Kenya is synonymous with safari, and for good reason. This East African country is home to the famed Maasai Mara, the Great Migration, the last two remaining Northern White Rhinos in the world, the Big 5, and a host of exotic animals. But Kenya is more than just safari. It is bush and beach, it is modern city, and ancient villages where life has been unchanged for centuries. As you can see, there are some extraordinary things to see in Kenya.
Kenya has 500 kilometres of pristine, white sand, palm-fringed coastline touching the warm Indian Ocean. It has Mount Kenya, the second highest mountain in Africa. It has the Great Rift Valley, the longest rift on the face of the earth, intersecting 8 countries and so wide and long it can be seen from space. Kenya has smouldering volcanoes and sulphurous hot springs. It has dense tropical forest and lakes full of hippos.
5 Essential Things to See In Kenya
So where should you go if you’re only on holiday in Kenya for a week or two? Photographic safaris are the lifeblood of Kenya but there’s a lot of other exciting things to do. This is our selection of the best sights, 5 must-see places to visit in Kenya which have been suggested by a friendly expat mum who lives there with her family.
5 Places to See in Kenya
Authored by Nadine Murphy
Watamu
A few years ago, Watamu was a sleepy fishing village on the Kenyan coast. Today Watamu retains its village charm but is populated with excellent restaurants, bars, a couple of posh hotels and some amazing coastal villas. Watamu is miles of white sand coves, dotted with coral islands. At low tide the Indian Ocean retreats to the islands and you can walk through miles of sandbanks discovering starfish, hermit crabs and occasionally spotting reef shark in the shallows.
One kilometre offshore is Watamu Marine Park, a hotspot for marine life and one of the best places to dive and snorkel globally. Whales, shark, turtles and a myriad of sea life make Watamu their home. Take a trip on a boat to spot dolphin, dive beneath the surface to explore a submarine world of coloured corals and pouting parrotfish. Chase the waves with kitesurfing and windsurfing, or fish for tuna and marlin bigger than a man.
Onshore the Italian influence is felt in the cuisine served to you by seafront restaurants – crispy pizza, grilled octopus and fresh snapper. In the evening watch the sun go down on Mida Creek. Take a dhow up the creek, sip the local Dawa cocktail, and leap from your boat into tepid waters as the sun sparkles through the waving palms.
Getting to Watamu
Watamu lies 70km North of Kenya’s second city, Mombasa. International flights frequently fly into Mombasa.
To Watamu from Mombasa you can drive (2.5 hours) or take another short flight (20 mins).
From the capital city of Nairobi, up to 10 flights a day fly to nearby Malindi – flights take 1 hour and cost approx. 50 (USD). A taxi from Malindi to Watamu takes 25 minutes.
Maasai Mara
No visit to Kenya is complete without seeing the Maasai Mara. It is one of the best known safari destinations in the world for a number of reasons. For the Maasai tribe shepherds are known for their blood red Shuka’s and sparkling jewellery. For its epic sunsets that seem to embody the spirit of Kenya. For its migration of over 1 million wildebeest and zebra who surge over river, field and forest on their annual travels from the Serengeti in Tanzania to the Maasai Mara in Kenya.
The Mara is at its best during this migration where it is not uncommon to see 100’s of wildebeest attempt to cross the Mara, Talek or Sand rivers, many of them falling prey to lion, crocodile or angry hippos. The Maasai Mara is a world class destination any time of the year, not just during migration. With such plentiful food supplies the predators are innumerable – there are few places on earth where lion, leopard and cheetah gather in such huge numbers. Hyena fight over small game or snag scraps after the cats have finished, and vulture haunt the carcasses which are dotted all over the plains. It is often a gory, grisly sight but an awe inspiring and unforgettable experience.
Getting to the Maasai Mara
The Maasai Mara is a 5 hour drive from Nairobi, Kenya’s capital city. It’s easy to hire a car or a local tour guide and make the half day journey down to the Maasai Mara.
Alternatively you can book a flight from Nairobi’s Wilson airport to one of 6 small landing strips in the Maasai Mara. Flights take approximately 45 minutes.
Mount Kenya
Kenya is home to Africa’s second highest mountain (and commands the best views in Africa of Kilimanjaro – its highest). Mount Kenya towers above miles of indigenous rainforest, a wild place where elephants uproot trees and leopard still lurk in the mossy canopy. While the forest is darkly full of wildlife and ancient trees, the peaks of Mount Kenya are permanently covered with snow. Book an alpine cottage on the mountain and explore the forest and animals in the region, or get busy with one of the many activities that the mountain has to offer.
