Air Travel

When booking flights, check the routing carefully as some involve stopovers or require you to change airlines. Several flight options from the United States require long layovers in Europe before connecting to Nairobi or Mombasa. This is especially true for the cheaper flight options.

Airports

Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA). Nairobi, Nairobi Area, 00622. 020/661–1000; www.kaa.go.ke.

Moi International Airport. Airport Rd., Mombasa, Mombasa, 80155. 020/357–7508; 020/357–7052; www.kaa.go.ke.

Wilson Airport. Langatta Rd., Nairobi, Nairobi Area, 00200. 072/425–5343.

Air Travel Resources in Kenya

Kenya Airports Authority. 020/661–1000; www.kaa.co.ke.

Charter Flights

The major charter companies—African Sky Charters, East African Air Charter, Phoenix Aviation, and Safarilink—run daily shuttles from Wilson Airport to numerous destinations in East Africa including safari spots, Mombasa, and Nairobi. Safarilink also flies to Mt. Kilimanjaro. All flights should be booked directly through the charter service.

Charter Companies

African Sky Charters. 020/600–1467; www.asc.linkcafe.org.

East African Air Charters. 073/588–0011; www.eaaircharters.co.ke.

Phoenix Aviation. 0733/632–769; www.phoenixaviation.co.ke.

Safarilink. 020/600–0777; www.flysafarilink.com.

Flights

Most major European and African airlines fly into Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), Kenya's major airport. There are no direct flights from the United States to Kenya; indirect flights leave from most major cities, that is, New York, Chicago, Atlanta. Flying via London, Amsterdam, or Dubai is a popular option. There are plenty of cheap and efficient domestic flights available, including daily flights on Air Kenya between Nairobi and Mombasa, Malindi and Lamu. Air Kenya also flies daily to Amboseli, Diani Beach, Kiwayu, the Masai Mara, and Samburu. Fly540, an airline covering East Africa, has services between Nairobi, Lamu, Malindi, Mombasa, Kisumu, and Kitale. Safarilink has the widest network of flights, with daily services between Nairobi, Amboseli, Naivasha, Tsavo West, Nanyuki, Loisaba, Samburu, Lewa Downs, Lamu, Diani, and Kilimanjaro, and from Mara to Migori, which links travelers from Mara to the Serengeti. There are also numerous charter flights available from Nairobi to the major tourist destinations and individual lodges and camps. When you book your safari, it's a good idea to ask your accommodation destination to book your internal flights for you as part of your package. Another option is to get an operator like Twiga Tours (www.twiga-tours.com), who can take care of all overland travel arrangements and flights, to arrange this for you.

Kenya Airways and Thomsonfly fly from London to Mombasa, and Condor flies to Frankfurt from Mombasa. Emirates offers flights to JKIA via Dubai, and Qatar Airways via Doha. British Airways offers direct flights to Nairobi. KLM flies to Nairobi via Amsterdam. Connections to Mombasa from Nairobi can be made several times a day using Air Kenya, Kenya Airways, or Fly540.

Airport departure tax is included in your scheduled flight tickets.

Domestic Airlines

Air Kenya. 020/391–6000; www.airkenya.com.

Fly540. 071/0-540-540; www.fly540.com.

Kenya Airways. 020/327–4747; www.kenya-airways.com.

Safarilink. 020/600–0777; www.flysafarilink.com.

International Airlines

British Airways. 0844/493–0787; www.britishairways.com.

Condor. 0180/676–7767; www.condor.com.

Emirates. 0344/800–2777; 0800/777–3999; www.emirates.com.

KLM. 0207/660–0293; www.klm.com.

Thomsonfly. 0203/451–2688; www.thomsonfly.com.