Product Description
A guide to the “new Kenya” focusing on creating an individual, independent experience for all travelers, including those looking for luxury and an absence of crowds.
From the Back Cover
Kenya’s wildlife remains at the heart of its attractions, yet there is so much more to discover. Scale the slopes of Mount Kenya to find tropical ice on the Equator or explore the coral gardens of the Swahili coast. Seek out the origins of man in Kenya’s rich cultural heritage. Or simply revel in the country’s natural wilderness, from northern deserts to the steam jets of the Rift Valley lakes and the wildebeest migration – the greatest wildlife show on earth.
As the country moves towards a greater sense of individuality for travelers, Claire Foottit’s newly researched guide is the ideal planner and travel companion.
This guide contains information on: natural history, conservation and culture in depth; where to see wildlife, from national parks to lesser-known regions; A to Z of activities, special interests and events to help create a personal safari; detailed coverage of accommodation, including ecolodges; adventure options, from gold-panning to sky diving.
As the country moves towards a greater sense of individuality for travelers, Claire Foottit’s newly researched guide is the ideal planner and travel companion.
This guide contains information on: natural history, conservation and culture in depth; where to see wildlife, from national parks to lesser-known regions; A to Z of activities, special interests and events to help create a personal safari; detailed coverage of accommodation, including ecolodges; adventure options, from gold-panning to sky diving.
Claire Foottit’s Bradt travel guide to Kenya pales in comparison with its competition. The book runs 160 pages before reaching Part Two, which is the actual guide and comprises less than 59% of the total. This contrasts with 67.9% of “The Rough Guide to Kenya” and 71% of “Footprint Kenya” being devoted to where to go, sleep, and eat. In greater Nairobi, the Rough Guide reviews 60 accommodations and Footprint 37 against 27 by the Bradt guide. Foottit’s reviews do include Nairobi accommodations, such as Aero Club of East Africa and Macushla House, overlooked by the others. For the small town of Kitale, the Bradt guide reviews a single accommodation versus four by Footprint and 11 by the Rough Guide. Published in 2004 and reprinted February 2006, the Bradt guide compares unfavorably with the 1st Footprint edition, published November 2005, and the 8th Rough Guide edition, published September 2006, in timeliness by including the defunct Mara River Camp among accommodations in the greater Maasai Mara area. Foottit’s description of Amboseli Serena Lodge’s restaurant as serving “buffet-style meals with an excellent choice of food” contradicts my experience of September 2006 when we had to select a main course from a limited menu and wait for sometimes slow service to present an entree that may have been passed over or sampled sparingly on a buffet. Despite numerous shortcomings, the Bradt guide rises above its competitors by consistently including rates in dollars for accommodations and restaurants, thus facilitating comparisons.