Kenya is a special place. It’s the birthplace of the safari, not to mention one of the most beautiful countries in Africa. It’s also a destination for the highly active, whether you’re watching wildlife roam across
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or diving and snorkeling Indian Ocean reefs. Brilliant national parks and enticing beaches, fascinating cities and quiet fishing villages that time forgot: Kenya has all of this and more.36 Best Things To Do in Kenya
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1. Follow the Great Migration in the Masai Mara NR
Watch the greatest wildlife show on Earth
Imagine seeing so many animals that the Earth seems alive. That’s what happens when around 2.5 million , zebra and cross into Kenya’s Masai Mara National Reserve and feed on the vast .Read more
In most years, the herds begin to cross the Mara River from Serengeti National Park (in Tanzania) and into the Mara in July or August. Then they slowly move south again around October.It's an extraordinary spectacle. The river crossings, where lie in wait, are the most famous moments in lore. But there are so many highlights, from the sheer scale of the swarming masses to the individual encounters between predator and prey, like a straggling young zebra and a who has waited all year for this moment. This is nature’s raw beauty at its most powerful and is not to be missed. -
2. Track Down the Big Five on Safari in Kenya
Encounter Africa’s most sought-after animals
The are top of many safari wish lists. But they’re just the start when it comes to going on safari in Kenya. When you’re out exploring wild Africa, there is no feeling to compareRead more
with the thrill of knowing that a lion or an elephant could appear at any moment. Perhaps your safari highlight will be seeing a cheetah on the hunt. Or it could be a soulful encounter with a leopard or giraffe. Whatever it is, going on safari is a simply wonderful thing to do.Opportunities to see the Big Five are numerous in Kenya, from Ol Pejeta Conservancy to the Masai Mara National Reserve. It’s rhino that often proves hard to find. But you can always mix and match, combining the relatively easy rhino sightings of Lake Nakuru or Nairobi National Parks with other places where the remaining four are easy to see. -
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3. Enjoy Elephants and Mt Kilimanjaro in Amboseli NP
Africa’s largest mammal meets the continent’s highest mountain
Africa’s tallest summit, Mt Kilimanjaro, is actually in Tanzania, but the best views are from Kenya’s Amboseli National Park. Amboseli belongs among the elite of East African safari parks. Although it’s relatively compact compared to otherRead more
Kenyan reserves, everything here seems cast on a grander scale. There’s nowhere else in Africa, for example, where you can get this close to big-tusked elephants, and the classic Amboseli image is of an elephant family framed by the snowcapped peaks of Kilimanjaro.From a wildlife perspective, there are also lions and cheetahs, zebra and giraffe, and so much more to see across the verdant green swamps and plains of the park. Despite its size, Amboseli shelters more bird species (around 500) than many European countries. And just beyond park boundaries lies the modern Maasai heartland, a world of community-run conservancies where you can immerse yourself in traditional Maasai culture. -
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4. Explore Nairobi, East Africa’s Cultural Capital
Kenya’s capital has attitude and appeal in equal measure
Nairobi can be one cool city. Yes, its reputation precedes it. And yes, its traffic can be awful. But this is a city with its very own national park where you can see wild lions andRead more
rhinos against a backdrop of skyscrapers, fill your day with museums and art galleries, eat in some of Africa’s best restaurants in the evening, then dance the night away.Nairobi is Kenya in microcosm. It's also the sort of city that very easily gets under your skin. In addition to its more obvious attractions, you can explore Africa’s second-largest shanty town, Kibera, in the company of a local, get a kiss from a giraffe and even adopt an elephant. More than anything else, however, Nairobi is its people and their irresistible love for their city, along with its music, culinary diversity and sheer energy. -
5. Relax on Kenya’s Indian Ocean Beaches
Laze beneath the palms along the lovely coastline
If you could design a perfect coastline with all the necessary elements for the ideal beach holiday, it would look something like Kenya’s Indian Ocean coast. Here is a world of palm trees and long, white-sandRead more
