Mombasa
This 16th-century fort and Unesco World Heritage treasure is Mombasa’s most visited site. The metre-thick walls, frescoed interiors, traces of European…
Must-see attractions in Kenya
David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust
Nairobi
Occupying a plot within Nairobi National Park, this nonprofit trust was established in 1977, shortly after the death of David Sheldrick, who served as the…
Nairobi
Welcome to Kenya’s most accessible yet incongruous safari experience. Set on the city’s southern outskirts, Nairobi National Park (at 117 sq km, one of…
Nairobi
Kenya’s wonderful National Museum, housed in an imposing building amid lush, leafy grounds just outside the centre, has a good range of cultural and…
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Diani Beach
This forest, sacred to the Digo people, is the only one of the area's sacred forests that's open to visitors. Visiting this small grove is a nature walk,…
Nairobi
This centre, which protects the highly endangered Rothschild’s giraffe, combines serious conservation with enjoyable activities. You can observe, hand…
Lamu Island
The best museum in town (and the second best in Kenya) is housed in a grand Swahili warehouse on the waterfront. This is as good a gateway as you’ll get…
Kenya
Running through the heart of the park and marking the northernmost point in the park that most visitors are allowed to visit, the Galana River, which…
Tsavo West National Park
Mzima Springs is an oasis of green in the west of the park that produces an incredible 250 million litres of fresh water a day. The springs, whose source…
Tsavo West National Park
At the base of Ngulia Hills, this 90-sq-km area is surrounded by a 1m-high electric fence and provides a measure of security for around 80 of the park's…
Kenya
Amboseli belongs in the elite of Kenya’s national parks, and it’s easy to see why. Its signature attraction is the sight of hundreds of big-tusked…
Kenya
Welcome to the wilderness. Tsavo West is one of Kenya’s larger national parks (9065 sq km), covering a huge variety of landscapes from swamps, natural…
Nairobi
If you loved Out of Africa, you'll love this museum in the farmhouse where author Karen Blixen lived between 1914 and 1931. She left after a series of…
Wasini Island
Off the south coast of Wasini, this gorgeous marine park, which also incorporates the Mpunguti Marine National Reserve and the two tiny Penguti islands,…
Kenya
Kenya’s largest national park, Tsavo East has an undeniable wild and primordial charm and is a terrific wildlife-watching destination. Although one of…
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Malindi
One of the more intriguing sights inland from the north Kenyan coast is Hell’s Kitchen or Nyari (‘the place broken by itself’). About 30km northeast of…
Nairobi
An interesting diversion in Karen, this craft centre was started by an English expat in 1975 as a place where single mothers could learn a marketable…
Lamu Island
Most people are here for the beach – a 12km-long, wide sweep of pristine white sand where you’re guaranteed an isolated spot (at least if you’re…
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Tsavo West National Park
About 4km west of the Chyulu gate of Tsavo West National Park, on the road to Amboseli, are the spectacular Shetani lava flows. ‘Shetani’ means ‘devil’ in…
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Lake Naivasha
Stippled with sisal, yellow fever trees and candelabra euphorbia, this is the former home of the late Joy Adamson of Born Free fame. She bought the house…
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Diani Beach
Notice the monkeys clambering on rope ladders over the road? The 'colobridges' are the work of the Colobus Conservation Centre, which aims to protect the…
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Kenya
Around 10km from Voi Gate, the lovely area of green known as Kanderi Swamp is home to a resident pride of lions, and elephants also congregate near here;…
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Kenya
This extensive collection of 13th- to 17th-century coral palaces, mosques and town houses – some of Kenya's most important Swahili ruins – lies quietly in…
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Tsavo West National Park
Rising more than 600m above the valley floor and to a height of over 1800m above sea level, this jagged ridgeline ranks among the prettiest of all Tsavo…
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Kenya
This 420-sq-km tract of natural forest – the largest indigenous coastal forest remaining in East Africa – is most famous as the home of the golden-rumped…
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Lake Naivasha
This private island sanctuary can be reached by boat, or by driving across the narrow, swampy causeway from Sanctuary Farm. It's one of the few places in…
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Lumo Community Wildlife Sanctuary
Kenya
The innovative community-run Lumo Community Wildlife Sanctuary covers 657 sq km and was formed from three community-owned ranches in 1996, but only opened…
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Kenya
This estate has been cultivating coffee since 1928, and its five-hour tours (which must be pre-booked) are outstanding, taking in an explanation of the…
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Nairobi
The Go-Down Arts Centre, a converted warehouse in Industrial Area, contains 10 separate studios and is a hub for Nairobi's burgeoning arts scene, bringing…
Masai Mara
The world-renowned Masai Mara National Reserve needs little in the way of introduction. Its tawny, wildlife-stuffed savannahs are familiar to anyone who…
Kenya
Herds of wildlife thunder over an open African horizon, elephants emerge from a thicket of plants and the mysterious black rhino munches tranquilly on…
Kenya
Marred by serious poaching in the 1980s and the subsequent murder of George Adamson in 1989, Meru National Park fell off the tourist map and has never…
Lamu Island
This squat castle was built by the Sultan of Paté between 1810 and 1823. From 1910 right up to 1984 it was used as a prison. It now houses the island’s…
Amboseli National Park
This pyramid-shaped hill is one of the only places in the park where you can get out and walk. The summit provides an ideal lookout from which to…
Lamu Island
This preserved 16th-century Swahili house, tucked away to the side of Yumbe Guest House, in a tranquil courtyard with a well, is beautiful. The entry fee…
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Nairobi
The talented resident artists at this cultural centre perform traditional dances and songs taken from the country’s various tribal groups, including…
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Kenya
Africa’s second-highest mountain is also one of its most beautiful. Here, mere minutes from the equator, glaciers carve out the throne of Ngai, the old…
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Kenya
One of Kenya’s least-visited parks, Chyulu Hills National Park is a line of pretty green hills that rise above the arid plains between Amboseli and Tsavo…
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Amboseli National Park
The elephants of Amboseli are among the most studied in the world, thanks largely to the work of Dr Cynthia Moss, whose books include The Amboseli…
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Kenya
The 48-sq-km Mbulia Conservancy occupies part of an important elephant corridor, and is also an extension of the ecosystem inhabited by Tsavo West…
