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Maasai Mara savannah

Travel guide · Safaris, the Great Migration and Indian Ocean beaches

Travelling to Kenya

The Great Migration in the Maasai Mara, elephants beneath Kilimanjaro and white-sand beaches on the Indian Ocean. We tell you when to go, what to see and what to eat.

Updated 18 October 2026 · How we make our guides

  • Best time: from June to October and from December to March
  • Where to eat: a nyama choma grill or a local “hotel” (canteen)
Photo: Daniel Case · CC BY-SA 4.0

Kenya in 30 seconds

  • The months with the fewest warnings to travel to Kenya are from June to October and from December to March.
  • To eat like a local: a nyama choma grill or a local “hotel” (canteen). Don’t leave without trying: Nyama choma, Ugali, Sukuma wiki.

Kenya in November

You can go, with a few caveats: short rains. You can still go; bring a rain jacket and leave margin for transfers.

  • November

    Short rains

    In November there are short showers, mostly in the afternoon.

    What to do: You can still go; bring a rain jacket and leave margin for transfers.

November is one of the months when people search most for travelling to Kenya: book early. More destinations for November

When to travel to Kenya

The months with the fewest warnings to travel to Kenya are from June to October and from December to March.

  1. Jan no warnings
  2. Feb no warnings
  3. Mar no warnings
  4. Apr with warnings
  5. May with warnings
  6. Jun no warnings
  7. Jul no warnings
  8. Aug no warnings
  9. Sep no warnings
  10. Oct no warnings
  11. Nov with warnings
  12. Dec no warnings

More destinations for those dates: where to travel in January · where to travel in February · where to travel in March · where to travel in June

  • April, May

    Long rains

    In April and May it rains heavily: some camps close and the tracks turn to mud.

    What to do: If you go then, prices are lower and there are fewer people, but choose lodges that open all year.

    Best time: June to October

  • April, May

    Long rains

    April and May are the wettest months; some tracks and camps close.

    What to do: For safaris, July to October (the migration) or January to March is best.

  • November

    Short rains

    In November there are short showers, mostly in the afternoon.

    What to do: You can still go; bring a rain jacket and leave margin for transfers.

What to see in Kenya

The cities and areas most worth your time, with their highlights. Open each one for all the places, where to stay and its day trips.

  • Nairobi

    Nairobi

    The safari capital, with a national park inside the city.

    • Nairobi National Park
    • Elephant orphanage
    • Giraffe Centre
    • Karen Blixen Museum
    Nairobi guide
  • Maasai Mara

    Maasai Mara

    Africa’s most famous reserve, the stage for the Great Migration.

    • Mara River crossing
    • Big cats
    • Hot-air balloon at sunrise
    • Maasai villages
    Maasai Mara guide
  • Mombasa

    Mombasa

    A Swahili city on the coast, with a Portuguese fort and an old town.

    • Fort Jesus
    • Old town
    • Moi Avenue Tusks
    • Northern beaches
    Mombasa guide
  • Diani Beach

    Diani Beach

    White sand, palm trees and colobus monkeys by the Indian Ocean.

    • Diani Beach
    • Colobus monkeys
    • Wasini and Kisite
    • Kitesurfing
    Diani Beach guide
  • Amboseli

    Amboseli

    Herds of elephants with snow-capped Kilimanjaro in the background.

    • Elephants
    • View of Kilimanjaro
    • Swamps
    • Observation Hill
    Amboseli guide
  • Lake Nakuru

    Lake Nakuru

    A Rift Valley lake with flamingos, rhinos and tree-climbing lions.

    • Flamingos
    • Rhinos
    • Baboon Cliff
    • Makalia Falls
    Lake Nakuru guide
  • Malindi

    Malindi

    A coastal town with a marine park and Swahili ruins nearby.

    • Marine park
    • Vasco da Gama Pillar
    • Gede Ruins
    • Marafa
    Malindi guide
  • Watamu

    Watamu

    A village of white beaches and turtles, with a protected marine park.

    • Watamu Marine Park
    • Turtle centre
    • Mida Creek
    • Arabuko Sokoke
    Watamu guide
  • Tsavo

    Tsavo

    One of the country’s largest parks, home of the red elephants.

    • Red elephants
    • Mzima Springs
    • Lugard Falls
    • Mudanda Rock
    Tsavo guide

Day trips and activities

What’s most worth booking from each city. We take you straight to the best-rated tour on GetYourGuide, with its reviews and dates.

From Nairobi

From the Maasai Mara

From Mombasa

From Diani Beach

From Amboseli

From Lake Nakuru

From Malindi

From Watamu

From Tsavo

Some links are affiliate links: if you book through them, Bagintravel may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

What to eat in Kenya

To eat like a local: a nyama choma grill or a local “hotel” (canteen), and order nyama choma or ugali. And don’t leave without trying:

  • Nyama choma

    Grilled meat, the dish for celebrations.

