A question that is always asked in any forum is what currency to take, how much, traveller-cheques or not etc.

Maybe we can all chip in some information on this and I will sum it then up and have it as a kind of guide for the future.

Let me start off by saying:

Euro
US $
British Pound

are changable everywhere.

Traveller Cheques not so easy.

Credit Card is always good for ATMs

Interesting question. The first time I went to Kenya I took travelers checks. However, I quickly found out that it was difficult to cash them - even in a bank. Twice it took me 45 MINUTES in a bank. The manager himself came out and asked me why I wanted 400.00!

Thus ever since then I have taken only US dollars. I have had several problems though. The Forex bureau at the airport only gives you 1,000KES bills. Thus I have always ROUGHLY equated 1,000KES with $10.00, 500 KES ROUGHLY $5.00 etc. I don't want to give a porter 1,000KES for carrying one bag. I wish they would also give smaller denomination KES bills.

In August I gave the girl in the Forex Bureau 10 $100.00US bills. She refused to cash 7 of them. Apparently Kenya has a thing thinking all 1996 bills are counterfeit! I had just gotten them from my bank the previous day so I know they were good, but she wouldn't take them! Thus almost all my tips for the August trip were in US bills, and despite the fact that with the exchange rate a $10.00US bill wasn't as much as 1,000KES, everyone accepted them gladly with no complaints.

Thus on my next trip I'll take a lot of 5's 10's and 20's and not bother with the Forex Bureau at all.

ONE WARNING - after 10 trips to Kenya I was robbed on this last trip. I had had dinner, gone to my tent, taken off my bum pack (waist pack), put it on the bed between the pillows and gone into the bathroom. I wasn't in there more than 1 1/2 minutes and when I re-entered the tent the light was off. At first I thoughth perhaps the bulb had burned out and clicked the switch. The light came right on. When I looked up I saw the front tent zip open (and I know I had zipped it). I immediately checked to make sure my cameras were there (they were) and the noticed the bum pack gone. I know the staff and trusted them completely. For two nights I had to sleep with an askari on my veranda to protect me should the need arise. On previous trips I locked up all my money. I locked up the majority of it on this trip, but my wallet with around $350.00 was in the waist pack along with cigarettes, lipstick, etc. It was only after the "committee" decided to bring in the witch doctor "nganga" that the culprit was revealed. It ended up with my getting everything back intact, but it was a lesson for me. I will lock everything up from now on.

Thus be sure to put your valuables including passport and plane tickets in the lodge/camp safety deposit boxes or safes. Almost all places now have them. Also lock up your laptop in your luggage.

of course the kenya shilling would be ideal to take especially guides in the field don't have that many opportunities to change US and € without loosing a considerable percentage!
so if travelling from the €zone just get cash € and change at official money changers at the airport so that you are fluent from the very first step!

as a returner to kenya just make sure you don't run out of cash so change sufficient amount and take the rest home for the next visit!

if just staying on stopover for one night: take US cash which will be appreciated from porters, room maides etc.
but make sure your taxicompany accepts US cash!

in case you go to kenya and go straight to parks/camps just change for tipping the driver guides and staff and take some cash US or € in small denominations (1 dollar bills, 5 dollar bills 10 and 20 dollar bills) in order to ensure you won't run out of cash!

as a guideline: take ohnly us $ bills which are pretty new because some of the banks - even at the airport - refuse to change older bills! and this might create some problems!

i never ever travel with traveller cheques because it costs you twice: when buying and when changing!

regarding my clients: i arrange taxci-transfers with kenatco and knoe in advance the fare in US$. so at least for a stopover there is no need to change any money at all!

pippa

jan, i just red your whole posting and would like to comment:
get yourself a kind of lock which can be used to lock doors (scraper) and use this to get together the tent zips. so you can lock the tent after you return from dinner! in case you have pretty expensive laptop, backup camera and storage equipment etc. you could ask the tent steward to do the tent in between gamedrives when you are present. in this case you could even lock your tent when you leave for drives.

furthermore we had the same impression: dollars are very wellcome; we ran out of KSH and topped with US and we were assured that won't be a problem at all!

regarding the bills: we had the same problem at nairobi intl.! only 1000 KSH bills!
in view to dollar bills: they act as zambian banks: they just accept recent dollar bills with "large heads" except for 1 dollar bills - anything else will be refused!!
we take loads of 1 and 5 dollar bills plus the bigger ones but never ever travel with too many 50 dollar bills! get that small stuff and you will be very well off!
pippa

- Edited by pippa on 14.12.2006, 20:27 -
- Edited by pippa on 14.12.2006, 20:47 -

Pippa:

Can you explain the lock a little better. Is it a padlock (like we used to put on school lockers) where the hooked end would fit through all three of the tent zip pulls?and then locked with a key? I'm not positive of your description of the ""lock which can be used to lock doors.

Great suggestion though. Guess I would need one for the front zip and one for the back zip (and hope that I don't have to get up quickly during the night to pee :T)!.

After my little episode I was so grateful for all the rest of the staff did to try to find this guy - even tracking in the bush at night with elephants and lions around!

Travellers Cheques are beginning to be something of the past - now quite a few places and hotels do not take them anymore due to high exchange rates with local banks.

Original von Jan
Pippa:

Can you explain the lock a little better. Is it a padlock (like we used to put on school lockers) where the hooked end would fit through all three of the tent zip pulls?and then locked with a key? I'm not positive of your description of the ""lock which can be used to lock doors.

Great suggestion though. Guess I would need one for the front zip and one for the back zip (and hope that I don't have to get up quickly during the night to pee :T)!.

After my little episode I was so grateful for all the rest of the staff did to try to find this guy - even tracking in the bush at night with elephants and lions around!

sorry jan, i looked it up in the dictionary and it says "scraper" . i try to explain:

solid metal thing with a kind of moveable hook which can be locked/opened by using a matching key! i think you are right with this school locker thing! we carry always some spare lockers in order to have the matching one with us because the zippers not all have the same measurements regarding the hole in the zip!
oh my goodness it's not so easy to explain such hardware stuff

at least it gives you a feeling of safety!

pippa

- Edited by pippa on 17.12.2006, 12:19 -