Central Province of Kenya
Nairobi
State
Country
Kenya
Continent
Africa
Size
696 KM2
Population
44,000,000
Spending Budget
$112 - $1,571
Famous For
- Nairobi is an energetic, modern city that serves as a fascinating introduction to both wildlife and nightlife.
Best Time to Visit
- January
- February
- July
- August
- September
- October
History
Nairobi was founded in the late 1890s as a British railroad camp on the Mombasa to Uganda railway. When the railway construction workers reached this area in 1899, they set up a basic camp and supply depot called “Mile 327”. From 1899 to 1905 it served as a British provincial capital. In 1905 the city became the capital of the British East Africa Protectorate (called Kenya Colony from 1920 to 1963), and in 1963 it became the capital of independent Kenya. Nairobi is located in an area that was once frequented by the pastoral Masai. From about 1900 onward, when a small Indian bazaar was established at Nairobi, the city was also a trading centre. As a governmental centre, Nairobi subsequently attracted a stream of migrants from rural Kenya that made it one of the largest cities in tropical Africa. It was declared a municipality in 1919 and was granted city status in 1954. When Kenya gained independence in 1963, Nairobi remained the capital. The new country’s constitution expanded the city’s municipal area; the enlarged municipality is an independent unit administered by the Nairobi City Council.
Present Day
Although Nairobi is situated a few degrees south of the equator, its high altitude – between 1660m and 1800m above sea level—means that the city’s climate is mild year-round. Visitors are spared the extreme, blistering temperatures found in other regions of Africa or even other areas within Kenya. Nairobi is the principal industrial centre of the country. The railways are the largest single industrial employer. Light-manufacturing industries produce beverages, cigarettes, and processed food. Tourism is also important. Nairobi also plays an important role in the community of eastern African states; it is the headquarters of important regional railways, harbours, and airways corporations. London has red buses, New York has it’s taxi cabs, the Philippines has the Jeepneys, New Delhi auto-rickshaws, Nairobi has its matatus. Matatu is slang for minibuses that are used as public transportation in Kenya. In Nairobi, public transportation is the norm for the majority of the population. Matatus play a critical role in providing city dwellers with transport. A unique feature of matatus is the outlandish art on their body. Nairobi matatus are a sight to behold, especially for first time visitors. Graffiti from pop culture, music icons and contemporary topics adorn the sides of the matatus in a show of artistic prowess. The more colorful the van, the more famous it is and the more likely it is to attract passengers. It is implausible to comprehend Nairobi without its matatus. Matatus have evolved to become more than just a means of transport. They are a cultural phenomenon.
Future
The Nairobi 2030 plan intends to achieve its vision through a range of integrated initiatives that address the challenges that currently hinder urban development and social progress. Central to the city's plan on improving its international economic competitiveness is the development of regional and global service hubs for business, trade and finance. In addition to attractive foreign investment through a thriving business economy, the plan also supports the continued development of Nairobi's tourism sector through investments in hotel facilities, transportation access (including a massive upgrade of the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport) and crime prevention. Finally, the plan also intends to spur the development of industrial parks and facilities within the city as well. The city also plans on investing heavily in building modern municipal infrastructure to improve access to electric, water delivery and sanitation utilities across the entire metropolitan region. In addition to providing basic access to these utilities, the plan also stresses the importance of improving access to information and communication technology networks that support business, government, education and literacy. The plan also outlines the development of a transport master plan to effectively improve transportation infrastructure and land use planning to improve existing transportation options around the city. Focusing on improvement of the existing road network, the plan also details an urban mass transit strategy that centers around investments in high occupancy buses and modernization of the existing commuter rail network. By improving the city's accessibility to mass transportation, the city can effectively reduce road congestion and increase commuter access to the city center, while improving public health at the same time.
Nairobi National Park
Kenya's first national park, Nairobi National Park lies only seven kilometers from the skyscrapers of Nairobi's city center. A haven for wildlife, the park is also a rhino sanctuary, which protects more than 50 of these critically endangered creatures. In addition to the rhinos, you can see lions, gazelles, buffaloes, warthogs, cheetahs, zebras, giraffes, and ostriches, and more than 400 species of birds have been recorded in the wetlands. Nairobi National Park is also a famous ivory burning site. In 1989, President Moi ignited 12 tons of elephant tusks and rhino horns here, boosting the country's conservation image on the world stage. The Nairobi Safari Walk is a popular attraction, offering animal lovers the chance to spot wildlife on foot, and walking trails weave around the area known as Hippo Pools.
