What's on in Nairobi, Kenya through the year

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

• Season

  Dry-season game viewing

  1 Jan – 28 FebDry season

  The short break between the two rainy seasons. Animals concentrate on what water is left in Nairobi National Park, and the tracks are firm enough to drive properly.

Still on: Migrant bird season (1 Nov – 15 Apr (usually))

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Dry-season game viewing (1 Jan – 28 Feb), Migrant bird season (1 Nov – 15 Apr (usually))

Busy — between the peaks, Easter travel week

• Season

  The long rains

  15 Mar – 31 May · usuallyMonsoonRisk

  The heavier of the two wet seasons, arriving as afternoon storms and settling in through April. Roads flood, everything greens, and the safari camps drop their rates or close.

• Holiday

  Easter travel week

  20 Mar – 25 Apr · usuallyEaster & Holy WeekCrowdedClosures

  Good Friday and Easter Monday are both public holidays and Nairobi empties towards the coast and the up-country homes. Flights to Mombasa and Diani go first; the city itself is easy that week. Source ↗

Still on: Migrant bird season (1 Nov – 15 Apr (usually))

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, Easter travel week

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: The long rains (15 Mar – 31 May (usually)), Easter travel week (20 Mar – 25 Apr (usually)), Migrant bird season (1 Nov – 15 Apr (usually))

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in May.

Still on: The long rains (15 Mar – 31 May (usually))

Busy — between the peaks, Madaraka Day

• Holiday

  Madaraka Day

  1 JunNational holidayClosures

  The 1st of June, marking self-rule, with the national ceremony rotating between county stadiums. Offices and banks shut and the roads out of the city are heavy the evening before. Source ↗

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Safari high season

• Nature

  Mara migration season

  1 Jul – 31 Oct · usuallyWildlife seasonBook early

  The herds cross in from the Serengeti and the Mara River crossings run from late July into October. Nairobi is the way in and out, and the reason its flights are full. Source ↗

• Season

  Safari high season

  1 Jul – 15 OctDry seasonCrowdedBook early

  Cool, dry and the busiest stretch of the year for the camps, while the city itself is quiet and comfortable. Book the Mara side of the trip a long way ahead.

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Safari high season

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Mara migration season (1 Jul – 31 Oct (usually)), Safari high season (1 Jul – 15 Oct)

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Safari high season

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Mara migration season (1 Jul – 31 Oct (usually)), Safari high season (1 Jul – 15 Oct)

Busy — between the peaks, Safari high season

• Nature

  Jacaranda on the old avenues

  1 Oct – 15 Nov · usually

  The colonial-era streets around Upper Hill and Westlands go purple as the short rains start, and the petals end up thicker on the pavement than on the tree. Source ↗

• Festival

  Nairobi Marathon

  25 OctMajor festivalCrowdedClosures

  Thirty thousand runners on the Southern Bypass in late October, in the country that produces most of the world's distance champions. The road closures start early. Source ↗

• Season

  The short rains

  20 Oct – 15 Dec · usuallyMonsoon

  Lighter and less reliable than the long rains, usually starting late in October. Low season for safaris, green everywhere, and the cheapest the camps get.

• Holiday

  Mashujaa Day

  20 OctNational holidayClosures

  Heroes' Day on 20 October, a public holiday landing in the busiest safari month of the year. When it falls next to a weekend the Mara flights and the Naivasha road both fill up. Source ↗

Still on: Mara migration season (1 Jul – 31 Oct (usually)), Safari high season (1 Jul – 15 Oct)

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Nature

  Migrant bird season

  1 Nov – 15 Apr · usuallyBirdlife season

  Palearctic migrants arrive with the short rains and stay into April, which is when the national park, the Athi plains and the Rift lakes an hour away hold the most species. The residents are there all year. Source ↗

Still on: Jacaranda on the old avenues (1 Oct – 15 Nov (usually)), The short rains (20 Oct – 15 Dec (usually))

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Jamhuri Day

• Holiday

  Jamhuri Day

  12 DecSchool holidaysClosuresCrowded

  Independence day, a public holiday with a stadium ceremony, and the start of the stretch when Kenyan families fill the parks and the coast for the holidays. Source ↗

Still on: The short rains (20 Oct – 15 Dec (usually)), Migrant bird season (1 Nov – 15 Apr (usually))