Learn about the best Airlines located in Kenya; Kenya Airways (KQ), JamboJet, and Fly540. Get to know of the cheapest flight tickets in Kenya for your domestic and international flights. Also learn how to book online, via mpesa paybill, Check in, Destinations e.t.c
Best Airlines in Kenya
The three major and best Airlines in Kenya are Kenya Airways, JamboJet, and Fly540. Each one of them has its good and bad side. By the end of the article you will be able to make a choice of which among the three suits you for domestic or local flights. In my opinion, Kenya Airways is the best Airline for International flights from Kenya and Jambojet is the best for domestic flights (within Kenya). You might have had a bad experience with either of these two but it all scales down to which among them is offering services where the positives outweigh the negatives.
How to find a cheap flight ticket in Kenya (Cheapest Time to Fly in Kenya)
Airline ticket pricing is the one of the key factors that air travelers consider before booking a flight. But some travelers make their decision based on the reputation of each airline rather than the price.
The secret to finding a cheap flight in Kenya lies in time and day of booking.
Tuesdays and Wednesdays are very often the cheapest days of the week to fly in Kenya. That is if the two days don’t fall within a holiday. Business travelers tend to make up much of the demand during the week and they most often want to fly out on Monday and return on Thursday or Friday or Fly on Friday and Return on Sunday. So Sundays, Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays tend to be the most expensive travel days in Kenya while Tuesdays and Wednesdays are often the cheapest.
Another thing I have noticed is that, booking of flights offline tends to be expensive by Ksh. 800 in excess of the normal price than booking online (I have tested this with Jambojet).
The last thing is advance booking. Tickets increase in price closer to departure time because leisure travelers buy tickets offbeat and business travelers buy their tickets close to departure. For frequent travelers this is a well-known fact.
Most Expensive time to fly in Kenya (Holidays)
Airlines in Kenya often increase the base fares for public holidays. A day to and a day after the days listed below are the most expensive times to fly in Kenya;
| Date (Month and Day) | Holiday Name | Holiday Type |
| January 1st | New Year’s Day | Public Holiday |
| March 30th (Last Friday of Every March) | Good Friday | Public Holiday |
| April 2nd (Monday after Good Frida) | Easter Monday | Public Holiday |
| May 1st | Labor Day | Public Holiday |
| June 1st | Madaraka Day | Public Holiday (the Day Kenya attained self-rule) |
| June 16th (this date can be adjusted) | Eid al-Fitr | Public Holiday (End of Ramadan) |
| August 22nd | Eid al-Adha | Public Holiday |
| October 20th | Mashujaa Day | Public Holiday (Honoring Independence Freedom Fighters) |
| December 12th | Jamhuri Day | Public Holiday (Day when Kenya became a Republic) |
| December 25th | Christmas Day | Public Holiday |
| December 26th | Boxing Day | Public Holiday |
NOTE: Tickets Flight from 20th to 30th December (Christmas/festive season) of every year in Kenya tend to be extremely expensive.
Direction from CBD to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA)
We have provided all directions through public means from Nairobi CBD to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA). Kindly check this page: bus route directions page. But in summary, the bus that goes directly to JKIA is City Hopa, number 34 that is located at Ambassador Stage, along Moi Avenue. The bus will take you to Terminals 1A, 1B, 1C for (1A is for International Departures and Arrivals while Terminal 1 D is for Domestic).
If you are driving or using personal means from your hotel in Nairobi. Take Mombasa Road.
What Happens when you get to JKIA Airport
Once you get to your terminal you will have to go through security clearance/checking, that is removing your shoes, belt, watch e.t.c After security clearance, your luggage will be weighed for over 10kg for Jambojet or 12 Kg for Kenya Airways. You will then confirm your Identification details. After that, you will have to proceed to the waiting room where you will await your departure time. You are supposed to be at the departure waiting room 30 minutes to departure time. There is some clearance again in this section before you take off.
Booking Kenya Airways Flight ticket online and via sms and online
How to book Kenya Airways ticket online;
- Visit: https://www.kenya-airways.com
- Then Click: BOOK a FLIGHT
- Then below it select: Return or One Way or Multi Destination
- Enter: Destinations (From and to) then your departure date and Return date (if you selected Return)
- Select Age: Adults (16+), Children (2-11 years) and Youth (12-16 years)
- Select Class: Business, Economy, Economy Flex, Economy Super Flex, Gold and Platinum.
