A majestic encounter at the Giraffe Centre in Nairobi.

Nairobi is a great place to open up and take an interest in local culture and life. In fact, the city, which is constantly on the move, is developing more and more to attract tourists. You'll find plenty of activities and cultural visits to do to find out more about the country's history and culture. The capital is also home to impressive green spaces such as the Karura Forest and Nairobi National Park.

Nairobi National Park is right next to the city, where you can see lions against a backdrop of skyscrapers. If you visit Nairobi National Park, don't forget to visit the Giraffe Centre, which is right next to the park. Combine your visit to the national park with an encounter with these majestic giants.

Taking the time to discover the Giraffe Center is first and foremost helping to preserve this species, but it also means learning more about these savannah beauties. The Giraffe Center was founded in 1979 as a breeding programme for Rothschild's giraffe by Jock Leslie-Melville, the Kenyan grandson of a former Scottish earl, and his wife.

The couple learned that the Rothschild's giraffe was seriously threatened with extinction in western Kenya and decided to remedy the decline of this subspecies. In fact, at the end of the 1970s, it was estimated that only 130 individuals remained in the wild.

The Rothschild giraffe is one of the most endangered species of giraffe in the world. There are fewer than 1,600 in the world, 600 in Kenya, including 300 at the Giraffe Centre in Nairobi. These grand ladies are recognisable by their coats, which are a soft mixture of blurred orange-brown patches on a creamy background. Larger than other giraffe species, they have no spots below the knees, so their legs are immaculate. They got their name from the botanist Lord Walter Rothschild, a British zoologist who discovered the species in East Africa in the early 1900s. They are also called "Baringo giraffes" because of their "massive" presence on the Lake Baringo peninsula in Kenya. Note that each species of giraffe has a different mottled coat depending on the region it comes from.

The Leslie-Melville couple began the breeding programme with two baby giraffes, which they captured and eventually raised by hand at their home in Lang'ata (where the current site is located). As the years went by, they managed to successfully reintroduce breeding pairs in various Kenyan national parks. These include Lake Nakuru and Ruma National Park. Thanks to efforts similar to those of the Melvilles, there are now 1,500 individuals of this critically endangered species around the world.

In 1983, the couple finished work on creating an education centre. The centre is open to the general public to raise awareness of the need to save this endangered subspecies of giraffe. The centre is now a not-for-profit organisation whose aim is to breed Rothschild giraffes. The centre also targets young Kenyans with a view to conservation education. Many schools go on field trips to learn more about this species and their country's biodiversity.

The aim is to instil in the next generation the respect for their environment and the harmony we need to co-exist respectfully with wildlife. The project is aimed primarily at the local population, offering them very low entrance fees. It also offers art workshops for local schoolchildren. The works created by the children are then exhibited in the boutique and sold to tourists in the centre's souvenir shop. An ideal place to bring back an authentic souvenir that will help to preserve the Rothschild giraffes.

Coupling your visit to the centre with a safari in Nairobi National Park is an excellent idea. You can explore a 1km5 trail through an animal sanctuary where warthogs, antelopes, monkeys and different species of birds mingle. At the end of your visit, enjoy a cup of tea or a refreshing drink on the terrace overlooking the giraffe area.