[1][2] The town is situated about 150 km north of Kenya's capital Nairobi, in the country's densely populated and fertile Central Highlands.

[4] The town has a relatively low cost of living in comparison to Nairobi and other major urban centres in Kenya.

Towards the end of 1902, as the British were establishing their colonial presence, Richard Meinertzhagen marched a strong military column meeting spirited resistance from the native Kikuyu warriors led by Wangombe Wa Ihura.

[7] After Meinertzhagen's victory, a decision was reached to site a British post close to a little hill on the slopes of Mt.

[7] Shortly after the establishment of the post, a trickle of European settlers and missionaries and Indian merchants began to migrate into Nyeri and the surrounding areas.

The city soon burgeoned into a trading centre for white settler farmers who produced cattle, wheat and coffee.

Muslims, traditional African believers and Hindus, in declining order, make up a small minority.

[9][10] About 5 km from the city centre is the Mathari Mission settlement, a complex of several Catholic buildings and institutions, established by Italian missionaries at the beginning of the 20th century.

The largest formal employer in Nyeri, being until recently the administrative headquarters of the former Central Province, is the Government of Kenya.

Food crop and livestock farming are also done by smallholders, with marketing and distribution of surplus produce (after farmers' consumption) being done privately.

[citation needed] Nyeri is served by a reasonably well-maintained tarmac road network connecting it to Nairobi, Nakuru, Nanyuki, Othaya and other surrounding towns.

The newly built Kenol-Marua 4 lane super highway ends few kilometers from Nyeri town,[20] Most transportation of cargo to and from Nyeri is by road, although the city has a largely underutilised railway station at Kiganjo (about six kilometres out of city towards Nanyuki) on the branchline of the railway from Nairobi to Nanyuki.

The main mode of public passenger transport to, from, and within Nyeri is by way of fourteen-seater minibuses (matatu), though un-metered salon car taxis are also widely used.

Among those buried at Mathari is Prince Amedeo, Duke of Aosta, Viceroy of Italian East Africa, whose tomb is within the Chapel, in front of the altar.

[22] The chapel is not used for regular worship, but a special Mass is celebrated every 2 November in memory of the fallen soldiers and those who died in captivity.

Each memorial is in the form of a small oblong plaque indicating the name of the soldier, the battalion he served in, and the place where he died.

Nyeri is also the burial place of hunter and conservationist Jim Corbett, the author of Man-Eaters of Kumaon (1944), who also spent his final years in Paxtu, B-P's cottage.

The mountain slopes are covered in forest, bamboo, scrub and moorland giving way on high central peaks to rock, ice and snow.

[23] Activities taking place in the park include game drives, nature walks, mountain climbing, wildlife viewing, camping and cave exploration.

Its unusual vegetation, rugged terrain, deep ravines cutting through its forested eastern and western slopes, clear water streams and waterfalls combine to create an area of great scenic beauty.

Other game include a large population of black rhino, leopard servile, endemic bird species, reptiles and insects.

Within the park, lodges near watering holes offer close proximity night game viewing.

The fate of the Provincial Administration is now the subject of intense national debate as the country transits to the new Constitution's new governance structure.