Travelling within Kenya

Buses are the most comfortable and easy mode of transportation between Kenyan cities with good frequencies and economical fares. Both private and government buses operate within Kenyan cities. Kenya Bus Service operates buses in every city of Kenya, be it big cities like Nairobi or small towns like Kisii.   

The oldest as well as the largest private bus service operator in Kenya is Akamba, which operates buses in entire East Africa. After Akamba, Easy Coach is another privately owned bus operator that serves Eldoret, Kakamega, Kisumu, Kitale and Nairobi.

All the cities in western Kenya are served by the Eldoret Express buses, whereas Easy Bus operates only between Kisumu and Nairobi. Night buses to and from cities like Mombasa, Nairobi, Nakuru, Kisumu and Kakamega are operated by Coast Bus.

Some of the other bus operators in Kenya are Stagecoach, Falcon, Coastline Safaris and Mombasa Metropolitan Bus Services. Tickets for most of the buses is available on-board but for the popular routes like Nairobi–Kisumu, Nairobi–Mombasa and Mombasa–Lamu, tickets need to be booked in advance.

Trains in Kenya are operated by the Kenyan Railways. Trains operate from Nairobi to Mombasa and Nairobi to Kimbusu, thrice a week and once a week respectively.

Taxis are also available but do not run on metres and the fare needs to be negotiated before boarding.

Matatus are the most common mode of transportation for travelling within the city. Stages are the places from where matatus start, only after it is completely occupied. Matatus operate on a set route and its fare depends upon the distance travelled. One needs to pay the fare to the driver before boarding the vehicle.