NAIROBI CITY

Nairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya founded by the colonial authorities in the British East Africa as a rail depot on Mombasa- Uganda railway line termed as the “Lunatic Express” and the town massively grew replacing Machakos as the capital of Kenya in 1907. The name Nairobi was derived from a maasai phrase” Enkare Nyrobi” which means "cool water" referring to Nairobi River flowing through it which had cool waters. Nairobi City occupies 696 square kilometres (270 sq mi) harboring an estimated 100 international companies and organizations including United Nations Environment Programme and United Nations Office at Nairobi.

Getting to Nairobi
There have been no direct flights from North America to Nairobi. But in case you were flying from the United States, you had to connect your flight to Nairobi through hubs in Europe like Amsterdam, London and Zurich. Luckily, from sometime in 2009, Delta Airlines scheduled to offer a one-stop flight between Atlanta and Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport four times a week, with a stopover in Dakar-Senegal. For international flights to or from Nairobi through Europe include Kenya Airways, British Airways, KLM, Emirates Airline and Qatar Airways.

Getting around Nairobi
Exploring the city is pocket friendly with the existence of Nairobi public transportation like buses tailored for country and long distance travel, minibuses, and the Rift Valley Railways train service with the new completed standard gauge railway in operation from Nairobi to Mombasa and fro, its luxurious benefits are unquestionable. Matatus (Mini-buses) are the most common mode of transport used by Kenyans coming to, moving around and out of Nairobi.

Domestic Flights
The elites and those able to afford for domestic flights traveling to Nairobi from other Kenyan cities or towns and fro can be done by air and safe landing will be at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport or the smaller Wilson Airport in Nairobi.
You can book your scheduled domestic flight to Nairobi with services provided by a number of local airlines like Kenya Airways, Precision Air, African Safari Airway, Air Kenya Express, Fly540, African Express Airways, Mombasa Air Safaris, SafariLink and JetLink Express among others.

What to do and see in Nairobi/Attractions
Culture and history of Nairobi and Kenya at large is kept in the museums and some of the wildlife peacefully lives in Nairobi national park, the Giraffe Centre and David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust which are among the tourist attractions within Nairobi.

Activities like Nairobi Safari walk, Nairobi city tour and game drive in Nairobi National Park cement your love for Nairobi. Theses attractions include:

Nairobi National Park
Nairobi National Park is Kenya’s first park existing just 7 kilometers away from skyscrapers in Nairobi’s City centre with a rhino sanctuary protecting at least 50 endangered rhinoceros and other wildlife animals in the park including the lions, buffaloes, elephants, cheetahs, warthogs and gazelles in addition to an estimated 400 bird species in the wetlands. Activities like Nairobi Safari walk gives visitors a splendid chance to sight wildlife on foot and hippo pools, trails which will deliver you to the school of hippos.

David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust
Located just at the entrance of Nairobi National Park, this wildlife center was founded by Daphne Sheldrick in memory of her late husband David Sheldrick in 1977 and offers protection to the orphaned elephant and rhino calves under the rescue and rehabilitation program which later see them released into the national parks when grown up and healthy.

Giraffe Center
The Giraffe Centre is located at the edge of Nairobi National Park and visitors can directly face the endangered Rothschild's giraffes in a Giraffe Manor with a sole mission to provide conservation education for children.
This is one of the most popular things to do from Nairobi, especially with children and after spending time with these giraffes, visitors can experience a self-guided forest walk in the nearby nature reserve.

Nairobi National Museum
Nairobi National museum displays different cultural and natural historic exhibits with an estimated 900 stuffed birds and mammals, fossils from Lake Turkana, ethnic displays from various Kenyan tribes, and local art. In the Geology Gallery, visitors can study beautiful collection of rocks and minerals then learn about tectonic plates and the volcano life cycle.
The Hominid Vault contains a collection of prehistoric bones and fossils, including the preserved fossil of an elephant, and visitors can opt to buy tickets, which include entry to the nearby Snake Park with living specimens of common reptiles.

Bomas of Kenya
This place is a tourist village in Langata, Nairobi established in 1971 by the Kenyan government and is considered to be a living museum by Kenyans and its visitors both locally and internationally because of the beautifully impressive African cultural dances and songs performed in the large theatre giving guests delightful experiences especially about lifestyle, art, music, crafts, and culture of each Kenyan tribe forming a recreational and traditional village with homesteads or bomas each representing the culture of main ethnic groups.

Kazuri Beads Factory
This beads factory is a fair trade success story in Nairobi since 1975, the year of its establishment by Kazuri who was the brainchild of Lady Susan Wood, an English descendant. In the Swahili language, “kazuri” means “small and beautiful” and Kazuri Beads Factory started with two native women as employees and later expanded to be a source of income to an estimated total of 300 women manufacturing about 5 million beads by hands yearly, exporting them to over 20 countries.

RENT A CAR IN NAIROBI - Planning to visit Nairobi or already in town and require a rental car for self drive or driver guided tour, we at Nairobi Car Rental Services will be more than happy to offer you our services. You can get in touch with us by sending an email to info@nairobicarrentalservices.com or call us on +254-713510387 to speak with the reservations team.

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