The Conscious Traveller: Kenya on a budget, through the eyes of locals

NAIROBI – “We decided to rob this man at this spot. We didn’t know he was a diplomat. The police got me. I went to prison.”

These are the sobering words of our guide, a former gang member in Nairobi, Kenya’s bustling capital.

Today, the situation is a bit happier, which I learn from a social enterprise called Nai-Nami (nai-nami.com, walking tours from US$45 or S$61).

Marketed as a storytelling tour, Nai-Nami guides lead guests through Nairobi’s notorious downtown, an area with an infamous reputation for violent street crime. Yet, I feel safe during the 2½-hour tour as our group of four explores bus stations and markets, culminating in a meal at a local restaurant.

At times, I wonder if I am being voyeuristic or exploitative as I listen to our guide’s tales of extreme poverty. For instance, he tells us how he began a career as a pickpocket at age nine after his father died and his mother became an alcoholic.

But I take comfort in the fact that proceeds from the tour go to our guides, some of whom grew up on the streets and are former criminals. Today, they lead tours, act as positive role models for the younger members of their community and earn a regular income from the work.

This is a theme that I constantly go back to on a solo two-week trip to Kenya in November 2023. How can I, a privileged tourist, travel as ethically as possible while still working within a reasonable budget?

As much as I enjoy travel, I have always been uncomfortable with the inequality between tourists and locals, especially since many of my trips have been in the developing world. So, I try to make responsible decisions when travelling, such as considering my impact on the environment and community, without being parochial.

The concept of ethical travel is not new. In 1999, the United Nations set out a framework known as the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, recognising travel as a driver of solidarity and development, and outlining guiding principles across the economic, cultural, social and environmental aspects of tourism.

More recently, a 2024 study by Booking.com shows that three-quarters of respondents want to travel more sustainably over the next 12 months, citing concerns about the impact of tourism on climate change.

In Kenya, making ethical travel decisions such as booking locally run accommodation and tours help me enjoy the trip more as it enables a deeper connection with the place and its people. Here is how I went about it.

1. Do research

Like many travellers, I rely heavily on Google reviews to ascertain the quality of accommodation and activities.

Using keywords such as “ethical” and “sustainable” helps to shortlist places that minimise negative impacts of tourism, such as the exploitation of local communities and overcrowding of delicate ecosystems at wildlife parks.

I glean useful, up-to-date pre-travel advice from talking to locals and other travellers on forums such as Reddit (from local subreddits like r/kenya to more general travel-related communities like r/travel), as well as Facebook groups such as Backpacking Africa.

In fact, it is on the latter that I find Oseki Maasai Mara Camp (osekimaasaimaracamp.com), a safari lodge that consists of clean safari tents equipped with comfortable bedding, generator-powered electricity and hot running water.

Accommodation options in the Mara range from campsites where you pitch your own tent to luxury options that cost four figures a night. With full-board room rates starting at US$72, I find Oseki’s no-frills-yet-comfortable approach refreshing.

Apart from its Dutch co-owner, the camp’s staff are all local Maasai, an ethnic group that inhabits Kenya and Tanzania.

Staff provide services such as guiding, cooking and transport. The lodge also runs and contributes to community initiatives, such as helping to rebuild a children’s dormitory in a local village that was destroyed in a fire.

2. Get local advice on the ground

In Kenya, I find locals eager to share more about their country. As English is widely spoken, it is easy to strike up conversations with Uber drivers, shopkeepers and tour guides.

At Cheche Books (instagram.com/chechebooks) in Nairobi’s Lavington suburb, I tell the affable owner I am heading to Kenya’s coast after my safari.

She recommends The House Of Rust (2021) by Khadija Abdalla Bajaber, set in the region I am about to visit. Reading Bajaber’s beautiful tale of a young girl’s search for her fisherman father makes me appreciate the sights even more.

She also points me towards Connect Coffee Roasters (connectcoffee.net), a hip coffee joint that would not look out of place in central Melbourne, Australia. The fruity signature Juliet blend latte is a bargain at KES320 (S$3.20) and is so refreshing, I buy some beans to take home.

Nairobi has a fledgling backpacker scene, and I stay at two new hostels that opened in 2023.

