Kibera
3.5
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Monday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Sunday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Tours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
Full view
Top ways to experience Kibera
The area
Best nearby
Restaurants
274 within 5 kms
Attractions
131 within 10 kms
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
3.5
178 reviews
Excellent
63
Very good
51
Average
27
Poor
14
Terrible
23
ksufan88
Wichita, KS6,633 contributions
Aug 2023 • Couples
I would have never wandered into this neighborhood on my own but with someone from the area as my guide, I felt very safe. We walked the roads and narrow alleys to see things most tourists to Nairobi will never see. It is crowded and dirty, but we felt like we understood more about how the area lives their lives after our visit.
Written 6 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tracey B
Nairobi, Nairobi Area, Kenya83 contributions
Jan 2013
Kibera can be confronting at first to foreign visitors, but witnessing first hand the positive development work Amani Kibera performs the community leaves one feeling inspired. Amani Kibera are a community-based organisation established by a group of young people who have grown up in the slums. Thus, they know exactly what their community needs, and they are working hard to deliver that. They have set up a public library where students can study in a conducive environment, they run a women's economic empowerment group which makes crafts to help raise money for school fees so the girls can go back to school, and they have a value-based sports program, which aims to promote peace mainly through football tournaments. Visiting the slum with Amani Kibera is not about a voyeuristic slum tour; rather you are visiting to see their projects, but of course as you walk and talk with your hosts you learn about everyday life in the slums as well. They are so welcoming and friendly and it's an inspiring experience to engage with these amazing people and their projects.
Written 13 January 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Robert O
Rotterdam, The Netherlands5,858 contributions
Mar 2024 • Solo
Ever since first settlement of Nubian soldiers during British colonial rule early 1900s, Kibera has been in the 'news'. During the last couple of decades mentioning Kibera 'slum' became almost synonymous with referring to poverty in (sub-Saharan) Africa in general. Juggling statistics was and perhaps still is part of the game with some exaggerating numbers of Kibera inhabitants to over 2 million while actual numbers are probably closer to 200,000.
Anyway by Kenyan standards informal housing concentration near big cities like Nairobi has remained a problem as the speed with which poor rural populations move to the big cities is rapid. Authorities struggle to provide public services such as sewage systems, running water and electricity, garbage collection, roads, primary health care and schools. Churches and NGOs have attempted to fill in gaps, but their efforts have had limited results.
I went to Kibera on a bicycle (without a guide) and found the people there proud and active. Most people have a job, take care about their appearance and personal hygiene. They dress well. Remarkable is the religious group activity with people clapping hands, singing and dancing (perhaps because I visited on a Sunday, but still). Indeed, the absence of sewage and garbage collection has remained a big problem. Protection against abundant rainfall is another issue. The list of problems has remained long.
Anyway by Kenyan standards informal housing concentration near big cities like Nairobi has remained a problem as the speed with which poor rural populations move to the big cities is rapid. Authorities struggle to provide public services such as sewage systems, running water and electricity, garbage collection, roads, primary health care and schools. Churches and NGOs have attempted to fill in gaps, but their efforts have had limited results.
I went to Kibera on a bicycle (without a guide) and found the people there proud and active. Most people have a job, take care about their appearance and personal hygiene. They dress well. Remarkable is the religious group activity with people clapping hands, singing and dancing (perhaps because I visited on a Sunday, but still). Indeed, the absence of sewage and garbage collection has remained a big problem. Protection against abundant rainfall is another issue. The list of problems has remained long.
Written 19 March 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mick Wilson
Ottawa, Canada43 contributions
Oct 2013 • Family
Manky, horrible crap.
I live here, and tourists love to go there. But it's like tours to a Soweto-that-never-was. Everyone who lives there wants out of there. Do-gooders try to make out Kibera (and other African slums like Mathari valley) as launching points or innovation hotspots like Silicon Valley.
They're not.
They're sad, desperate urban scenes with people playing out all the anxieties of striving for their kids to get ahead with just a little money to cover their schooling and healthcare.
There is nothing idealistic or brave to be seen here.
