Not to miss

National Museum

Kenya's National Museum is an imposing building amid lush leafy grounds just outside the city centre. It has a good range of cultural, geological and natural-history exhibits. Volunteer guides offer tours in English, Dutch and French. The 1st floor contains excellent contemporary East African art; as all the items are for sale the displays change regularly.

While the museum renovations were due to be completed in 2007, temporary exhibitions are on show at other locations in Nairobi and the recreated Kikuyu homestead and a snake park in the museum's grounds are still open.

Karen Blixen's House and Museum

This charming farmhouse is where Karen Blixen, author of the popular novel Out of Africa, lived from 1914 to 1931. She left after a series of personal tragedies, but the lovely colonial house has been preserved as a museum. It was presented to the Kenyan government at independence by the Danish government along with the adjacent agricultural college.

It's set in lovely gardens and it's quite an interesting place to wander around, plus there's accommodation and a restaurant on site.

Langata Giraffe Centre

The Langata Giraffe Centre, run by the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife, is a sanctuary for the rare Rothschilds giraffe. Here you can observe, hand-feed or even kiss the giraffes from a raised circular wooden structure, and it is quite an experience. It's a good place to get the close-up photographs that eluded you on safari.