The town of Nakuru itself offers little, although it has some fairly pleasant places to stop on a trip for something to eat. Its main attractions are those which lie around it, particularly Nakuru National Park and the Menengai Crater. Lake Nakuru, and the national park which bears its name, are well known for one particular sight - flamingos. Although not nearly as common as they once were when there were an estimated two million at the lake, both lesser and greater flamingos can still be seen. They started moving to other lakes in the 1970s for a variety of reasons, and return in large numbers mainly during very dry seasons.
White pelicans seem to have taken over and can be seen in large flocks.
Lake Nakuru is fed by three rivers, but there is no outlet so the mineral content of the lake has drastically increased over time. Due to this, the plant life in the lake consists mainly of algae, which serves as a food source for many of the birds. Also present in the lake is a species of tilapia , which was introduced to control the resident mosquito population but also serves as a food source to the many fish-eating birds of the lake. Hippos are present in the lake, although not in great numbers. Rothschild's giraffe have been introduced into the area, as have some of the big cats.