If it's romance you're after, you could do worse than choose Kenya as the location for a marriage proposal. Britain's Prince William did it when he decided to propose to Kate Middleton while on safari there late in 2010.

He's a regular visitor to the country, where he loves to be virtually anonymous. For privacy and escapism, Kenya is hard to beat.

Prince William says the locals don't know him and he can relax and unwind in the beautiful environment, where he spent a few months of his gap year working and learning Swahili on a friend's estate.

A media report quotes a rustic cabin on Lake Rutundu as the site for Prince William's carefully planned proposal, after the couple spent the day fishing for rainbow trout.

Kenya is a country where the unexpected is expected – the landscape incorporates beaches, desert, mountains and forests with many natural wonders to boot. The Southern Sun Mayfair Nairobi is a good central Nairobi hotel to make your home base for the duration of your stay if you plan to do some serious exploring and go on an adventurous safari.

Kenya straddles the equator on the east coast of Africa so the reputed desert heat is not surprising. Chillier climes are the result of the topographical layout of the country, which incorporates vast inland water bodies like Lakes Victoria and Turkana, the Rift Valley and its volcanoes, glaciated mountains including the famous Mount Kenya and, on the coast, exquisite beaches and offshore coral reefs.

Nairobi hotels are 145km south of the equator, but the city's climate is moderate. A fun way to experience the complexities of the equator is ask your Nairobi hotel concierge where to see the demonstrations of how water flows in different directions!

One of the capital city's main attractions is the Nairobi National Park. It is located 7km from Nairobi hotels; so many pictures of the resident game have high-rise buildings in the background. It's the only game reserve of this kind to be situated so close to a city. You can see lion, giraffe and rhino, among others, and a proliferation of birdlife when you go on the Nairobi Safari Walk. This takes place in the reserve, and provides an unusual on-foot experience for visitors.
Interestingly, Nairobi hotels are near the largest ice rink in Africa. It can accommodate 200 people over 15 000 square feet.