David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust
At the main gates of Nairobi National Park, this orphan-elephant rescue and rehabilitation program is a must-see for animal lovers. Daphne Sheldrick founded the project in 1977 in memory of her late husband David, a former warden at Tsavo East National Park. The center cares for young abandoned elephants and rhinos and works to release the animals back into the wild. You can watch these lovable creatures up close as they frolic in the mud and drink from giant baby bottles. Best of all, your entrance fee helps support the project's conservation efforts.
Giraffe Centre
At the Giraffe Centre, on the edge of Nairobi National Park, visitors can come face to face with endangered Rothschild's giraffes. This non-profit center lies on the grounds of the plush guesthouse, Giraffe Manor, and its main mission is to provide conservation education for children. The visitor center displays information about these graceful creatures, and a raised platform allows you to feed them at eye level with specially prepared pellets. This is one of the most unusual things to do around Nairobi, especially with children - photo ops with wet, gray giraffe tongues slurping little faces are priceless. After communing with these long-lashed beauties, you can enjoy a 1.5-kilometer self-guided forest walk in the adjacent nature reserve.
Karura Forest Reserve
The beautiful Karura Forest is a cool, shady oasis just a few kilometers from the city center. This lush green space is actually one of the largest urban forests in the world, and you'll discover all kinds of things to see and do here. Hike to a multi-tiered 15-meter waterfall. Enjoy a picnic in the gardens. Watch monkeys clamber through the trees, or just sit quietly by Lily Lake and soak up the tranquility. Bike riding is also popular along the well-marked red-clay trails. Wildlife also thrives here. Besides monkeys, you might also see duiker (small antelope), butterflies, and many species of birds.
Karen Blixen Museum
One of Nairobi's top tourist attractions, the Karen Blixen Museum, at the foot of the Ngong Hills, is the former home of the famous namesake Out of Africa author. Karen Blixen, also known by her pen name, Isak Dinesen, lived in the house from 1917 to 1931, where she ran a coffee plantation. Today, you can tour the well-preserved colonial farmhouse, a kitchen in a separate building, a coffee-drying plant in the woodland, and an agricultural college on the grounds. Furniture that belonged to Karen Blixen and her husband is on display, as well as photographs and books owned by Karen and her lover, Denys Finch Hatton.
Nairobi National Museum
The National Museum in Nairobi is an educational way to spend a few hours on a city stopover. The museum displays diverse cultural and natural history exhibits including more than 900 stuffed birds and mammals, fossils from Lake Turkana, ethnic displays from various Kenyan tribal groups, and exhibits of local art. In the Geology Gallery, you can explore an impressive collection of rocks and minerals and learn about tectonic plates and the life cycle of a volcano. The Hominid Vault contains a collection of prehistoric bones and fossils, including the preserved fossil of an elephant.
Bomas of Kenya
About 10 kilometers from Nairobi, Bomas of Kenya is a living museum celebrating the colorful tribes of Kenya. This is a great place to learn about the lifestyle, art, music, crafts, and culture of each tribe. The complex encompasses a recreated traditional village with homesteads or bomas, each one reflecting the culture of a major ethnic group. Every afternoon, a team performs traditional dances and songs in the large theater. Audience participation makes the performances even more enjoyable.
Ngong Hills
"Ngong" means "knuckles" in Maasai, a fitting name since these beautiful pointed green hills resemble the back of a fist facing the sky. They are a popular place to visit close to Nairobi and provide a welcome respite from the city heat. The Ngong Hills are the peaks of a ridge overlooking the Great Rift Valley, and many white settlers established their farms here in the early colonial days. Half-timbered houses and flowering gardens remain, but seem more suited to southern England than Africa. Several walking trails traverse the hills, offering beautiful views of the valleys below. Wildlife is also visible in the area. Buffalo, gazelles, giraffes, bushbuck, the occasional klipspringer, and troupes of baboons are often glimpsed grazing along the roadside.
Railway Museum
The Railway Museum in Nairobi celebrates the rich history of the railroad in Kenya and its impact on the nation's development. Among the museum's fascinating collections are train and ship models, photographs from the original construction of the Uganda Railway, railway magazines, maps and drawings, and a silver service set used on overnight trains to Mombasa. A collection of steam locomotives and rolling stock are also on display, including a model of the MV Liemba, built by the Germans and still in use along Lake Tanganyika. A favorite exhibit is the carriage used during the hunt for the Maneater of Kima in 1900. Captain Charles Ryall, a colonial officer, positioned himself in the carriage to shoot a man-eating lion; unfortunately he fell asleep and was dragged out the window by the lion.
Lake Naivasha
About 1.5hrs outside of central Nairobi, this area is a haven away from the chaos of the city where many 3rd and 4th generation British colonialists continue to reside. Crescent Island is a particularly nice place to visit, even if you have already done a safari. Unique because it gives you the opportunity to walk around the grounds literally alongside giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, impalas, etc.