CHANGING MONEY

Many of the restrictions on foreign currency and currency exchange have been lifted in Kenya. It is still recommended that currency be changed only at official places such as hotels and bureaus. We do not recommend changing at banks as this can be a very time consuming process.

We suggest you do not change money on the street and especially at places such as the Namanga border. Several con artists still work in these areas and often cheat on rates or use fake notes in their dealings.

Older US currency (with small photos of presidents) are not accepted by many businesses and should be avoided. Also, the exchange value for smaller notes ($5.00 to $20.00) is often less than the value for $50.00 and $100.00 bills.

Traveller's cheques used to be as good as cash, but now attract a much lower rate. This is because banks now charge a fee to businesses for depositing traveller's cheques and also delay their payment by as much as two weeks.