United States
Kenya Travel and Safari Guide
PLACES TO SEE
Amboseli National Park
At 392 sq km, Amboseli has huge herds of elephants, and to see a herd of them making their way sedately across the grassy plains, with Tanzania's Mt Kilimanjaro in the background, may be a real African cliche but it's an experience that certainly leaves a lasting impression.
Nairobi
Kenya's capital is cosmopolitan, lively, interesting and pleasantly landscaped. Its central business district is handily compact and it's a great place to tune into modern urban African life. Unfortunately, it's also a great place to get mugged. Security, especially at night, is a definite concern.
Lamu
Lamu is a place of fantasy and other-worldliness wrapped in a cloak of medieval romance. With an almost exclusively Muslim population, Kenya's remote and self-contained oldest living town has changed little in appearance or character over many centuries.
Lake Magadi
The most southerly of the Rift Valley lakes in Kenya, Lake Magadi is rarely visited by tourists because of its remoteness, although it actually makes an easy day trip if you have a vehicle. The most mineral-rich of the soda lakes, it is almost entirely covered by a thick encrustation of soda that supports many bird species and gives the landscape a weird lunar appearance.
Hell's Gate National Park
Hell's Gate is an experience indeed. The park is truly unique, as it allows you to walk or cycle unguided across its breadth. Sure you can still drive, but why would you? Senses are heightened tenfold when you're face to face with grazing zebras, towering giraffes, galloping gazelles and massive eland antelopes.
Gede Ruins
The Gede ruins are one of the principal historical monuments on the Kenyan coast. Hidden away in the forest, the ruins are a vast complex of houses, palaces and mosques, made all the more mysterious by the fact that there are no records of Gede's existence in any historical texts.
Kakamega Forest Reserve
This superb small slab of virgin tropical rainforest is home to a huge variety of birds and animals and is becoming particularly popular with independent travellers. The wildlife is a major attraction, especially the birdlife, with more than 330 species recorded. Tribal practices in the forest, such as circumcision rituals, persist.
Masai Mara National Reserve
This world-renowned reserve, which stretches over 1510 sq km (938 sq mi) of open rolling grasslands, is backed by the spectacular Esoit Oloololo (Siria) Escarpment, watered by the Mara River and littered with an astonishing amount of wildlife.
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