It's brave people simply being brave. TV docos don't help them one iota.
I live here, and tourists love to go there. But it's like tours to a Soweto-that-never-was. Everyone who lives there wants out of there. Do-gooders try to make out Kibera (and other African slums like Mathari valley) as launching points or innovation hotspots like Silicon Valley.
They're not.
They're sad, desperate urban scenes with people playing out all the anxieties of striving for their kids to get ahead with just a little money to cover their schooling and healthcare.
There is nothing idealistic or brave to be seen here.
It's brave people simply being brave. TV docos don't help them one iota.
Written 3 September 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mark H
Fond du Lac, WI4,405 contributions
Jan 2017 • Business
I saw this listing on this site when looking for stuff do during an eight-day work trip to Nairobi for work. I was shocked this was listed as an attraction.
Kibera is the largest slum in Nairobi, in fact about 60 percent of the city's three million people live in one.
I was working in the slums with Kenyan scientists working to solve public health issues. It had taken them some time to develop relationships and trust with the people who live in slums like Kibare, Korogocho, Kawangare and Mukuru,
If they had work to do in the slums, they would call the chief and let them they'd be visiting and the chief would provide a local resident and police officers to watch their back.
The people I met were friendly, invited me into their homes and shops, etc, because I was with people they knew and trusted.
A few weeks prior these researchers were in Mokongeni and a mob of people high on glue and weed surrounded their truck and demanded payment. Even the chief had a hard time diffusing a bad situation. These native Kenyans were rattled by it.
If you want to visit a slum, I'd recommend finding a group you could do some aid work for. That's my $.02.
Kibera is the largest slum in Nairobi, in fact about 60 percent of the city's three million people live in one.
I was working in the slums with Kenyan scientists working to solve public health issues. It had taken them some time to develop relationships and trust with the people who live in slums like Kibare, Korogocho, Kawangare and Mukuru,
If they had work to do in the slums, they would call the chief and let them they'd be visiting and the chief would provide a local resident and police officers to watch their back.
The people I met were friendly, invited me into their homes and shops, etc, because I was with people they knew and trusted.
A few weeks prior these researchers were in Mokongeni and a mob of people high on glue and weed surrounded their truck and demanded payment. Even the chief had a hard time diffusing a bad situation. These native Kenyans were rattled by it.
If you want to visit a slum, I'd recommend finding a group you could do some aid work for. That's my $.02.
Written 14 January 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Pierre P
nairobi14 contributions
Nov 2012
As a slum, it should be rated ***** five stars.
It is one of thabiggest in Africa and may be in the world.
It is an unforgettable experience.
But when you undestand that it is the placewhere lovable Kenyans have to come and rest in after a heavy working day, you would cry.
It is one of thabiggest in Africa and may be in the world.
It is an unforgettable experience.
But when you undestand that it is the placewhere lovable Kenyans have to come and rest in after a heavy working day, you would cry.
Written 28 March 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Judy K
Nairobi, Kenya41 contributions
Nov 2016 • Business
If yu are going to Kibera, go because you are visiting someone or working on something or wanting to DO something there. You really cant just go there to gawk... and if you you'll find the trip weird and disconcerting. Kibera is home to many incredible, innovative incredible human beings. Its lively its loving, its horrible, its wonderful, its inspiring, its depressing - its everything because its so diverse and so dense but also because its just life.
Written 17 January 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Virginia
Nairobi, Kenya24 contributions
This is rated as the one of the world's largest slum. People have no access to basic amenities such as bathrooms. Because of that the residents have invented "flying toilets" where one puts the waste in plastic bag and tosses away in the river which is heavily polluted or on the narrow streets where the people walk.
Many non-governmental institutions target this area for development which makes some difference. There is a project where they recycle human waste into energy. Another project is that of using the solar heat to purify water for drinking. The water is poured in clear plastic bottles and placed on the iron sheets all day long. Other projects involve education children and especially the girl child who is venerable to early pregnancies because of the conditions of living there.
