Nairobi, Kenya

Nairobi is the beating heart of East Africa — Kenya's capital, the region's commercial and diplomatic hub, and for most visitors the gateway to the country's legendary safaris, but also a rewarding stop in its own right. Its singular boast is Nairobi National Park, the only national park within a capital city: a vast tract of open savannah on the city's southern edge where lions, rhinos, giraffes, zebras and buffalo roam against a backdrop of skyscrapers — a genuine game drive minutes from downtown. Right beside it, two of the city's most beloved attractions draw animal lovers: the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust's elephant orphanage, where rescued orphaned elephant calves are bottle-fed and rehabilitated (open to visitors for a magical hour each midday), and the Giraffe Centre, where you can hand-feed and eyeball endangered Rothschild's giraffes from a raised platform. In the leafy suburb of Karen — named for the Danish author Karen Blixen, whose Out of Africa was set on her nearby coffee farm — the Karen Blixen Museum preserves her colonial-era farmhouse and gardens at the foot of the Ngong Hills. The city centre mixes the modern skyline and the saucer-topped Kenyatta International Convention Centre with the excellent Nairobi National Museum, the Snake Park, and the colourful, bargain-hard Maasai Markets that rotate through the city selling beadwork, carvings and textiles. Nairobi's food, music and nightlife scenes are among Africa's liveliest, from nyama choma (roast meat) joints to a fast-rising café and creative culture. Beyond the city, it's the launchpad for Kenya — flights and road trips to the Maasai Mara, Amboseli beneath Kilimanjaro, the Rift Valley lakes, Mount Kenya and the coast. Sitting at altitude on the equator, Nairobi enjoys a mild, spring-like climate year-round; the dry seasons (roughly January–March and July–October) are best for combining the city with a safari.