Connecting in Nairobi Airport

Jettystone

We are connecting in the Nairobi Airport from BA to Precision Air. I would like feedback on the exact procedure and any tips you might have for us in navigating the procedure. We are on the Oct 1 trip.

joycesw

We did just this on our 2013 trip. I had to go back to my journal for a recreation of this piece. We flews BA and did an overnight at Tribe Hotel (our travel agent arranged it) and had a low key day in Nairobi (it was a month after the mall shootings, so security was very high). I recall that we had a 7 pm flight to Arusha. I wrote, "...Airport ride was long and slow. So many huge, slow trucks. Got there with 2 hours to spare. Many security checks and a confusing lounge. NO ONE knew where to go, and we all just found someone else on the same flight and followed him about. Plane was very small, and our seats didn't exist! The ones they gave us were shorter and didn't go back. Good thing it was only a 40 minute flight!" The only thing outside my journal notation I remember was that we had to fill out some sort of paper work, a yellow card, but I don't remember what it was.
A notation.. as US citizens, I was concerned about the Kenyan visa. I had gotten single entry visas but then realized that we were overnighting in Nairobi and then reentering Kenya with the tour group. Did I need a multi-entry visa??? In case you are concerned, the answer is no (although, neither Tauck nor their visa company, Pinnacle at the time, could answer that question for me...would have cost an extra $300 had I not found the answer on Trip Advisor). As long as you are entering from Tanzania, you are okay.

British

Jettystone wrote:

We are connecting in the Nairobi Airport from BA to Precision Air. I would like feedback on the exact procedure and any tips you might have for us in navigating the procedure. We are on the Oct 1 trip.

I know this is too late for your situation, but in case anyone else is considering this tour, I would recommend not using the BA flight to Nairobi, but using Delta out of the US who's partner airline is KLM and flying to Amsterdam, then there is a non stop flight to Arusha. This at least means you only have to encounter the dreaded Nairobi airport once. it is the worst airport I think I have encountered. I have flown to Arusha twice using this way.

AlanS

Another option for future travelers is flying Ethiopian Airlines- Dulles-Addis Ababa-Arusha going over then NBO-Addis Ababa-Dulles on the way home. We did it- price, plane, food, and service were great, at least in Business Class, despite some of the reviews. A Canadian couple on our Tauck tour flew ET from Montreal-ADD-JRO and had a similarly good experience. I don't know what it would be like and wouldn't try coach, however.

The strangest thing was security at NBO during departure (June 2015)- everyone had to temporarily park, exit their vehicles along the airport approach road, go through an initial security screening (while vehicle was searched), before we got back in the car and proceeded to the terminal drop-off. We and our bags were screened again at the terminal entrance! I don't remember much else about the airport- busy, a bit old, third-world (of course so is ADD), undergoing repair due to fire damage from the previous year.

Dottie D

And we are flying Turkish Air via Istanbul to Arusha and from Nairobi. We had gotten a good deal for Business Class using Amex points. Although I'm not crazy now about going through Istanbul, it would be too costly to change at this point. I expect that security at Ataturk airport is pretty tight and we don't have to leave the airport, so I'm not too concerned. We are on the September 17 trip.

Jettystone

Thank you to those who responded to my query. Perhaps those you are going through Nairobi Airport in the next month could post their experience with the process....yellow fever cards and all!

British

Jettystone, the Yellow fever question is a different thing! There are already some parts of the forum devoted to this. Some people are asked to show their Yellow fever card, some are not, it is very random. Me, my yellow fever card and all proof of vaccines I have and when they were given remains with my passport wherever I travel.
My personal suggestion is the following. If you have never been to Africa before, get the Yellow fever shot now, because you wil want to visit Africa again, so you may as well get it out of the way. There are other countries that require it too that you may want to visit in the future. Why spend time worrying that you are going to arrive and be refused entry and sent back at your own expense or maybe worse, be offered a vaccine there! Ahhhh!

judith_salb

So interesting that you posted this question. We live in Scottsdale and BA is the only international flight we have so I like to use it. But I was reading about that short flight that we would have to take to Arusha and I said "Not doing this in the middle of the night"!!!! At the end of the day we have now booked our air with Tauck via Delta/KLM. It goes through Amsterdam directly to Arusha. We just have to take a quick hop over to LA to begin our journey.
Judy