beaches, of well-equipped beach resorts and quiet fishing villages, of pristine underwater reefs and traditional wooden , silhouetted against the rising or setting sun.For those who like their holidays to carry a hint of intrigue, adventure or adrenaline, there are plenty of opportunities to get active and head out on (or under) the water and to explore. The Kenyan coast also has that rare combination of shapely Indian Ocean coastline and a fascinating historical story laden with spices carried from far-distant shores. But for many, the lure of the languid tropical sun and bath-warm waters is more than sufficient reason to come and do very little at all. -
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6. Get To Know Kenya’s Second City, Mombasa
Immerse yourself in culture, history and beach life
Steamy Mombasa feels like no other city in Africa. From the 16th-century Unesco World Heritage–listed Fort Jesus keeping watch over the city to the tight tangle of lanes in the Old Town with their call-to-prayer soundtrack,Read more
Mombasa heaves with energy and an unmistakable hint of the exotic. Many travelers use Mombasa as a gateway to the parks of the interior or the beaches up and down the Kenyan coast. And its location certainly lends itself to such a purpose.But Mombasa is brimful of personality in its own right. Here you’ll encounter East Africa’s pan-Swahili culture at its strongest, whether you’re exploring markets or queueing for spicy Swahili curries in a corner canteen frequented by rich businesspeople and rickshaw drivers alike. Take a tour, wander to get lost, and then head for the sea to catch your breath and catch a wave. Either way, you’ll very quickly fall under Mombasa’s spell. -
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7. Search for Tree-climbing Lions in Lake Nakuru NP
Look up at lions and watch out for rhinos
There aren’t many places in Africa where lions climb trees, but it’s a special experience when they do and you happen upon them. Lake Nakuru National Park may be small, but it does pack in someRead more
amazing wildlife, from and to flamingos and leopards. And yes. Lions. Up. Trees. Whether it’s a big male looking unsteady on that narrowing branch, or a playful cub with no fear of heights, seeing an arboreal lion is quite the prize.Lake Nakuru is one of Kenya’s most accessible parks – almost an extension of Nakuru city. Depending on your route, you could visit on your way between Nairobi and the Masai Mara National Reserve. But with such distinctive wildlife, Lake Nakuru is also worth crossing the country for. The unforgettable sight of lions up in the trees is one of the great safari experiences of a lifetime. -
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8. Spend Time on the Soulful Lamu Archipelago
Soak up the sea breeze in laid-back Lamu
Lamu is a magical place. Much like Zanzibar in Tanzania, but without the crowds, this former spice-trading port has a beguiling mix of rich history, stunning beauty and so many landmarks, alongside relaxed island living. NothingRead more
happens here in a hurry. You can drift on a trade wind in a traditional wooden and snorkel or dive with just locals and Indian Ocean marine life for company. Or spend time with a local family learning about the traditions and quiet pleasures of Lamu life.A visit to Lamu is about more than just a beach. It has that unmistakable tableau of local life, timeless and unhurried. For that reason, it draws sophisticates and the just plain curious in equal numbers. -
9. Observe Tsavo’s Maneless Lions and Red Elephants
This is where wildlife roams the red dust
Tsavo East and Tsavo West National Parks: put them together and you have Kenya’s largest park complex. Tsavo is big, so big that it combines a palpable sense of wilderness with an accessibility that draws safari-goersRead more
from the coast and elsewhere in large numbers. Most of them come looking for some of Africa’s wildest lions whose fearsome reputation is diminished somewhat by the scraggy manes of the males. Or they come to see the ochre-hued elephants after their mud baths, caked in Tsavo’s deep-red dust.You could also visit a rhino sanctuary, watch for leopards sleeping off the night’s excesses up in the trees, or explore the backcountry where very few travelers ever reach. But it’s the unusual experience of seeing an apex predator with a difference, or Africa’s largest mammal like you’ve never seen it before, that you’ll really remember. -
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10. Admire Perfect Sunrises at Diani Beach
Experience Kenya’s biggest and best Indian Ocean beach resort
Diani Beach doesn’t try to be anything it’s not. Unlike Lamu with its celebrated history, or the first-rate diving and snorkeling of Kenya’s far southern coast, Diani is, first and foremost, a classic and often spectacularRead more
beach experience. It’s all based around a long and perfect arc of white sand, framed by palm trees and bathed in the warm, tropical light.Yes, you can go kitesurfing and much more. And yes, there are coral mosques and fine restaurants and a buzz that can be difficult to resist in high season. But Diani Beach is above all else a place where the sand and water and gentle sea breeze are all you really need.