Bomas of Kenya: A repository of the country’s cultural heritage

What you need to know:

  • For many, the first stop is the main auditorium, where  one can watch dance and skits from diverse ethnic groups of Kenya.

  • On weekdays, the show is on from 2.30pm to 4pm, while on weekends, it’s from 3.30pm to 5.15pm. An entrance fee is charged.

  • A visit to Bomas of Kenya is incomplete without a walk through the traditional homesteads.

  • For matters culinary, Utamaduni Restaurant offers both Kenyan and international cuisine.

About 10 kilometres from the Nairobi central business district, at the junction of Lang’ata and Magadi roads, is one of Kenya’s veritable repository of culture, the Bomas of Kenya.

Its mandate, so well articulated in its brochure, is to “preserve Kenya’s rich and diverse cultures”.

Lush and serene greenery welcomes you as you make your way from the main entrance to the auditorium. All around, wild hogs from the adjacent Nairobi game reserve graze unhurriedly on the grass. 

CEREMONIAL REGALIA

For many, the first stop is the main auditorium, where  one can watch dance and skits from diverse ethnic groups of Kenya.

On weekdays, the show is on from 2.30pm to 4pm, while on weekends, it’s from 3.30pm to 5.15pm. An entrance fee is charged.

Away from the auditorium, one can visit the well-stocked gallery where an eclectic mix of traditional artifacts is on display.

You get to see kitchenware, furniture, ornaments, musical instruments, ceremonial regalia, and tools of war from different ethnic groups.

For matters culinary, Utamaduni Restaurant offers both Kenyan and international cuisine.

Though the menu does not list cuisine from every ethnic group of Kenya, with prior arrangement, any Kenyan delicacy that is not on the menu can be prepared.

A visit to Bomas of Kenya is incomplete without a walk through the traditional homesteads.

Tucked away in a wooded area with imposing eucalyptus trees, there are 22 homesteads, each representing a distinct ethnic group; from the populous and well known Luhya and Kalenjin, to the less populous and less known Sengwer, Sakuye, and Ilchamus.

One is able to see how houses were constructed and distributed in different homesteads, and the position, occupants, and significance of every house in a homestead.  

And then there is the splendid botanical garden in which is to be found a pleasant mix of indigenous trees such as the cape fig, wild date palm, and exotic trees such as the casuarina, Indian rubber plant, jacaranda, to name just a few.

Picnics are allowed in the botanical garden at a fee.

For most Nairobians, access to Bomas of Kenya has been made easier through the dualling of Lang’ata Road.