Kenya travel guide

If you want a remote safari experience without travelling more than a day (by car) from Nairobi, Meru National Park might just be for you. Huge, hot and dusty, but with more wildlife than Tsavo, Meru offers some good wildlife viewing for those with a bit of patience. The park has cheetahs, leopards, lions, reticulated giraffes, elands and a lot of birds. Staying in one of KWS's self-catering cottages inside the park is particularly rewarding, as giraffes, elephants and lions frequently make their way through. You need to look for the wildlife though - this is not the Mara or Lake Nakuru. But if you want to have a park largely to yourself, Meru is a good choice.

Loita Hills is a little visited part of Maasailand. It is far less touristy than its cousin, Loita Plains, which borders the Masai Mara National Reserve. It is also impossible to access during heavy rains, since the roads, such as they are, virtually disintegrate into black mud. But if you manage to get there it is vastly rewarding. Not only are you likely to be the only tourist in the area, but you will have a chance to experience Maasai life as it once was. Agriculture is a very recent introduction here, and many of the people you will meet still live and dress very traditionally. It is a beautiful region, with forests, hills (bordering on mountains), rivers and villages. Supplies are few and far between, as the nearest town of any size is Narok - which is not near at all, really. Buffaloes, elephants, antelope and zebra are relatively common, and there are areas where it is possible to find black-and-white Colobus monkeys, lions, leopards and wild dogs. Sleeping out under the stars in the 'Forest of the Lost Child' with a group of Maasai elders is a pretty priceless experience.

If you are going to Kenya on safari, a couple of days at Lake Nakuru National Park is very recommendable! The National Park lies in the Great Rift Valley 140 kilometers northwest of Nairobi. The area is extremely rich in various animal species - and the concentration of animals per square kilometer is unusually high. There are giraffes, rhinos, water buffalos, monkeys and zebras in one big hotchpotch, and not least a very good chance of seeing the elusive leopard, (which is one of the Big Five). The large freshwater lake - Lake Nakuru is filled with thousands of pelicans, flamingos and storks, which are amazing to watch - especially on a morning game drive at sunrise.

Besides other game, you can find "The Big Five" (lion, leopard, elephant, rhino and buffalo) in Masai Mara. A part from dry savanna, there are also rivers with crocodiles and hippos. You may walk around here, but you need to be accompanied by an armed guide, if a crocodile or a lion should suddenly attack. So a walk along the rivers is not for the faint-hearted! However, it is amazing when you experience large animals close to you or get to see an animal hunt. The park covers approx. 1500 square km, so sometimes you need to drive around a bit longer to find wildlife. At the entrance to the park you are often "attacked" by eager Masai women, who want to sell homemade jewelry. They are persistent - but not aggressive or nasty. Furthermore, be aware that there is significantly less wildlife to see, when the annual animal migration into Serengeti National Park in Tanzania takes place.

Mount Kenya (5,199 m), second only to Kilimanjaro (5,895 m) in Africa, actually consists of several peaks, the third highest (Point Lenana, 4,985 m) of which can be scaled without ropes. The park is stunning, with a wide variety of habitats. There are a number of approaches, with the slightly longer Chogoria being the most beautiful. Sirimon is a good alternative, and the two can be combined for a 5/6-day walk. The walking begins around 3,000 m, and if you are coming from Nairobi (1,500 m), be sure to take the high altitude into account. The summit is best experienced at sunrise; the peak of Mt Kilimanjaro can be seen on clear mornings. The hike is tough, and many visitors have to turn back before they reach the top. Hiring porters and a guide will increase your chances of success, and decrease the risk of getting lost. Also beware of the weather – the top of Mt Kenya has a permanent glacier, and temperatures on the mountains fall well below freezing on most nights. Too much rain or snow can make the experience unpleasant and dangerous. On a clear day, however, there are few places that can claim to be more beautiful.

Tiwi and Diani Beach are neighbouring coastal destinations just south of Mombasa. They are justifiably popular due to their close proximity to Mombasa, but that is all they have in common. Tiwi (pictured) is the more secluded of the two. It is set up almost exclusively for self-caterers, which makes it less ideal for those without access to a car. The beach here offers a greater degree of privacy, and the number of beach boys selling snorkelling trips or fresh fish is decidedly smaller than at its busier neighbour. Diani Beach boasts a nicer beach and a much wider range of accommodation options. There are restaurants, supermarkets, a surprisingly large local market and a bit of a night scene. Expect more hassle on the beach, however.

Tsavo East National Park is huge, hot and dusty. There are three reasons to go here instead of opting for more popular destinations such as Masai Mara or Amboseli: it is much closer to the coast (and thus easier to combine with a visit to Mombasa), you want to be able to drive around all day and barely see another person, or you like hot, dusty places. The entire park has a red tint to it, coloured as it is by the dust. There is a huge number of elephants here - also coloured red by the dust - but self-drivers need to be aware that they can be considerably more aggressive than their Amboseli or Mara counterparts as a result of heavy poaching during the 1960s and 1970s. While there is a decent population of lions, the sheer size of the park - and the abundance of shrubs and bushes - makes spotting them a challenge. Tsavo East makes for an interesting contrast to many of the lusher parks and reserves in Kenya, but most people would find it difficult to justify spending more than a few days here.

Tsavo West is separated from Tsavo East by the Nairobi-Mombasa highway, but has a very different character to its twin. The landscape is arguably more attractive here, with plenty of woodland, rolling hills and rocky outcrops (although it is no less hot, dry or dusty). There is a spring, where visitors can walk around and look at hippos and crocodiles. There are also lava fields and a rhino sanctuary in the park, which is easily accessed from Mombasa due to its position right along the highway. The southern half of the park, towards Tanzania, is very remote and sees few visitors. Like its eastern counterpart Tsavo West has a large elephant population, and it is here that the famed man-eating lions of Tsavo - immortalised in "The Ghost and the Darkness" - harassed railway workers a century or so ago. While their population has dwindled, there are still plenty of lions and leopards in the park.