Many non-governmental institutions target this area for development which makes some difference. There is a project where they recycle human waste into energy. Another project is that of using the solar heat to purify water for drinking. The water is poured in clear plastic bottles and placed on the iron sheets all day long. Other projects involve education children and especially the girl child who is venerable to early pregnancies because of the conditions of living there.
Written 23 February 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Cosima
7 contributions
Nov 2019
Nairobi is a big African city, very dynamic and modern, but has also a different face that is important to know to understand the ecosystem. But if you want to see and understand how the life is in the slums, without making tourism or voyeurism, there is a specific way to make it and I had the chance to experience it. So, in the tour proposed by Moses, who were born, raised and still live in Kibera, one of the largest continuous slum in Africa, you are going to discover how people really live, and most of all how the inhabitants are creating a difference in Kibera through their social mission-driven, small businesses. Instead of feeling sad in front of this poverty, you will spend a positive day because of the hope and dynamism of these actors who are mobilizing to improve the living conditions of their community. you won't see the day go by and will be a little sad when it comes to saying goodbye to Moses, this admirable and very endearing man who will be showing benevolence and kindness throughout this afternoon. You can book your tour with Moses via Instagram @moseskiberatour, a phone number +254715184389 or send an email: njulemoses@gmail.com
Written 4 December 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
WeeStepherz
Dubai, United Arab Emirates97 contributions
Oct 2019
We met Padox from Seeds and with the lovely Sylvester and Musa, they guided us through Kibera sharing their experiences. As a Westerner, it was difficult to imagine living here day after day, particularly the lack of sanitation - a basic human right! The end of the walk was the highlight as we visited the school and met the empowered women. Their optimism and resilience was striking and will stay with me forever. I give this experience 5stars, but I do understand why others have not. I think that 'poverty tourism' is an abomination to humanity. We should not make an attraction out of any humans' suffering. For this reason, my advice to anyone thinking of visiting is to ask the question of why you want to go. If it's for the same reason you'd go to a zoo or simply for your social media then seriously don't bother. However, if you wish to engage with the local people, who are among the friendliest people I've ever met, then find a really good guide, who gives back to the community and give it your full attention (hint: avoid most of the larger tour operators online - we got ours through Air BnB). It can be the most worthwhile few hours of your life and has left a lasting impression of re-prioritizing my own life and looking at the bigger picture!
Written 26 October 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Undrar om det är farligt för oss att besöka Kibera med säkerhetsvakt. De varnar ju från Utrikesdepartementet om rån och tom dödlig utgång ;(
Written 1 March 2019
Hello Hellena, thank you very much for your question. This is far from the truth. Come to Kibera and walk deep into Kibera with local guards from the Seed Foundation. Bringing in armed guards intimidates the locals who are always busy with their daily struggles in life. Armed guards will cause tension to the locals. On your visit to Kenya we can organize and take you through what others have experienced walking into the villages with us. Feel free to book with us.
Written 10 March 2019
Hi. I am a nursery teacher who is visiting Kenya next September, I would be really interested in visiting a school and donating some supplies.
How would I be able to go about this?
Thank you for any information.
Written 29 September 2018
I suggest you to go with a guide, the cost is not high, around 2-3 hours it's worth to do so. Then you can bring over some supplies and stationary for the kids. They will surely love it. I went there with the guide called Moses.
Written 23 February 2019
How can I schedule a tour of Kibera? Can I arrange the tour from my hotel?
Written 27 March 2018
Yes this is possible. We can pick you from the hotel to Kibera as long as you are in Nairobi
Written 7 March 2019
Darius N
Mazeikiai, Lithuania
Could you recommend some interesting guide to go to Kibera?
Written 1 December 2017
See Kibera through a Non Profit leader, The tours organized by Seed Foundation will take you through the daily lives and struggles of Kibera residents
Written 7 March 2019
We will be visiting Kenya in September, How do I organise a visit to Kibera?
Written 31 March 2016
Hallo KazPerrth, thank you for your question, i live in Kibera and and can organize your visit . kindly get in touch with me looking forward for your communication, thank you so very much
Written 1 April 2016
Showing results 1-6 of 6
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing