Originally founded by Afrikaners, Eldoret is the largest town in the area and has all the modern conveniences. It is a good place to gather everything needed for explorations in the Western Highlands.
Close to Ruma National Park, this is a small busy town about 40km (25 miles) south of Kendu Bay.
The end of the tarmac road and a very good place to get petrol and see to any banking, as there is nothing until Maralal or Marsabit, this frontier town is the gateway to the north-east, land of mountains, desert scrub and Lake Turkana. Fresh fruit and vegetables can be purchased at the market and other food supplies can be found in the town.
- Kakamega
Located about 50km (16 miles) from Kisumu, this town is close to the Kakamega Forest, its a good place to purchase groceries and see to any banking or postal requirements.
- Kericho
A delightful place to stop in the heart of Kenyas tea plantations, Kericho is characterised by endless green hills, with neat rows of tea bushes. The plants absolutely love the climate here, thriving in the rains which fall every afternoon. Named after a Maasai Chief, Kericho boasts a war memorial, Holy Trinity Church and a village green. The Tea Hotel, built in the 1950s has a charming colonial atmosphere, it is here that a tour of the tea plantations can be organised and also trout fishing.
- Kilifi
This pretty little town is situated along the banks of the Kilifi Creek where an artistic and yachting community have settled in, the Mnarani Ruins are located nearby.
- Kisumu
One of the main towns on the shores of the Lake in the western highlands and one of the largest in Kenya, Kisumu, is on the railway line from Mombasa. In the past it once held an important position connecting the coast to Uganda and Western Tanganyika.
Kitale is a good base for visitors going to Saiwa Swamp National Park, Mount Elgon and Turkana. This Kenyan town has fertile soil and has long been an agricultural centre it was once a slave-trading centre back in the 19th century. There are good facilities such banks, a post office, a museum and a bustling market. A road now connects Kitale and the Central Highlands to Lodwar, which was once really isolated on the Northern Frontier District.
Although this town is the centre for visitors on the eastern shore, the dirt roads in this area are only passable by 4x4. Those venturing this way need to be completely self sufficient as petrol and mechanical help is seldom available. There is an airstrip, post office, a lodge and a couple of campsites. Taking pictures of the local Turkana people is allowed but permission is needed first and a fee will usually be requested. Enquiries on bandit activity should be made before heading this way from Maralal.
A small town off the Nairobi-Mombasa Road, Machakos is pleasant and may be the best place to purchase locally made baskets; there is a good lodge for accommodation just outside town.
- Malindi
Malindi it seems has always been popular; it was an important Swahili centre by the 14th century and soon after the Portuguese came with the arrival of Vasco Da Gama in 1499. Many visitors now come to enjoy the long stretches of beach and the holiday atmosphere that still has an African feel about it.
Malindi has good amenities including restaurants, hotels, a post office and cafes. The Malindi Marine National Park has excellent diving and snorkelling, also surfing and game fishing. Due to problems with muggings at knife point, visitors are advised to avoid the beach at night and take a taxi for transport rather than walking in any unlit areas.
At the centre of the Maralal Game Sanctuary, the hillside town of Maralal is in a rather sacred spot for the local Samburu people. Its a lively place to stop and there are plenty of people coming and going, mostly on safaris up north to Turkana, and especially for camel safaris in the vicinity.
Also worth doing is a side-trip to see the longest sheer drop in the Rift Valley (2 000 metres) on the Losiolo Escarpment (also known as Worlds End), this can be found by travelling for 20km (12 miles) north from the Maralal Lodge and then turning left and onward through Poror for another 6km (4 miles).
Really the last stop on the edge of the huge desert in north Kenya, it is well served buy shops, restaurants, lodges, a bank and a post office, there is also an airport amongst other services. This Kenyan town and its colourful mix of people is actually located on an extinct volcano that stands tall over the Marsabit National Park and Reserve and surrounding desert.
The summit is almost a kilometre high and the views are spectacular looking out over craters and other extinct volcanoes, thickly forested hills and then desert. The road between Marsabit and Isiolo can only be navigated by 4x4 visitors should travel in convoy and be completely self-sufficient and carry everything they need, an enquiry at the local police station should be made as to possible bandit activity in the area prior to setting off on this road.
This busy centre in the Central Province is the gateway to Meru National Park. It is located on the upper reaches of the mountain and it's often cloudy, but on a clear day there are great views of the richly cultivated fields, forest and sweeping plains.
- Mombasa
A busy trading centre and port in Kenya, Mombasa has a long and sometimes gruesome history over the centuries and has been host to a Greek Explorer, Arabs, Chinese, Muslims and the Portuguese even a tribe of cannibals! The fort and old part of town are good places to discover some of Mombasas history.
Mombasa is now Kenyas 2nd largest city and the largest port in East Africa. The climate tends to be hot and humid but it is a great place to start before venturing off to the fabulous beaches and reefs on this coastline. There are shops, travel agencies, banks, hotels and restaurants in Mombasa.
