Isiolo

Isiolo is the "last stop" before travelling off the paved road to the towns of Marsabit and Moyale in northern Kenya. Isiolo is not a safe place, and the lorries that take you to Moyale leave in the small hours of the night. If you are on your own, hire somebody to protect you from the thugs.

Isiolo is a city in Kenya.

Get in

There are buses & minivans from

• Nanyuki (1½ hours).
• Meru (2 hours).
• Nairobi (5½ hours)
• Minivans to Nanyuki and Isiolo can be boarded in the River Road area of Nairobi. See the Nairobi section on Wikivoyage for more information.

Get around

See

Do

There is very little to do in Isiolo. The social life in the town revolves around drinking and chewing Miraa (qhat). There is a nightclub in town that plays mostly early 1990s techno-pop.

Buy

• Equity Bank. 24-hour ATM. Has a Master Card/Visa Card ATM. (updated Mar 2016)

Eat

• Salama Hotel, at the main road. Mains from Ksh 100 (beans with rice) to Ksh 300 (meat dishes). Chapati Ksh 25, milk tea Ksh 20.

Drink

Sleep

• Jamhuri Guest house, near the main square, singles from Ksh 800, self-contained from Ksh 900.
• Mocharo Lodge, near the main square, from Ksh 900.
• Al Aswad Hotel for food and sleep. Ksh 900.
• Josera Guest House, ☎ [phone]. From Ksh 900. (updated Sep 2016)

Go next

The lorries to Moyale leave usually in the small hours of the night. If you tell the touts the night before, they will wake you as soon as the lorries arrive. A ride on top of a goods lorry to Moyale will cost around Ksh 1500, if you want to ride in the cabin (recommended) then you pay Ksh 2000-3000, although negotiations will start much higher. There are still certain dangers of being robbed on the road to Moyale, so be aware and keep your eyes open. The shifta (tribal robbers) on the other hand rarely attack foreigners, they are more into cattle theft. It makes sense not to flash expensive cameras and electronics while you are on the route.