- Select Time: (Time Variation affects flight charges)
- Select your seat
- Pay online: KQ payment methods include (Mobile Payment through Mpesa Paybill, Airtel Money and Equitel or Credit or Debit Card through VISA, Mastercard, AMERICAN EXPRESS, UATP and Union Pay)
NOTE 1: Only pay using a card under your name if someone else pays for you and is not traveling make sure you get a copy of credit card, a signed authorization note from the card holder (the person who paid for you) and a copy of the card holder’s passport.
NOTE 2: Kenya Airways Refund are issued within (14 days). Check Refund policy
NOTE 3: for corporate travel managers, SMEs and Travel Agents only, book your tickets through Msafiri (Its cheaper)
Kenya Airways Excess Baggage Charges Rules
Luggage or baggage of upto 12kgs is free on KQ. You will have to pay for anything in Excess of 12Kgs as indicated in the pricing table below;
Also read KQ Baggage policy in this page
Kenya Airways Check in
KQ online check in for regional and International flights is open 30 hours before departure and closes two hours to departure. You can view and change your seats using: Kenya Airways Check in page
Kenya Airways Flight Destinations/Routes (Domestic and International)
KQ flies to the following locations;
Africa Routes
- Abidjan
- Abuja
- Accra
- Addis Ababa
- Antananarivo
- Bamako
- Bangui
- Blantyre
- Brazzaville
- Bujumbura
- Cape town
- Cotonou
- Dakar
- Dar es salaam
- Djibouti
- Douala
- Durban
- Dzaoudzi
- Eldoret
- Entebbe
- Freetown
- Gaborone
- Harare
- Johannesburg
- Juba
- Khartoum
- Kigali
- Kilimanjaro
- Kinshasa
- Kisumu
- Lagos
- Lilongwe
- Livingstone
- Luanda
- Lubumbashi
- Mahe island
- Lusaka
- Malindi
- Malindi
- Maputo
- Mombasa
- Monrovia
- Moroni
- Mwanza
- Nampula
- Ndola
- Ouagadougou
- Pemba
- Windhoek
- Yaounde
- Zanzibar
Asia Destinations
- Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- Bangkok, Thailand
- Beijing, China
- Colombo, Sri Lanka
- Delhi, India
- Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Guangzhou, southern China
- Hanoi, Vietnam
- Hong Kong, China
- Jeddah, Mecca, Western Saudi Arabia
- Mumbai, West Coast India
Europe Routes
- Amsterdam, Netherlands
- London, England and the United Kingdom
- Paris, France
Kenya Airways Flight Experience Common Complains
- KQ Amsterdam route has had numerous complaints of Flight delays and Cancellations without any notification from KQ leaving travelers stranded
- Frequent loss of luggage complains (Solution: Be extra careful with your luggage)
- Frequent complains of poor customer care at KQ Dare salaam ticketing office, Airport
- Complains of early travelers being told the KQ booking website made a mistake on pricing thus your ticket class will be cancelled (Solution: Be at the Airport early enough to confirm your ticket)
- Complains of KQ Refund Delays or no refund at all.
Kenya Airways Contacts
- Phone contacts: 020 3274747
- KQ Customer Help Website: http://kenya-airways.custhelp.com
- Official website: https://www.kenya-airways.com
- Facebook: Kenya Airways
- Twitter: Kenya Airways
How to book Jambojet ticket via Mpesa Paybill
To book jambojet ticket via mpesa paybill;
- Call Jambojet on: +254-(0)20-3274545 or +254-(0)711 024 545 0r +254-(0)734 104 545
- You will be asked to provide your email, phone number that will be used to generate a booking order for you
- Then a text message will be sent to the phone number you provided guiding you on how pay via mpesa paybill number (737700). Only pay after contacting Jambojet.
- You will receive your ticket via email after paying.
- Print the ticket and proceed with it to the airport. If you are in Nairobi, got to JKIA Terminal 1D for departures.
Fly540 contacts
- Phone contacts: +254 722 540 540 or +254 733 540 540
- Official website: https://www.fly540.com/
- Facebook: fly540aviation
- Twitter: fly540aviation
Kenya Airways (KQ) Alternatives
- Rwandair
- Ethiopian airline
Kindly check our next detailed post on Jambojet, Fly540 and Ethiopian airline
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