Mount Kenya has three peaks Batian, Nelion and Lenana. It is entirely possible to hike to the lowest, Batian, with nothing more than a good attitude and a decent level of fitness. Excursions to the other peaks are for serious rock climbers. Many tours are available for climbing and hiking Mount Kenya.
For a gentler activity you can fish in the rivers and lakes that dot the mountain side. Mount Kenya has some of the best trout fishing in Kenya. Nearby you can white water raft or kayak in the rapids from the river Sagana.
Ol Pejeta, one of the foremost safari destinations in Kenya, sits at the foot of Mount Kenya. Miles of savannah, forests, rivers and alpine meadows that host all the Big 5. You won’t want to miss a snapshot of an elephant against the backdrop of Mount Kenya. Ol Pejeta is home to the last two Northern White Rhinos in Kenya and is the only place to see Chimpanzees.
Getting to Mount Kenya
Mount Kenya is 4 hours north of Nairobi, a fairly easy drive when you get out of the city.
There is a small airport in its largest westwards town, Nanyuki. Flights go daily from Nairobi’s Wilson airport to Nanyuki and take approximately 45 minutes.
Lake Naivasha
Lake Naivasha is a vast freshwater lake that sits at the bottom of the Great Rift Valley. Surrounded by towering volcanoes, Lake Naivasha is most notable for the huge hippo population that call the lake home. Take a boat tour across the lake to see hippo pods that reside by the water’s edge. Lake Naivasha fills the core of a dormant volcano and hippos don’t like deep water, so the lake is safe to partake some activities in the centre. You may see small sailboats racing around the lake avoiding the hippos, or even children taking a dip in what seems to be the most precarious of lakes.
All along the edges of the lake are resorts and luxury villas, the wildlife co-exists with these private and public residences. At night the hippos come on land and munch on wealthy home owners lawns, giraffes, zebra and buffalos stroll through the forests of acacia trees, and honey badgers and hyena come out at night to claim the territory as their own. No visit to Naivasha is complete without lunch and a posh gin and tonic at Camp Carnelly’s.
Getting to Naivasha
Naivasha is just 90 minutes from Nairobi by car. The picturesque journey takes you down the side of the Rift Valley commanding amazing views from one side of the rift over to Tanzania.
The journey is fairly hair raising, down the side of a cliff edge, so if you aren’t comfortable driving in Kenya then I suggest you book on to a tour which will take you to the lake without having to make the treacherous journey yourself.
Nairobi
Nairobi is Kenya’s capital city, a great gritty hotchpotch of a place that grew from a rural outpost 100 years ago the third biggest economy in Africa today. It’s not a beautiful city, there is no ancient architecture and buildings have been thrown up without forethought or care for aesthetics, but there are many hidden gems that make it worth a visit. Nairobi has a safari destination within its city bounds. Visit Nairobi National Park, 112 sq. km of wild land filled with truly wild safari animals – all the big 5 except elephant that had to be relocated due to human / wildlife conflict. It’s a wonderous thing to witness how Kenyans co-exist next to nature. Lions walking next to schools, buffalo along the motorway.
Visit the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust for a glimpse of elephants. The trust rescues orphaned elephants from across the country and raises them before they are released back into the wild. Take a trip to the Giraffe Centre, a facility that works to breed and rescue the highly endangered Rothschild Giraffe. The giraffe are used to visitors so you are able to hand feed them as well as learning about the work the trust does to protect them.
Head to Spinners Web for some of the best craft shopping in town – crafts from all over Africa are collected in a gorgeous greenhouse location. Shop for beads, rugs, clothes, baskets, carvings, and much more. Finally visit the infamous Talisman restaurant. Much loved by locals, Talisman serves some of the best food and cocktails in town in a building filled with carved wood and stained glass features
Getting to Nairobi
Nairobi is Kenya’s capital city and most international flights will land at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
There are local flights to Nairobi from all over the country.
If you are at the coast you could consider travelling to Nairobi on the SGR high speed train.
Nadine is a Brit who lives in Kenya with her 3 kids, 10 animals and long suffering husband. She writes the Kenyan travel blog The Expat Mummy.
Follow Nadine and her family as they scale volcanoes, sleep next to lions, swim with hippos and drink more than a few cocktails, while navigating a wild and foreign land.
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