Nairobi
You're flying out of Nairobi Airport, you have 90 minutes to kill, and you'd like to do better than a Pret. Good news: airport drinking has improved more in the last five years than the previous fifty. Pre-flight drinks at Nairobi Airport range from chain reliability to surprisingly polished hotel-style bars in the airport hotels. This is barsforKings's editor-curated guide to drinking better at Nairobi's airports.
Westlands · $$$
Nairobi's most awarded cocktail bar.
Westlands · $$
Open-air courtyard bar with multiple counters, food trucks, and DJs every weekend.
Westlands · $$
Restaurant-bar with a serious cocktail programme and a long wine list.
Karen · $$$
Colonial-villa restaurant-bar with a leafy garden and a long cocktail and wine list.
Want a real drink before flying? The fastest play is to get to airport hotels next door — most run polished bars that beat anything post-security. We list them at the bottom. If you've got 60 spare minutes pre-airport, see our shortlist of bars in Nairobi proper at the end.
Plays for Nairobi Airport: post-security, pre-security, lounges, and the airport-hotel cheat code.
Pre-flight drinks, hotel-bar reviews, and the openings we're watching across 176 cities. Friday mornings, no filler.
Looking beyond Nairobi? See our guide to the best airport bars worldwide, or compare airport bars city by city.