Emirates to launch third daily service to Nairobi, helping unlock inbound tourism growth
Emirates-Representative Image
The new flight complements Emirates existing schedule into Nairobi, adding an early morning arrival and departure to enhance two-way connectivity with key European destinations, including the UK, France, Norway and Italy, as well as the US.
Building on Emirates 30th anniversary of operations to Kenya, announced a third daily flight to Nairobi, commencing March 1st, 2026. With the additional frequency, the Kenyan capital will be served with 21 Emirates flights per week, connecting travellers to Dubai, and onwards to the airline’s vast global network of close to 150 destinations.
By creating easier access from key markets, the additional frequency will further support Kenya’s tourism goals, which aim to attract 5 million international tourists by 2030. EK717 will depart Dubai at 00:55 hrs, arriving at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport at 05:05 hrs; the return flight, EK718, will depart Nairobi at 06:50 hrs and arrive in Dubai at 12:50 hrs.
In recent months, Emirates has been operating its double daily flights at a healthy seat factor, underlining the growing demand for air travel. The third daily service, operated on a three-class Boeing 777, will boost Emirates capacity and provide more access to the airline’s world-class product and services, including its First Class cabins, which Emirates exclusively operates in and out of the city.
The new flight schedule has been optimised for connectivity with key flights operated by Kenya Airways, enabling seamless onward travel to top regional destinations such as Rwanda, Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Mozambique and Burundi.
In October, Emirates marked 30 years of service to Nairobi, following the inaugural flight in 1995. Since then, the airline has carried over 6.6 million passengers to and from the country, forging key inbound traffic from South Korea, China, Thailand and Australia as well as ultra-long-haul passengers travelling from the US. The outbound traffic is similar, with destinations such as Shanghai and Beijing, China; Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney, Australia; and Seattle, New York and Washington proving popular with travellers from Kenya.
