Standard Gauge Railway (SGR)

The Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) in Kenya was built to replace the older train that connected Uganda and Kenya. The SGR trains have grown very popular with commuters moving across counties in Kenya. It is very efficient, moving between cities in just a matter of hours, and always in a timely fashion. Additionally, it takes a lot less time than road transport and incorporates cargo shipment as well. Since the launch of SGR, I officially become a loyal customer. The Madaraka Express runs three passenger services between Nairobi and Mombasa which make three daily round trips. The Intercounty train runs in the morning and makes seven stopovers in Athi River, Emali, Kibwezi, Mtito Andei, Voi, Miasenyi and Mariakani. It departs both ways at 8:29 am and takes six hours, to arrive at about 2:00 pm. The Express train is an hour faster because it does not have any stopovers and runs an afternoon and nightly schedule. The afternoon express train departs at 3:00 pm and arrives at 8:00 pm. The night train leaves at 10:00 pm and arrives at 3:35 am. So What is the Difference Between The County and Express Train? The county train has seven stopovers, the express train does not. The county train takes six hours, the express takes five. The county runs one schedule at 8:00 am both ways, the express train runs two between 3:00 pm and 10:00 pm. So you have the choice of a non-express trip with a generous countryside experience or a direct trip with the flexibility of two travel times. If you need to change your travel dates for one reason or another, it is easy through their customer care lines (good luck with the phone numbers though. They rarely go through!) Remember to do this 48 hours before your travel date. I personally love using SGR because it is user-friendly especially if you have small kids… you are guaranteed of express traverse of beautiful countryside scenery, comfortable, clean and passenger safety gets a lot of attention, which is a good thing if infused with some customer care.

The Mombasa terminus is located in Miritini, Mombasa. I’d used a bus to get to Mombasa and it was such a long journey! So, on return journey to Nairobi, I opted for the train with my friend. The train has the express option which will have no stops and the intercounty whereby you will stop at each and every terminus in the different counties for 5 minutes each as people drop off and others get in. We booked the ticket online using mpesa via Safaricom which was so convenient. The economy ticket costs 1000kshs and the VIP is 3000kshs. The difference between the two classes apart from cost is that business class is offered food while in economy you’ll have to purchase it from their menu. I’d advise you to book early if you have a specific date you’d want to leave because the train is really popular so you might end up rescheduling when you find that your desired date fully booked. We also booked a shuttle that took us to the terminus on the departure day. I found this convenient especially for travellers without private means plus it’s also quite affordable compared to the uber costs. It cost us about 500kshs each from Mtwapa. The train leaves exactly on time so make sure you leave early to go to the terminus so that you are not delayed by traffic otherwise you will miss it. At the Mombasa terminus we went to receive our prepaid tickets and were directed to wait in the lobby which was a floor above. I was disappointed that the elevator was only used by people who had paid for business class while the rest had to carry their luggage up the stair case. At least they should have put an escalator for this. The journey lasted about 4.5 hours so it was not that tiring and you get to see the beautiful nature in Kenya as it passes through TSAVO national park. We saw zebras, gazelles and some antelopes! It’s the most convenient way to travel to and from Mombasa. I would recommend it to any traveller plus the hosts and hostesses are really professional and polite.

The SGR Nairobi terminus is located in Syokimau just south of the city centre. The architecture of the place is quite unique having its outlook as two trains with a bridge in between. I have travelled to Mombasa twice by train now and the efficiency in terms of time compared to bus travel has improved tremendously saving one a few hours of journey discomfort. Ticket booking can either be done online or physically at the terminus which are usually quite far from the town centre in both Nairobi and Mombasa. They can however make the booking process easier for people who can’t do online booking by maybe setting up a booking office in the CBD’s of both cities to ease the process. The checking in process is quite smooth but I’d advise one to arrive early to ensure you are done in time since the earlier you arrive the sooner you are done with the process as these guys follow strict time schedules. First class tickets go for Ksh 3000 while those of economic class go for Ksh 1000. Anyone taking first class (usually in a separate waiting lounge) is given first priority when it comes to train entry since they use the lift and enter the train first. The main difference between travelling first class and economy class as I have travelled using both is that in first class the seats can recline backwards allowing one maximum comfort during the journey unlike economy class whereby the seats face each other and one has to seat up straight for a whole 6hrs cramped up in that tiny space. Each pair of seats in first class have a socket and instead of having the attendants wheeling a cart of food like in economy class , passengers in first class have a dining lounge. Passengers in first class also get a free drink which doesn’t happen in economy class. However, the experience in economy class isn’t all that bad . The services are just a bit different and the 6hr long journey a bit more bearable when I travelled first class. So if given a choice and finances adequate, first class is definitely a waaay bettter option in my opinion.

My friends and I took the SGR train from Nairobi to Mombasa so that we could maximize sight seeing opportunities. The SGR offers that feeling of adventure in modern comfort. The security is top notch. In the Nairobi Terminus you arrive at this imposing concrete addendum to its surrounding. Once you have passed through the sniffer dogs, body scanner and bag x-ray machine, you reach the ticket office. Two types of tickets are available, 1st & 2nd. Forget using a credit card, it’s cash only. At weekends book in advance as the 2 daily trains (am & pm) sell out. There is also an option of booking online via Mpesa which is very convenient. After more security checks you reach the waiting area, before heading on to the train. On the way to Mombasa, I saw several animals including zebras, wild beast, ostrich, elephants and various birds. We also saw some intriguing villages and a distance glance at the stunning Mount Kilimanjaro, what more could a passenger ask for? It took a steady 5 hours through some stunning scenery and what amounts to a free safari. I travelled out in 2nd class and back in 1st class the difference is noticeable. In 2nd class, the seats are very hard and upright, which by the end of the 5 hours takes its toll. In 1st class, the seats are more comfortable and recline, plus there are electric sockets to recharge phones. However there is no Wi-Fi on the entire train. A limited selection of food and drink is available, but not chilled. Overall it is worth for the nature, scenery and value and probably on balance worth paying the 3,000 KES ($30) one way for 1st class.

The standard gauge railway is a fairly new train system in Kenya that takes the route Nairobi – Mombasa. Their station in Nairobi is located at Syokimau. They have two trains leaving the towns daily. One in the morning and one in the afternoon. They also have two types of trains; the express one or the inter county one. You get to choose to your liking. My experience with SGR is a little bit of both. For starters, the check in process is hectic with so many checkpoints included. Their seats are super uncomfortable but I suppose you are switching comfort for good time. Once on the train, the toilets are not clean at all. Please help yourself before boarding. The way they number their seats was a problem for us because we specifically asked for seats that were together and ended up seating apart and had to ask the people next to us to switch. It was so inconvenient. However it has its positives, you get to Mombasa early enough in the day to enjoy more sun and the beach. Its quite safe considering the amount of check points put before boarding the train. They also always keep time which is great. This is a quick pick if I had to choose between sitting for hours in a bus. Super affordable too with economy tickets being 1000KES and First Class being 3000KES.