One Day in Nairobi

Hello everyone, I searched quite a ways back, but surprisingly never came across this topic. Apologies if it is a duplicate.

I'm going to Nairobi for work, and will have one free day once I arrive. I'm not sure what to do with that day, and am open to suggestions.

My first thought was Lake Nakuru, to see the mass of flamingos, but I understand they have departed. The benefit of seeing flamingos is that I haven't seen masses of them before--in a similar way I've only seen rhinos from a distance, so a spot where I could see them fairly close would be great as well. I've done a safari in Tanzania, so I don't feel a 100% need to do one again, but that seems to be such an attraction in Nairobi. I'm not certain how else to spend the day.

I'm open to any ideas.

Nakuru is good for rhinos too. But it's a long drive up and back, particularly when you take traffic into account; just getting into or out of Nairobi can take a long time, depending on the day and time.

Do you have a full day--i.e., with a free night on either side? If so, I suppose you could do it as an overnight without too much strain.

As pointed out Nakuru is too far for a decent one-day experience. If it is really flamingoes you are after I would suggest Crater Lake - near lake Naivasha. The problem with these birds is that sighting them at any specific location is often down to chance (From a tourist perspective, that is; I don't fully know their migratory habits)..

If I were in your shoes I'd do a number of Nairobi visits instead.

The Animal Orphanage, Giraffe centre, Nairobi National Park, David Sheldrick etc etc are all within a 10 - 15 mile radius of the city and quite entertaining IMHO.

Mr Genius

I'm afraid I don't have a full night. It has to be a straight day trip. Maybe this is crazy but I don't think of a long drive as a downside--seeing more of the countryside beyond the path from my hotel to the office (which will be all the other days) is appealing to me.

But then it looks like Nairobi National Park also has rhinos and is close by? That would be a lot easier (and cheaper).

In my opinion, Nakuru is a bit far for a day trip and I don't know if the wildlife you see in Nakuru is that much better than what you can see in Nairobi National Park. If you really want a traditional safari, Nairobi National Park is surprisingly good for being adjacent to a capital city. The last time I went, I saw a lot of the herbivores, a couple lions, and a cerval cat. We didn't see the rhinos last time, but they are commonly spotted. You can do Nairobi National Park in the early morning and then make your way to the David Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage and the Giraffe Center.

Otherwise, I highly recommend Lake Naivasha, which is a couple hours drive from Nairobi and you also drive through some of my favorite scenery in Kenya where you have a stunning view of the Rift Valley. In Naivasha, you can take a boat ride to see hippos and there are a lot of antelope, zebra, giraffes, and buffalo that frequent many of the lodges in the area. My recommendation would be to book lunch at Sanctuary Farm, which has fantastic food straight from the farm and has lots of animals walking around the property (where you are also welcome to walk around). Also, Hells Gate is a nice little park near Naivasha with the same animals mentioned above. You can rent a bike at the entrance and bike through the park to the gorge (8 km each direction) and can take a short hike through the gorge with a guide. If you don't want to bike, you can also take a car through the park, but I highly recommend going by foot or bike for at least part of the way as it's a completely different experience than when in your car.

I think Naivasha would be my recommendation as it will get you out of Nairobi and see more of the country, but you won't see any big cats or predators and it will be a lot of driving. With Nairobi traffic, you should definitely aim to have a very early morning start.

Kriedel is right ... Naivasha is a wonderful one-day destination. If you're able to hire a driver, you'll have a wonderful drive north and west of the city to the edge of the Rift Valley (beautiful scenery at the overlook). We were able to visit Naivasha in the morning, then drive south to Hells Gate National Park, where we hired a topless Land-Rover to tour the plentiful wildlife in that park. We had a wonderful lunch at a resort hotel in the vicinity (can't remember its name, but it was beautiful), and then headed back into Nairobi, where we arrived at the hotel around 9 PM. So ... a thirteen or fourteen hour day, well-guided and well-cared for, two national parks, a luxury lunch, some great scenery, and a few cool souvenirs from the huge emporium at the Rift Valley overlook. What a great day!

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