Naivasha lies in a rift valley basin 92.8 km (57.7 mi) by road north west of Nairobi.

Later in the 16th century, the Bantu people including various tribes started their migration into the basin from the Central African forests.

[citation needed] The naturalist Joan Root (1936–2006), spent the last decade of her life trying to save the lake and its wildlife.

The town is home to the Isahakia community, descendants of Isaaq soldiers and traders that settled in Kenya in the 1900s.

[8] The Inland Container Depot was officially opened in 2022 in Naivasha,[9] to handle transport of cargo to the Great Lakes Region, including Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania and Democratic Republic of Congo.