Community-building in western Kenya - the Nasio Trust story

Travelers looking to explore the continent of Africa now have new options when traveling from the United States.Announced this week, Delta Air Lines is expanding it's partnership with Kenya Airways allowing frequent flyers to earn miles on each other's flights when flying on the same itinerary, and provide a more seamless travel experience to 31 destinations in Africa and 57 in North America. Kenya Airways currently operates a nonstop service from their hub at Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to New York's John F.

As Lonely Planet’s creative director, I have the privilege of traveling for work and getting to some pretty remarkable places.

Few visitors to Kenya can resist the siren call of its top wildlife-watching area, the Maasai Mara. Its sweeping grasslands ­— blonde and close-cropped in the dry season, green and earthy after rain — stretch for hundreds of miles. Famous for big cats and the drama of the Great Migration, this is the kind of place where a budding interest in all things safari can develop into an addiction.

We’ve all waited in a cramped airport for hours because of a lengthy layover. But what if you could ditch the busy terminal to stretch your legs on an African safari? Kenya Airways is making that fantasy a reality by offering passengers a free safari during stopovers in Nairobi.

A travel illness can ruin a dream vacation, which is why you should be sure to get vaccinated or acquire some medication before taking certain far-off journeys. A new report from GetGoing Insurance points out the most common travel illnesses and conditions to take extra precautions for, and some of the most common places real-life travelers get them.

Serengeti, Maasai Mara, Kruger – everyone who’s ever dreamt of going to Africa will know these safari big-hitters. Famous for their wildlife, they’re also famous for hordes of visitors that flock to them in convoys of Land Cruisers. If you want to get away from the masses, these are the best little-visited African national parks, each with extraordinary wildlife but far fewer humans.

Northern Kenya is one of the world’s last great wildernesses. This rugged, dusty land is rich in history, cultural heritage and isolated appeal and offers the most epic of adventures for the wild at heart. Here, fiery desert plains give way to luscious jungles; bubbling oasis streams are set against imposing, glorious mountain ranges and black, volcanic lakeshores are trodden by some of the world’s most remote tribes.

As the Antarctic winter draws in at the end of April, Emperor Penguins begin the long march inland to their breeding grounds. There, they mate, before taking turns to insulate the egg while their partner travels up to 80km to fish. Back in the colony the penguins huddle together to protect the eggs from temperatures below -50 degrees celsius; only a small fraction of chicks survive each year.

Whether it’s a friendly face at check in or a taxi driver who’s full of useful tips, nothing beats getting a warm welcome on your travels – and our interactions with local people have a huge impact on how we view countries as a whole. We asked our Facebook and Twitter followers to share where they’ve found the most hospitable places around the world. Here’s what they said.

When you receive your Valentine’s bouquet this year, will you wonder where it came from? Probably not, but it’s possible your flowers are better travelled than you. Sitting just below the horn of Africa, Kenya is the largest exporter of flowers to the European Union, meaning your pretty petals may have crossed equators and oceans to arrive at your door. Kiki Deere visited an independent flower farm in Kenya to find out what it’s like to be an African rose.

With the recent lifting of the British High Commission’s travel ban on parts of the Kenyan coastline, you should once again think about Kilifi when planning your trip to Kenya. At this lesser-known resort around two hours north of Mombasa, you can still sail on dhows in the pristine Indian Ocean and soak up the golden sun on sugar-fine sands. Here, Harriet Constable tells us more about why you should choose Kilifi for a coastal break in Kenya.

Kenya is the safari capital of East Africa. A place where elephants, buffalo and wildebeest roam across vast plains. Flamingo flocks wade in the shallows, lions doze on sun-baked savannahs and herds of hippos graze by river banks. Yet in the scramble to see the country's wildlife, local culture often gets overlooked. Tribal people have historically been marginalised from the financial benefits of their land's natural riches.