Nairobi Backpackers’ Hostel (hostelworld.com/st/hostels/p/321173/nairobi-backpackers-hostel, dorms from $17) and Mad Vervet Nairobi Backpackers Hostel (mad-vervet-backpackers-hostel-nairobi.nairobi-hotels-ke.com, dorms from $19) both have lively social areas to meet other travellers.

The young, hip staff are happy to dish out travel advice, arrange tours and suggest restaurants.

3. Travel in shoulder season

Visiting the Maasai Mara National Reserve and spotting animals in the wild is a bucket-list experience for many. In particular, the annual wildebeest migration from the Serengeti National Park in neighbouring Tanzania attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors between June and September every year.

Unfortunately, this has resulted in overtourism. Stories abound of convoys of safari trucks camped side by side on the banks of the Mara River within the National Reserve, with desperate tourists jostling for the perfect shot of the wildebeest crossing the river.

One solution to this is to travel in low or shoulder seasons.

I go in December, during shoulder season, and find wildlife-spotting opportunities abundant but with much smaller crowds. In Kenya, shoulder season runs from October to mid-December.

On my one-day safari tour, organised by Oseki Maasai Mara Camp, I see a variety of animals – including zebras, giraffes, elephants and lions – with far fewer safari vehicles crowding around the wildlife.

The guide and vehicle cost US$175, and the reserve fee of US$100 a person is half of what it would cost during high season. My driver also makes it a point not to drive too close to the wildlife, ensuring the animals remain undisturbed.

My flight to Kenya on Air India takes 15 hours, including a two-hour stop in Delhi. The round-trip flight costs around $1,150.

4. Take public transport

Take advantage of Kenya’s extensive public transport network to get around the country.

Between towns, the cheapest option is by brightly painted local minibuses called matatu. However, while I hear positive reports about these from other travellers, I cannot steel myself to ride them as they have a reputation for dangerous driving and overcrowding.

Instead, I opt for inter-city coach services. EasyCoach (easycoachkenya.com), a local bus company, takes me from Nairobi to the lakeside town of Naivasha for KES1,050 each way. The coaches offer reserved seating and ample baggage space.

However, they run behind schedule by about 90 minutes on each trip, so build in some flexibility in your travel itinerary to account for delays.

The only public transport between Naivasha and the Maasai Mara is via matatu. I opt for a private driver instead, which sets me back about $110 in total for the 3½-hour journey in an air-conditioned car. This fare is for the whole vehicle, so a couple or group could split the costs fairly easily. To book, send a WhatsApp message to Safiri Cabs at +254-728-409427.

Uber is available in many Kenyan cities and is a safe and cost-effective way of getting around Nairobi. A 10-minute ride costs about KES180, although tips for good service are always welcome.

5. Go beyond safaris

While the game-viewing in Kenya’s national parks and reserves is the country’s biggest attraction, safari fatigue is real.

Luckily, there is a lot more to Kenya than just animals. Apart from Nairobi’s bustling social and restaurant scenes, the country also has some excellent beaches in its coastal region.

In fact, one of the highlights of my trip is my visit to Lamu, an archipelago set in the Indian Ocean. I take a domestic flight on Safarilink from Nairobi’s Wilson Airport, which costs US$58 for the 70-minute flight.

The main town of Lamu is officially car-free, with its denizens getting by on foot or via donkey. I love walking down its labyrinthine alleys and viewing the town’s amazing architecture, which bears the hallmarks of the archipelago’s Swahili, Indian and Arabic heritage.

6. Use M-Pesa

One thing that surprises me during my Kenya trip is the proliferation of M-Pesa, a mobile payment system ubiquitous throughout the country.

M-Pesa can be used to pay for everything – from transport to restaurant bills to even entry at public toilets. Accommodation providers also tell me they prefer payment in M-Pesa as fees and charges are lower than when paying by credit card.

It is remarkably easy to set up. I visit an outlet of local telco Safaricom, procure a SIM card and then register for M-Pesa. I am given a four-digit pin and, within minutes, am able to use the pin to send and receive money.

M-Pesa does not require a bank account and is instead topped up via a human agent. I use online remittance service Remitly (remitly.com), which allows me to transfer money from my multi-currency Revolut card to my M-Pesa account.

While this negates the need to carry cash, my M-Pesa service gets suspended after a particularly large top-up of about 52,000 KES to pay the safari lodge. A quick call to Safaricom puts things right, but as with anywhere in the world, a small stash of emergency currency is helpful to have in situations like this.