Travel Tips

1) Passport. Ensure that you have a passport that has not expired and will not expire within six months of your return date. This process can take a while so get started right away!

2) Immunizations. First of all make sure you are up-to-date on your regular immunizations. These include MMR (Measles/mumps/rubella), DPT (diptheria/pertussis/tetanus) etc. Track down those immunization records!

Visit a travel clinic regarding your overseas vaccines. They will know what you need for your destination. For Kenya, they will usually recommend Hepatitis A and B, typhoid, and meiningitis. Yellow Fever and rabies vaccines are generally optional for Kenya. If you decide you want the Yellow Fever shot, make sure you tell the travel clinic when you make your appointment- they don't always have it on hand.

This can be costly (a few hundred dollars) and your insurance will probably not cover it. For the Hepatitis shots, you will get three shots of the course of a few months. Ask your clinic for more details.

Besides vaccinations, you will need a malarial prophylaxis. There are several different types. Some are more costly than others so talk to your doctor about it.

Make sure you keep your immunization records. Next time you take a trip, you'll have it all right there.

3) Visa.To enter any country, you need a visa. In most cases, tourists/missionaries to Kenya do not need to apply for these in advance and can simply purchase a tourist visa at the airport upon arriving in the destination country (about $50).

4) Travel Health Insurance. Your regular health insurance probably will not cover any health costs abroad. Talk to your insurance agent. You can probably buy inexpensive travel insurance through them or you can find it yourself online. Your travel insurance should cover emergency medical costs, lost baggage, medically necessary evacuation, and repatriation of remains in case of death. If you're travelling as group, the leader can get it for everyone.

5) Register with the Embassy. It is a good idea to register with your national embassy. You can do this very easily online before your departure. If you give the embassy your travel dates and how to reach you in country, they can help locate and evacuate you in case of emergency.

6) Contact Plan. When you arrive in Kenya, you want to be able to tell your family you arrived safely. If you are travelling as a group, the leader should compile a list of family and friends who want an email confirming the team's safe arrival. Once they arrive, the leader calls a designated person who then emails the list. This will save a lot of headaches for the team since calling the U.S. can be difficult and expensive.

7)Traveller's checks. Leave home without them! Although traveller's checks are said to be easy to use, this is not always true. In fact, even very nice establishments in Nairobi will NOT accept traveller's checks unless they are accompanied by an original receipt from time of pruchase, in addition to the normal requirements. Our suggestion is to bring an ATM card and remove money straight from the ATM though you will probably be charged a "conversion" fee since the bank has to convert the money from dollars to Kenya Shillings. If you are travelling with Fahari, we can help you make other arrangements to receive cash in Nairobi.

8)What to Pack The first rule of packing is, don't pack anything you can't bear to part with!

That being said, here are some things you might want to bring. Camera and Charger and extra memory card, Ipod and recorder, electric converters, batteries, sunglasses, bugspray, hat, sunscreen, Two bath blanket towels, bathing suit, Socks and underwear, clothes, Any regular medications, malaria pills (can also buy cheaply in country), prescription information, your passport, a photocopy of your passport, your immunization records, your travel health insurance information, feminine products (these can be hard to locate in some countries so be sure to pack accordingly!) Normal toiletries as desired: (soap, face wash, moisturizer, razor, toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, chapstick, shampoo etc.)