Kenyans are over the moon because of the upcoming 5-day weekend.
Friday the 29th of April was declared a public holiday in honor of the late, former president, Mwai Kibaki who passed away recently. Monday 2nd May is Labor day and Tuesday the 3rd, is Eid.
This amounts to a work-week worth of a holiday and if you were wondering how to spend it, look no further.
1. Staycation
There are lots of options for places to spend a long weekend in Nairobi if you want to get out of the house and try somewhere that’s not familiar to you but still not go so far away. The Treehouse in Karen, for instance, gives you the vibes that you have left the city. It is tranquil, aesthetically pleasing and a great place to shut the word out for a few days. Check trip-advisor, Airbnb or Booking.com for more options and ideas. Take your friends, your special someone or go solo, either way it will be a good time.
2. Stay home
Sometimes it is important to recharge your social batteries. Stay home and do a movie marathon or binge watch a series. Have a dance party, try cooking the recipes that are saved in your Instagram and enjoy eating it with some wine. There is nothing like getting up to your own pleasures on your own at home. Catch up on a great book, have a bubble bath and indulge yourself in all your cravings. You can even have your special someone over for a sleep over and spend some cute, romantic time together. When you stay home there is no limit to the activities you can do.
3. Spend time with your family
This can mean travelling up country, taking your parent(s) or siblings for a meal, cooking for them at home or going on a trip together somewhere. The essence is to use some of this free time to see your family members and spend quality time with them because they would probably appreciate it greatly.
4. Take a road-trip
Road-trips are a great way to get out of the city for a few days with your friends or family and there are lots of locations to choose from that are no more than a four-hour drive away from the capital city. Naivasha is a 2-3-hour drive from Nairobi. There you can find views of Lake Naivasha and visit Hellsgate national park, this is a great option for camping as there are a lot of sites. Maasai Mara is no more than a four-hour drive from Nairobi and you can see beautiful wildlife in Maasai Mara national park. Nanyuki is not too far out and you will get a lovely view of Mount Kenya. The options are limitless; this country is beautiful so go take it all in.
5. Catch up on work
Just because you’re getting a formal break from work does not mean you must stop working. Catch up on everything you had pending or embark on some independent projects, research something you have been wondering about. You can get a lot done and you will feel so accomplished in yourself. You can also work on yourself and go for a retreat or attend a talk.
6. Spend every day differently
Five days is a long time; you can also choose to spend every day differently. On Friday you can stay home and binge watch TV as you recover from whatever you got up to on Thursday night. Spend Saturday doing an afternoon plan with your friends like brunch, Sunday with your family and so on. Be diverse and adventurous but make sure to get some rest.
7. Do the things you have been talking about doing
Do you and your friends/family always talk about doing things but haven’t gotten a chance to? Now is the time to recruit people and check things off your bucket list. The Forest at Kereita for instance, offers an array of activities like zip-lining, archery and paint-balling. Get to doing all the things you have been talking about. The kind of memories you will make are priceless and you will always be grateful for doing those things with those you are close to.
We hope that we have given you some inspiration on how to spend the long weekend that is fast approaching and that you have fun but also get the rest that you need.
