Eldoret is Kenya's fifth-largest city, an agricultural and trading hub in the Rift Valley highlands at an elevation of around 2,100 metres. It is the centre of Kalenjin country and the heartland of Kenyan distance running — many of the world's greatest marathon runners have trained here, drawn by the altitude, the terrain, and a running culture that goes back generations. The Kipchoge Keino Stadium bears the name of the man who started it all.
The city itself is functional rather than picturesque. Most travellers pass through on the way to Uganda or the northern Rift Valley rather than stopping to linger. But it has good transport connections — an international airport (recently upgraded), rail links, and road connections to Nairobi, Kisumu, and the Uganda border at Malaba. Those with a serious interest in distance running make the trip to Iten, 35 kilometres east on the escarpment above the Kerio Valley.
The surrounding Uasin Gishu plateau is prosperous wheat and maize farmland, dotted with pre-colonial Sirikwa hole settlements for those interested in the region's deeper history. Eldoret has a range of accommodation from basic guesthouses to mid-range hotels, as well as banks, supermarkets, and good restaurants serving both Kenyan and Indian food.