- Nairobi
With origins as a shanty town on the railway line between Mombasa and Lake Victoria, Nairobi is now the capital city of Kenya and the only major city between Johannesburg and Cairo. It has a bustling city centre, very typically African with a mix of skyscrapers, shanties, markets and leafy suburbs.
Its a bit shabby but nonetheless a vibrant and cosmopolitan place where it will take up to half an hour to walk through the business district. For visitors passing through, Nairobi has all the facilities available in which to catch up on things, there are bookshops to browse in and places to process holiday pictures, do banking and send off postal items.
In between beach holidays and safaris, visitors can tune in to international news and also find interesting places to eat. A famous eatery is The Carnivore, with many unusual items on the menu but those who don't eat meat can also find vegetarian options, another popular restaurant is in the Stanley Hotel, called the Thorn Tree Cafe.
Visitors will need to keep their wits about them in the city, the taxibus drivers can be alarming, curio sellers and others intent on doing business with tourists will need cheerful but firm handling, visitors should always be conscious of petty theft, swindling and even robbery which does occur especially at night.
- Naivasha
This town once had a decadent past with extravagant settlers living it up, but it is now really just a good spot to stock up on supplies before heading off to Lake Naivasha, Mount Longonot and Nakuru as well as Hells Gate National Park.
- Nakuru
Located close to Lake Nakuru National Park, Menengai Crater and Hyrax Hill Prehistoric Site, Nakuru is the capital of the Rift Valley province and an agricultural centre, there is a very good vegetable market here.
- Namanga
Namanga is about 60km (37 miles) from Amboseli on a very bad road; however it is the main route visitors take on the way to Amboseli. Namanga is on the border between Kenya and Tanzania, it is a good place to get petrol and purchase interesting Maasai hand craft. Overlooking the town is the Black Mountain or Oi-Doinyo Orok which is sacred to the Maasai.
The biggest attraction here is the Mount Kenya Safari Club, located just outside the town it has had an illustrious membership in the past with the likes of Winston Churchill it is still one of the top hotels in the world.
Curio shops have sprung up on the edge of the town where the Equator Line is running. But Nanyuki itself has a frontier feel about it, having been founded by settlers in 1907. There is a British army base and also a Kenyan Air Force base; visitors will find banks, good supplies and a post office too.
- Naro Moru
This village is a good starting point for visitors wanting to climb Mount Kenya on the Naro Moru trail and the river lodge is nearby. There are a few basic shops and hotels in Naro Moru and also a post office.
- Narok
This is the last place to find petrol and refresh for 100km (62 miles), for visitors going to the Masai Mara Reserve. Because it is the main access point to this famous reserve, it is busy with visitors stopping to stretch their legs, as a result there are a number of shops and hawkers selling Masai hand craft, the tall Masai people can be seen in their traditional dress which is bright red in colour. Narok also has banks and a post office.
- Nyahururu
Nyahururu is on the way to the Rift Valley and Samburu and is also Kenyas highest town. Even though it is close to the equator the climate is cool and conifer trees grow in forests. This town is also known as T Falls, referring to Thompsons Falls, just outside town, named after the first European to actually walk from Mombasa to Lake Victoria back in the 1880s.
- Nyeri
Nyeri is the gateway to the Aberdares with Mount Kenya in the distance. Once a centre for settler farmers, visitors can get a glimpse of those colonial times at the White Rhino Hotel and Aberdare Country Club.
It is now an administrative centre for the Central Province of Kenya. Nyeri has various banks, book shops and a colourful market. Visitors can get their vehicles repaired here and visit a hardware store too.
To get to Wasini Island visitors need to be in Shimoni which is 76km (47 miles) south of Likoma. Also of interest in the town are the Shimoni Caves, once a holding area for slaves ready to be shipped, visitors can follow the path from the jetty that goes into the jungle.
There is a ladder down into the caves from an opening in the ground. These caves are thought to extend for some 20km (12 miles). Also in Shimoni is a old British colonial outpost upon which a market has been built.
The site of Swahili myths and mysteries going back to the days of slavery, Kilifi is reputed to be the oldest slave port on the coast of Kenya; none of the local villagers will go to the beach at night except to fish.
- Thika
Off the beaten track, Thika was once mentioned in a famous book however it is actually the heart of pineapple country with many flourishing plantations.
- Voi
A good place to stop on the way to Taita Hills and the southern end of Tsavo West, visitors can find refreshments and petrol on the Mombasa-Nairobi highway.
This is a charming Kenyan town which has retained its character despite the rise of up-market hotels and other tourist ventures, it is 24km (15 miles) south of Malindi. Turtle Bay beach is one of the best in Kenya, it has lovely white sand and a great marine reserve for snorkelling and water based activities. Visitors can also discover the Gedi Ruins, Mida Creek and Sokoke Forest. |
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