
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteZanzibar to Cape Town via Nairobi
Date FlownDecember 2023
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no