Nairobi Airport uses 2 terminals, with the main Terminal 1 divided into 5 other sections.

Terminal 2 is a small ground floor building located approximately 1 km north of Terminal 1.

The airport underwent extensive renovations between 2013 and 2023, replacing the original very unsightly concrete building with a modern terminal.

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Terminal 1

The main circular building is designated as Terminal 1 and serves most airlines.

Due to the round floor plan, the distances between the planes and the exit are very short, or vice versa. On the other hand, when transferring between planes within the transit zone, you can walk up to 20 minutes.

Terminal 1 is divided into 5 sections, but all are interconnected by the public and transit zone.

Departures and check-in counters:

• Terminal 1A - Air France, Air Malawi, British Airways, China Southern Airlines, Ethiopian Airlines, Jambojet (international flights only), Kenya Airways (international flights only), Lufthansa, Precision Air, Saudia
• Terminal 1B - Air India, Air Tanzania, Emirates, Uganda Airlines
• Terminal 1C - Air Arabia, Egyptair, Lufthansa, Qatar Airways, Rwandair, Turkish Airlines
• Terminal 1D - domestic departures of JamboJet, Kenya Airways, Yellow Wings

Terminal 2

A small prefabricated building of one storey mainly serving smaller private Kenyan airlines and small companies from countries such as Somalia and Djibouti.

• Terminal 2 - African Express, Daalo Airlines, Freedom Airline, I Fly, Jetways, Renegade Air, Tarco Airlines

A free shuttle bus runs between Terminal 1 and 2 via the public section (landside) approximately once every 30 minutes from 5:00am to 11:00pm.

Transfer between flights

Nairobi is one of the most important connecting airports in Africa thanks to Kenya Airways.

The guaranteed transfer, where you will have both flights on one booking, takes place almost exclusively within Terminal 1, where all sections are connected through the transit area.

International <-> International

If you are only connecting to another country via Nairobi and will not be entering Kenya at all, you do not need to leave the transit area and therefore do not need to arrange any visa.

When transferring, do not go through passport control, but follow the "Transit" signs which will take you through security checks for transfer passengers only to the departure gates.

Depending on where you will be boarding your upcoming flight from, the net transfer time between planes takes between 20 and 35 minutes.

Your luggage is not taken care of and will be automatically transferred.

International -> Domestic

If you are arriving in Nairobi from abroad and continuing on a domestic flight, you will have to go through immigration already at Nariboi Airport.

Upon disembarking from the aircraft, head to passport control, collect your luggage and walk through the public section to Terminal 1D where you will re-check your luggage and go through security to the aircraft.

The total transfer time, depending on the passport control queue, is between 45 and 90 minutes.