Emigrating is one of the most stressful life events you will have, and what to pack for a move abroad should be a key consideration. When moving to Kenya a carefully thought out packing list is essential. Kenya is rapidly growing and global brands are starting to appear across the country (read where to shop in Nairobi) but there are lots of products that it is impossible or very expensive to buy here.
Your packing list for moving to Kenya should include: electronics, camping items, toys and toiletries. These are the items it is hard or expensive to buy in Kenya.
Things to consider when deciding what to pack for a move overseas:
- How long you’re going to be in Kenya. Don’t move furniture if you are here just for a short time.
- What will help you feel at home – family heirlooms, photographs and personal items aren’t luxuries they are an essential part of making you feel comfortable and safe in an unfamiliar environment.
Climate: Kenya rarely gets cold. Leave most the bulky jumpers and skiwear behind. - How much it will cost to ship an item internationally – it may be cheaper to buy here (highly unlikely, but possible) consider buying new if the cost of shipping over its prohibitive. For example. your car.
- Is it difficult to find in Kenya. Many items are hard to find or very expensive.
So here is my personally curated packing list – a guide to what you should bring with you when you emigrate to Kenya, based on my own experiences of moving here. Before you leave read this guides to ‘Essential things to know before moving to Kenya’.
Essential packing list for moving to Kenya
Electronics
No. 1 on the list should be electronics, including phones, computers and kindles. You can get some items here but they are so expensive, others you will have to ship in . The items below I use myself and wouldn’t be without. I highly recommend bringing these with you:
- External Hard Drive: voted the best external hard drive on Amazon, this is perfect for backing up files, with all the power outages in Kenya you need to back up and save work as much as possible. Shop the Seagate Portable Hard Drive here
- Travel adapters – Kenya has a UK three prong pin, if you are coming from elsewhere then buy this travel adapter Shop The Ultimate Travel Adaptor
- Phone (make sure to purchase an international plan)
- Portable laptop (like a Macbook Air or equivalent)
- Camera (and an extra memory card)
- Headphones for those long journeys to safari. Shop bestselling DOQAUS headphones here
- Kindle or other eReader eBooks are smaller and lighter than paperbacks. Buy the Fire HD 10 Kids Edition Tablet
- Apple Airpods with Charging Case Buy Apple Airpods with charging case
Camping Equipment
Life in Kenya invariably involves camping, it’s part of the thrill of living here. If you don’t come fully kitted out you will soon start longing for the comfort of a proper mattress or the basic convenience of a decent torch. Game and Builders Warehouse do some tents, blow up mattresses and cool boxes but in a very limited range. The items I would suggest bringing are:
Tent: there are a couple of tents in Kenya and we love the family sized tent we bought at Game but if you want variety then I’d look on Amazon and bring your own.
Sleeping bag. Campmaster sells sleeping bags at Game but we bought some the other day and they aren’t a great material. This Active Era Sleeping bag is half the price we paid and far nicer.
Inflatable pillows We pack so carefully and then fill the entire car up with pillows. There are no inflatable pillows for sale here. This one is recommended by my friend and safari guide
Buy the Trekology Inflatable Pillow
Swiss army knife or Leatherman – ideal for cutting things, slicing things and general kits DIY. Always take once of these with you whenever you go backpacking or camping.
Skottle Braai for small burner stove. Skottle Braai’s are the bomb – no fuss, no hassle. They can be a little large so you could opt for a smaller, cheaper and more simple Primus Express spider stove
Buy head torches for the whole family . I use the Omeril LED head torch but the Petzl Tikka2 XP head torch comes highly recommended.
Buy the Omeril LED head torch here
Bring toys to Kenya
There is a huge lack of good toys in Kenya. There are very limited toyshops in Kenya and those that we do have are hideously expensive. A simple dress up costume that will be 10 dollars in a shop back home can easily be 70 here. I recommend buying all your kid’s presents in bulk and extra toys for parties too.
The 2020 hottest toys for kids which you definitely cant get in Kenya are:
Earth Heroes Children’s Book.
Shop Earth Heroes book for kids here
Shock Proof Binoculars for kids
Shop the ATOPDREAM Shock Proof Binoculars Explore The Wider World]
Voice Clear Walkie Talkies for kids .
Shop Voice Clear Walkie Talkies for kids
Star Wars The Child Animatronic Edition “AKA Baby Yoda” Star Wars.
LEGO 75292 Star Wars The Mandalorian Bounty Hunter Transport Starship Toy with The Child Minifigure.
Barbie GMW07 Fresh ‘n’ Fun Food Truck. Food trucks are good. Barbie is good. Barbies also cost a fortune in Kenya.
Playmobil Back to the Future© DeLorean Toy.
Exploding Kittens Card Game – Family-Friendly Party Games – like UNO with kittens, unicorns and goats.
Toiletries
Toiletries are so expensive. I recommend buying all your regular products in bulk and bringing them out. Even shampoo can be upwards of 10 dollars for a basic one.
Medicine
Medicine is expensive for over the counter meds but not prohibitively so for the regular items such as Calpol or Nurofen.
You need to consider bringing your medicine with you if you are on a prescription medicine. Pharmacies often don’t stock the exact brand and sell you a generic or alternative.
So if you need a very specific type of medicine make sure you bring a big supply out with you.
Clothes
There are a few good clothes shops in Nairobi. Check out this blog for my favorites.
LC Waikiki is great for kids clothes and basic disposable fashion.
Woolworths is a slightly more upmarket version of this and there are some bespoke local designers that make beautiful clothing.
You can buy clothes here but you wont have the range and variety that you are used to. If you are thinking you need a few more summer items or missing some school shoes for the kids then its probably best to shop at home and bring them out.
Household
Curtains are so much cheaper in England and if you are moving into a new home you might need lots.
Bedding and sheets as there not a lot of range or quality available.
Yankee candles – for some hygge on those rainy Nairobi nights.
Food
There are shops that stock British and American foods, so you will be able to buy some of you favourite brands, but they can be very expensive. If you are married to one type of tea bag or brand of breakfast cereal then make sure to pack that when emigrating to Kenya.
Hobby materials
Unless your hobby is quilting or dressmaking (there are tons of material shops here) then bring your hobby items with you when moving to Kenya.
I’ve lived in a number of ‘developing’ countries where it was often impossible or very expensive to get things I wanted from the US or Europe, just like in Kenya as you explained. When you first move you can pack a lot of things in with your household shipping allowance — if you know what they are. So I am sure your list is of help to people moving to Kenya. However, what I found once I lived in my new expat country, was that it often was cheaper to just buy the expensive stuff because taking them along in extra suitcases when on vacation or homeleave was also very expensive. Some airlines charge a lot for extra luggage. Shipping wine is heavy! But wine is important! I am now lucky to live in a ‘wine lake’ in France, in Languedoc, and I am very appreciative of good wine that doesn’t break the bank. In Ghana I remember we used to buy South African wine, very good, but not cheap. We used to say, yes, but the mangoes are cheap! It all evens out! Much as we sometimes want, we can’t have everything, but we can try ;) (PS I was married in Kenya ages ago in a bizarre ceremony and have a very soft spot for the country.)
I wish i ate as many mangos as I drink wine..I may not be so chubby. YOu are absolutely right though, there is only so much we can pack in our suitcase… and what the point of living in another country if you are just trying to replicate home. Please can i have a job on your wine lake xxx
We only go home to NY once every two years…and it becomes all about stocking up. We’re actually planning to do Europe on the in-between years going forward. We have to be able to get things like underwear. I have a constant fear of having all my underwear wear out and then not being able to buy more.
ha ha -i share your pain x
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