Who travels. Updated November 2026. 5 min read.
Nairobi is where East Africa does business. It hosts the United Nations Office at Nairobi in Gigiri, the global headquarters of the UN Environment Programme and UN-Habitat, the regional offices of many multinationals, and a tech scene that gave the world M-Pesa and earned the city the nickname Silicon Savannah. If your company covers East Africa, sooner or later you fly here.
The short version: apply for your eTA with business as the purpose, buy Kenya's mandatory inbound health insurance, stay in the district where your meetings are, plan no more than two or three meetings a day across town, and keep a weekend free. The Maasai Mara is a 45-minute flight away, and Nairobi National Park, with lions and rhinos, is on the city's edge.
Entry: the eTA for business
Americans need a Kenya Electronic Travel Authorisation, applied for on the official etakenya.go.ke site, for business as for tourism. At the time of writing the fee is about $30. State business as your purpose and have your invitation letter or conference registration ready to upload. A business eTA covers meetings, conferences and negotiations; it does not allow paid work for a Kenyan employer, which needs a work permit. Since October 2026, Kenya has also required visitors to buy inbound travel health insurance on eCitizen before the eTA is issued, about $44 plus fees. It is an entry requirement, not a substitute for your company's travel cover. Your passport must be valid for six months after your trip, with two blank pages. Our entry requirements page has the steps.
Where to stay
| District | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Westlands | Corporate offices, banks, restaurants and evening meetings; the busiest business district | Evening gridlock on Waiyaki Way and around the malls |
| Upper Hill | Banks, government agencies, hospitals and regional headquarters near the center | Quiet at night; plan dinner elsewhere |
| Gigiri | The UN complex, embassies including the U.S. Embassy, and NGOs; quiet and secure | Far from the center; allow time to reach other districts |
| Karen | A last night before a safari flight from Wilson Airport | A long drive to Westlands or Gigiri at rush hour |
Our Nairobi where-to-stay guide names hotels in each district at three budgets. As a rule, choose the hotel nearest your most important meeting rather than the nicest one across town: a 10 km drive can take 20 minutes at 10am and more than an hour at 5pm.
Getting around
The Nairobi Expressway, an elevated toll road opened in 2022, runs from the JKIA side of the city to Westlands and has cut the airport run to about 20 minutes off-peak. Tolls are added to your fare. For meetings, book a car and driver for the day, or use Uber, Bolt or Little; a ride across town costs about $3 to $8 at the time of writing, and the airport about $10 to $25. Allow for the traffic peaks, roughly 7 to 9:30am and 4:30 to 8pm. Our Nairobi transport guide covers the details.
Phones, money and power
- Buy a Safaricom SIM or eSIM at the counter in the JKIA arrivals hall with your passport; data is cheap and coverage across Nairobi is strong
- Register M-Pesa on the same SIM. Kenyans pay for almost everything by mobile money, from lunch to taxis, and colleagues will expect to send you money that way
- International cards work in hotels, malls and most restaurants; carry some shillings for small payments, at about KSh 130 to $1 at the time of writing
- Kenya uses UK-style three-pin plugs at 240 volts; pack an adapter, and a power bank for days of back-to-back meetings
- WhatsApp is the business messenger: expect meeting confirmations, documents and follow-ups there rather than by email
Meeting etiquette
Business in Nairobi starts with greetings. Shake hands with everyone in the room, ask after their day or their family, and do not rush to the agenda; the first few minutes of conversation are part of the meeting, not a delay to it. Use titles until invited not to: Dr., Prof., Eng. for engineers, and Hon. for members of parliament and senior officials. Dress is business formal in most offices, with suits common for men and smart dresses or suits for women.
Meetings may start a little late, usually because of traffic, and nobody minds if you send a WhatsApp saying you are stuck. Decisions often take longer than in the U.S. and involve more people, so plan a follow-up rather than expecting a signature on the day. Tea is offered at most meetings; accept it. Lunch is a common meeting format, and the host usually pays.
Flights and the time difference
Kenya Airways flies nonstop from New York JFK to Nairobi, about 15 hours, the only nonstop from the U.S. Its schedule has historically left JFK just after midnight, landing in Nairobi before lunch, and left Nairobi late at night, landing at JFK early in the morning. That return timing suits executives: a full day of meetings in Nairobi, an overnight flight and the office the same morning. Check the current schedule before you build around it. Kenya is on East Africa Time, UTC+3, with no daylight saving, so it is 8 hours ahead of New York in winter and 7 in summer: your Nairobi afternoon is the U.S. East Coast morning.
Conferences and events
The Kenyatta International Convention Centre, the KICC, is the city's landmark venue, and the UN complex at Gigiri hosts global meetings on the environment and cities. If you are bringing a team, a delegation or an incentive group, our conferences and incentives pages explain how we plan them, from airport meet-and-greet to a closing dinner in the bush.
The weekend safari
| Time you have | What to do | How |
|---|---|---|
| Half a day | A dawn game drive in Nairobi National Park, lions, rhinos and giraffes with the skyline behind them | The park opens at 6am; park fee $80 per adult at the time of writing, plus a car and guide |
| A free afternoon | The Giraffe Centre and the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust's elephant orphans in Karen and Langata | Book the orphanage visit ahead |
| Friday to Sunday | Fly to the Maasai Mara on Friday, two nights in a camp, back on Sunday afternoon | About 45 minutes from Wilson Airport, about $200 to $250 each way at the time of writing |
| An extra week | The Mara plus Laikipia or Amboseli, or the coast | See our 5- and 7-day itineraries |
Safety for business visitors
Before you book, check the current U.S. State Department advisory for Kenya, your company's travel policy and whether your travel insurance covers your route. Day to day, the rules are the ones Nairobians follow: no walking in the center after dark, phones out of sight in traffic, ride-hailing or a booked driver, and valuables in the hotel safe. Our safety page has more practical advice.
How we help business travelers
We plan airport transfers, a driver for your meeting days, hotels near your offices and the safari weekend, with 24-hour support while you are in Kenya. Send us your dates and your meeting locations, and a specialist replies within two business days with a plan and an itemised price.
