Russian citizens need a visa to visit Kenya. A visa can be issued at the entrance to the country or at the nearest embassy of the country. To obtain a visa at the Kenyan border point, you must present a valid passport valid for at least 4 months from the end of the planned trip, a return ticket (or to a point further along the route) and proof of sufficient funds (at least 500 US dollars per person for the whole length of stay) and pay a fee.
To obtain a visa at the Embassy of Kenya, you must provide the following documents:
– Passport valid for more than 3 months on the day the visa is issued. The passport must have at least 2 blank pages;
– a completed visa application and a passport size photo (download the form);
– an invitation from an organization or an individual and confirmation of sufficient funds for the duration of your stay in Kenya.
Tourists need an invitation from a tourist company in Kenya on an official letterhead (original or fax copy) with the tour program attached;
– in some cases, a copy of a return ticket or a ticket to the next destination;
– to obtain a transit visa, you must provide a copy of the visa to the country of destination.
The entry visa is valid for 90 days.
Import and export of national and foreign currencies is not limited. Persons over the age of 16 are allowed to import duty-free into the country up to 200 cigarettes, or 50 cigars, or 225 g of tobacco, 1 bottle of alcoholic beverages and up to 568 ml of perfume. Firearms and ammunition are imported only with the permission of local authorities. It is forbidden to export without special permission the skins of wild animals and gold.
Kenya, Embassy website: http://www.kenemb.ru/
Embassy in Countries list Kenya
Kenya, embassy in Moscow
Kropotkinskaya metro station, Lopukhinsky per., 5.
Tel.: 637-21-86, 637-42-57, 637-25-35.
Fax: 637-54-63.
Kenya, Embassy website: http://www.kenemb.ru/
Kenya, Russian Embassy in the country:
Nairobi 30049, Lenana Road.
Tel.: (254-2) 728-700.
Fax: (254-2) 721-888.
Communication in Kenya
On the streets of major cities in Kenya there are red pay phones (work with coins) and blue (work with cards). Phone cards are sold at post offices and call centers. With the help of cards, you can call abroad, it can also be done at public telephone offices and from hotels (calls from hotels usually cost twice as much).
In order to call from Russia to Kenya, you need to dial 8 – 10 – 254 – area code – number of the called subscriber. Nairobi code – 20.
In order to call from Kenya to Russia, you need to dial 000 – 7 – area code – subscriber’s number.
Emergency Phones in Kenya
Ambulance, police, fire department – 999.
HOLIDAYS AND WEEKENDS
January 1 – New Year
May 1 – Labor Day
June 1 – Madaraka Day (anniversary of self-government in Kenya)
October 10 – Moi Day (in honor of the country’s second president)
October 20 – Kenyatta Day (in honor of the country’s first president)
December 12 – Independence Day
December 25 – Christmas
A variety of festivals are held throughout the year: from February to March, the Kijani festival takes place, in August in Nairobi – the Kenyan Music Festival, in October Kenyatta Day is widely celebrated, in November in Mombasa – a colorful Carnival.
USEFUL THINGS
Tourists are not recommended to travel alone, especially in the capital of the country – Nairobi. There is a high chance of pickpocketing in major tourist centers, so keep an eye on your belongings.
In national parks, you can get off buses and cars only in strictly designated places.
Wildlife hunting is prohibited in Kenya.
Traveling alone in Kenya is not safe.
STORES
According to ehuzhou, shops are open on weekdays from 8:30 to 17:30 with a lunch break from 12:30 to 14:00. On Saturdays they are open from 8:30 to 12:30. Large supermarkets are open all week from 9:00 to 20:00.
TIPS
In restaurants, tips are usually 10% of the total cost of the order and are usually already included in the bill. If the tip is not included in the bill, then you can leave up to 20 shillings.
NATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS
Kenyans are mostly friendly.
ELECTRICITY
240V, 50Hz;
HEALTH CARE
Be sure to take out medical insurance before you travel. No special vaccinations are required to enter the country. However, vaccination against yellow fever, typhoid, cholera and poliomyelitis is recommended, as well as prophylaxis against malaria. The country has a high percentage of people infected with AIDS. It is better to use bottled water for drinking.
History in Kenya
Small African settlements began to appear on the territory of present-day Kenya as early as the 2nd century AD. In the 7-8 centuries, merchants from the Arabian Peninsula, mainly Arabs and Persians, began to penetrate here. The first Europeans arrived here at the end of the 15th century. These were the Portuguese. They weakened the influence of the Arabs in this region, but already in 1698 the territory of present-day Kenya fell under the rule of the Ottoman Empire. In the 19th century, the Sultan of Zanzibar controlled the coastal territories, by the same time Great Britain had decided on its interests in East Africa. In the middle of the 19th century, the British arranged the first Christian mission to these territories, and already at the beginning of the 20th century, present-day Kenya became a colony of Great Britain. The British began the construction of a railway between Kenya and Uganda, while opening an accessible route to the highlands of the country. Europeans began to arrive on the fertile lands of the highlands and engage in agriculture. The lands were taken away from the locals and they were pushed to the south. This could not but cause discontent among them.
The performance of the African national liberation movement reached its peak during the Second World War, when the capture of Italian Somalia and operations to liberate Ethiopia were carried out from Kenya. In 1944, this movement achieved the fact that the governor of Kenya appointed the first African member of the Legislative Council, as well as the creation of the first multinational political party of Africans – the Kenya African Union, which was headed by Jomo Kenyatta. After 10 years, the country was struck by another performance against the colonial regime – the uprising of the Mau Mau movement. All this led to the fact that in the early 60s, Kenya received the right to internal self-government and Jomo Kenyatta became the country’s first prime minister. On December 12, 1963, Kenya gained independence, and in 1964 it was proclaimed a republic.
Now in Kenya there are a number of difficulties – inflation, a fairly low standard of living, a large percentage of people infected with AIDS and crime, but the government is doing everything to solve these problems.