  • Ugali

    A maize-meal dough that goes with almost everything.

  • Sukuma wiki

    Sautéed kale.

  • Pilau

    Spiced rice from the coast.

  • Samosas

    An Indian legacy, everywhere.

  • Chai

    Tea with milk and spices.

The typical dish of Kenya, at home

Ugali with sukuma wiki
Photo: Mark Skipper · CC BY 2.0

Ugali with sukuma wiki

Kenya’s everyday meal: ugali (a firm maize-meal dough eaten with your hands) with sukuma wiki, kale sautéed with tomato and onion.

  • Serves 4
  • 40 min

Ingredients

  • 400 g fine white maize flour
  • 1 litre of water
  • Salt
  • Sukuma wiki: 500 g kale or spring greens, 1 onion, 2 tomatoes, oil and salt

How to make it at home

  1. Bring the water to the boil with the salt and add the flour gradually, stirring with a wooden spoon.
  2. Keep stirring and pressing it against the pan over a medium heat for about 10 minutes, until you have a firm dough that comes away from the sides.
  3. Shape it into a ball on a wet plate.
  4. For the sukuma wiki, fry the onion, add the tomato and then the kale in thin strips, and stir-fry for 5 minutes.
  5. Serve the ugali with the sukuma wiki and, if you like, stewed meat or nyama choma.

The trick: You pinch off a piece of ugali, press a hollow into it with your thumb and use it as a spoon.

The typical food of each city, with a recipe

Curious facts about Kenya

What guidebooks don’t tell you and will help you understand the country better.

  • The Great Migration of wildebeest crosses the Mara River between July and October.
  • Nairobi has a national park with giraffes and rhinos in sight of the skyscrapers.
  • Kenya is one of the world’s big tea producers.
  • Many of the world’s best distance runners come from Iten, in the Rift Valley.
  • Swahili and English are the official languages.
  • “Hakuna matata” is a real Swahili expression: it means “no problem”.

Traditions of Kenya

Customs and celebrations that will help you experience the country like a local.

  • Maasai culture

    A herding people, with their jumping dance (adumu).

  • November Lamu Cultural Festival

    Donkey races and dhows.

  • 12 December Jamhuri Day

    Independence Day.

  • Harambee

    “All pull together”: the tradition of helping one another as a community.

What not to do in Kenya

First-trip mistakes that are easy to avoid.

  • Don’t travel without an approved eTA (or a visa, depending on your passport).
  • Don’t photograph Maasai people without asking permission.
  • Don’t get out of the vehicle on safari outside permitted areas.
  • Don’t go to the northeast or the border with Somalia, which official travel advice warns against.
  • Don’t forget malaria prophylaxis: ask at a travel health clinic.
  • Don’t bring plastic bags: they’re banned.

Before you go

Entry requirements depend on your passport and change: always check them with official sources before travelling.

Frequently asked questions about Kenya

What people search for most before travelling to Kenya.

What’s the best time to travel to Kenya?

The months with the fewest warnings to travel to Kenya are from June to October and from December to March.

What to see in Kenya in a week?

The essentials of Kenya: Nairobi, Maasai Mara, Mombasa, Diani Beach and Amboseli. How many places fit into your days, and in what order, depends on your dates and how you get around: the Bagintravel app plans your trip day by day in a minute.

What to eat in Kenya?

Nyama choma, Ugali, Sukuma wiki, Pilau, Samosas, Chai. To eat like a local: a nyama choma grill or a local “hotel” (canteen).

What is the typical dish of Kenya?

Ugali with sukuma wiki. Kenya’s everyday meal: ugali (a firm maize-meal dough eaten with your hands) with sukuma wiki, kale sautéed with tomato and onion.

What should you not do in Kenya?

Don’t travel without an approved eTA (or a visa, depending on your passport). Don’t photograph Maasai people without asking permission. Don’t get out of the vehicle on safari outside permitted areas.

Is it worth travelling to Kenya in November?

You can go, with a few caveats: short rains. You can still go; bring a rain jacket and leave margin for transfers.

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Guide reviewed 18 October 2026. Seasonal data, places and areas: the same ones the Bagintravel app uses. Sources and method.

Photos: cover, Daniel Case (CC BY-SA 4.0). Nairobi, Daniel Case (CC BY-SA 4.0). Maasai Mara, VickyOmondi (CC BY-SA 4.0). Mombasa, Leo Hempstone (CC0). Diani Beach, Nicor (CC BY 3.0). Amboseli, Sergey Pesterev (CC BY-SA 4.0). Lake Nakuru, Jasper1976 at Dutch Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Malindi, Mtl1969 (Public domain). Watamu, Alsandro (CC BY-SA 3.0). Tsavo, The original uploader was Key45 at English Wikipedia. (CC BY 2.0).