Embu is not a conventional tourist town, but its position on the southeastern slopes of Mount Kenya gives it an unusual combination of highland scenery, working market life, and access to some of the most dramatic landscapes in central Kenya. The Tana River has its headwaters here, the forests above town are genuine wilderness, and the Embu people maintain cultural traditions — music, dance, and craft — that are distinct from the better-known Kikuyu customs further west.