As the original ‘Safari City’,Nairobi boasts a variety of places of natural beauty worth visiting – particularly if you have visitors from overseas.A small selection of these are:

Nairobi National Park: The world’s first city park is still probably its most famous – primarily thanks to the trademark images of rare black rhinos browsing just out of the shadows of Nairobi’s office blocks. Opened in 1946, this 117 sq km park has a surprising diversity of habitats and wildlife, from lion, cheetah and buffalo on the plains, hippo and crocodile in the river, to leopard and 500 bird species in the forests along its western border.The new Nairobi Safari Walk at the Main Gate offers an informative close encounter with several animals from a boardwalk meandering through three different ecosystems, as well as an orphanage where a variety of animals including cheetah, hyena and lions are being cared for by the Kenya Wildlife Service. Open from 9am to 5.30pm daily;Tel: 501081.

The National Museum: In a country often touted as the birthplace of humanity, the National Museum is a great place to start exploring Kenya’s cultural riches. It has a variety of cultural exhibits, displays of rock art, fossils, fascinating exhibits on the origins of humans, 900 stuffed birds and a fibreglass replica of Kenya’s most famous elephant,Ahmed. It also houses a gallery of wonderful contemporary paintings by local artists.The museum is a leisurely 1km stroll northwest of the city centre just across the Nairobi River.Tel: 3742131-4.

The Giraffe Centre: A raised wooden platform offers a uniquely sticky encounter with the long tongues of a Rothschild’s giraffe as it takes cereal pellets from your hand. Across the road, but still part of the centre, is a small patch of forest through which you can take a 1km forest walk among beautiful birds, butterflies and warthogs. Southwest of central Nairobi, the Giraffe Centre is signposted from Langata South Road. Open 9am to 5.30pm daily; Tel: 891658/890952.

The African Butterfly Research Institute: A fun and informative butterfly education centre for children and adults alike with a beautiful large greenhouse teeming with butterflies and tropical plants, an outdoor restaurant and an excellent gift shop. Open 9am to 5pm daily, at 256 Dagoretti Road, 2.5 km from the Karen Roundabout. Look for the big white butterfly sign! Tel: 884972-3.

The Railway Museum: Located in untended bush at one end of the station (although Kenya Railways claims there are plans to return it to its former glory), the glistening relics of the ‘Lunatic Express’ hark back to the gilded era of steam engines and elegant rail travel. One of the exhibits is the coach from which the hapless engineer, Charles Ryall, was dragged to his death by a lion, while another is the ‘cowcatcher’ on which Theodore Roosevelt rode in 1909 on Kenya’s highest profile safari. Open daily from 8.30am to 4.45pm;Tel: 221211.

The Maasai Market: Run every Tuesday opposite the giant Globe Roundabout, at the Village Market on Fridays, and in the Yaya Centre carpark on Sundays, this market offers some of the most beautiful and reasonably priced crafts in Kenya – particularly the traditional Maasai crafts of woven baskets, beaded jewellery and exquisitely carved gourds. Definitely the best place to shop for souvenirs in Nairobi – although watch out for youngsters ‘shopping’ from your back pockets!

The Karen Blixen Museum: This is the beautiful farmhouse where Karen Blixen, author of Out of Africa, lived between 1917 and 1931, until she left Kenya after a series of personal tragedies. It has been restored with many of her own furnishings, as well as replicas made for the movie. It has a beautiful mature garden and a superb view of the Ngong Hills, which Blixen described so tenderly in her book. Located on Karen Road, between the Karen College and Bogani Road, it is open from 9.30am to 6pm daily.Tel: 882779.

Mamba Village: Ostensibly a crocodile and ostrich farm, this fun family destination also offers camel and horse rides and boat rides on a small lake off Langata Road. It has a restaurant serving various dishes, including fresh talapia and catfish caught on the premises. Open from 11am daily.Tel: 891765.

The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust Orphanage: The ‘Elephant Orphanage’ offers a fascinating close encounter with the world’s largest land mammals – or at least their smaller versions! This is where young orphaned elephants – usually from poached or snared parents – are hand-reared to an age at which they can be released into the wild. You can see the baby elephants at their mud wallow between 11am and noon daily, and afterwards watch them being bottle-fed by their dedicated keepers.A unique way to get close to Africa’s most charismatic creatures! The orphanage is located on the Magadi Road, through the gate to Nairobi Park after passing Banda School. Tel: 891996.

Splash & GP Karting: Few family days out can match the convenience and fun of the combined thrills of Splash! and GP Karting. Located side by side at the end of the Carnivore turn-off on Langata Road, Splash! is one of Nairobi’s most exciting value-for-money entertainment venues, with a variety of swimming pools and waterslides alongside various electronic games and a great Crazy Golf course. Best of all, it’s right next door to Nairobi’s only Gokart track, which boasts some of the best thrills in the city, with state-of-theart Honda-powered carts racing on a 500-metre track overlooking the national park. The track is equally suitable for first-time drivers or talented speed-merchants, and is fast becoming one of Nairobi’s hottest venues for corporate teambuilding.The track’s giant television screen also makes this the perfect venue for watching Formula One and other sporting events. Tel. Splash! on 608525/603777, and GP Karting on 608444/5 or 0733-666333 (closed on Mondays).