Kenya has a lot to offer. Nairobi is the Capital city and Mombasa being the second largest town.
There are very things one can experience in both cities. In Nairobi, there are a lot of entertainment spots. For example, The Carnivore bar and restaurant, (where you can taste game meat plus nightlife)or the Casablanca.. (Really nice)…or you can head off to Westland’s area where there are many clubs and it’s only five minute drive to the city centre.
There are many good hotels too e.g. the holiday inn, Hilton, Panafric, Grand Regency, The intercontinental. You can get pocket friendly hotels; all you have to do is shop around. Alternatively, if you intend to stay longer you can rent a furnished apartment in areas such as Hurlingham or Westland’s. You’ll pay far much less than staying in a hotel.
There is the ‘Masaai market’ every Tuesday on the Globe cinema round-about where you can buy wood carvings, antiques e.t.c I’d advice anyone to please leave their valuables in the hotel, but you can opt for the Saturday market which is much smaller and easily accessible (safer too) at the law courts car park (opposite the International hse, next to Hilton) Please remember to always negotiate the price. All items are usually overpriced even for the locals!
I’d advice anyone to learn a few Swahili words for instance ‘Hapana’ which means No. The locals rarely use the word ‘Jambo’ as it’s always the word nearly all the tourists know. When greeting someone I’d recommend the word ‘Habari’ which you respond by saying ‘Mzuri’ Your stay in Nairobi will not be complete without visiting the Karen Blixen Museum or the Elephant Sanctuary (rescues the orphaned baby elephants)
The advantage of staying in Nairobi is that it’s easily accessible to nearly all the game parks. You can either choose to go to Mount Kenya (central Kenya) Maasai Mara. For a much more adventurous journey, you can go to Amboseli National park. What I like about this park is that more than half the time you can be able to see the Elephants, and lions, from there you can go down to the Tsavo East National park and if you have time then cross to the Tsavo west and head to Malindi and back to Mombasa or simply go to Mombasa from Tsavo.
In Mombasa stayed in Bamburi Beach hotel. I’d definitely recommend this place to anyone. They have very good entertainment in the evenings and very friendly staff. It’s located on the North coast about 15 minutes drive to the city centre. Another hotel is the Travellers Beach hotel, Nyali Beach or the Whitesands hotel. The nightlife is very good too (a lot of entertainment joints along the north coast) you might want to try out Tembo disco or Mamba club.
There are a lot of beach boys who would want to sell you something, and as much as it can be irritating, with time you just get used to it! They are simply trying to make a living!
In Mombasa, you can have a day tour of Kilifi, Malindi or even the South Coast. There is also go to Fort Jesus. You can simply take a Matatu (shared taxis) into town and then walk down to the Fort. You can wander around the old town. If your are staying anywhere before Mtwapa(north coast) you’d pay around Ksh 25- 40 per person in a Matatu. If you are lost and need directions you can go to any of the shops and ask for directions. If you can’t find any tourist centres. The locals are always willing to help anyway.
In my own opinion I’d say that the whole ‘it’s not very safe’ has been blown out of proportion’ Just like any other place in the world, there would always be muggings! It’s always better to be safe than sorry anyway, therefore don’t carry money more than necessary!
Remember, simply be open-minded! Go out and try to learn more about the people and the culture! Things are done differently everywhere in the world! As the saying goes, when you go to Rome, do what the Romans do!
Fun! Fun! Fun! But don't forget your sun lotion!! Unless of course you fancy a Sunburn..:(
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The Masaai market sounds like something I would enjoy. An addition about the type of food and prices in general would enhance the review and if you need to have injections against diseases before you go to this part of the world.. Anyway good first review. Fionaxx
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