Day 1: Arrive in Kigali International Airport Rwanda
After that tiresome flight from your point of origin, you finally land at Kigali International Airport in the capital Kigali, the cleanest city in the whole of Africa where one of our highly experienced company representative will already be waiting to pick you up, giving you a warm and courteous welcome and a brief introduction about this prestigious country of a thousand hills and later on travel to the lodge for relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Kigali Serena Hotel
Midrange: Hotel chez Lando
Budget: Discover Rwanda Youth Hostel
Day 2: Transfer to Nyungwe National Park. Visit the National Institute of Rwandan Museums in Huye (Butare) en route.
Embark on a 6 hour journey of about 268km transferring to Nyungwe forest national park after breakfast, excluding stops en route. The trip takes you through the magnificent countryside scenery in the land of a thousand hills, Rwanda. You will have a stopover at the National Institute of Rwandan Museums in Butare to tour the popular Butare Museum which doubles as the national Museum of Rwanda, this houses a wide range of ethnographic and archeological artifacts which make it hold a notable position in the East African region. The rich history and heritage well stored in the museum will make your en route stop remarkable.
The stop will also take you through the Nyanza palace, the residence for the two Rwandan monarchs; king Musinga and his predecessor, king Rudahigwa that ruled the pre-colonial Rwanda. The traditional hut at the site which is the house of King Rudahigwa was traditionally crafted in an attractive architectural design with an authentic Rwandese cultural attachment which is well preserved. The charming Inyambo cows with their long horns also add a great meaning to the site worthy visiting. You will have lunch in Butare after which you will transfer to Nyungwe Forest National Park arriving in the evening for relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Nyungwe Forest Lodge
Midrange: Nyungwe Hill Top View Hotel
Budget: Gisakura Guest House
Day 3: Morning Chimpanzee trekking and afternoon Nyungwe canopy walk.
After breakfast, you will get on an experiential trek for chimpanzees in the hard-to-penetrate, dense prehistoric forests of Nyungwe. The trek starts at 8am with an early briefing session at the park headquarters before going on to the forest in search of the human’s closest cousins the Chimpanzees. Treading beneath this dense forest and eventually having direct encounter with these chimpanzees for one (1) hour makes the chimp trek unforgettable.
The species live happily and flourish within their natural habitats and they are so impressive to look at for as long as you visit Rwanda, as they chomp fruits, quietly leaping from a tree to the other, rolling themselves on the trees, mating and socializing freely. The activity usually lasts between 2 – 5 hours after which you return to the lodge for lunch and a short relaxation.
In the afternoon, you assemble at Uwinka Visitor center to embark on the famous Nyungwe Canopy walk which is the first of its kind in East Africa and the third in the whole of Africa. The canopy walk way is raised to over 40m above the ground and it is 90m long hanging over a steep deep valley blanketed by a thick forest offers quite impressive scenic views of the landscapes and the floral and faunal species that are found in this area. Retire in the evening to the lodge for relaxation and overnight.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Nyungwe Forest Lodge
Midrange: Nyungwe Hill Top View Hotel
Budget: Gisakura Guest House
Day 4: Transfer to Gisenyi via Kibuye passing through the Congo Nile divide trail.
After breakfast, undertake a tour to Gisenyi Lake Kivu travelling along the Congo Nile Divide trail with the attractive views of Kivu Lake and the resort towns of Kibuye. The journey is 294km about 7 hours’ drive. You will arrive in the afternoon to relax, dine and an overnight.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Lake Kivu Serena Hotel
Midrange: Water Front Resort Hotel
Budget: Hotel Paradise Malahide
Day 5: Spend the whole day relaxing on Lake Kivu. In the evening, transfer to Ruhengeri – Volcanoes National Park.
After a relaxed breakfast, venture on an adventurous boat cruise on Lake Kivu which is the largest lake in Rwanda that sits on the Democratic Republic of Congo- Rwanda boundary . The cruise presents an unforgettable recreational experience on the lake allowing you to explore its Virgin Islands. Retreat from the activity and rest on the banks before embarking on a transfer to volcanoes national park in the evening, a journey of 110km about 2 hours’ drive arriving late in the evening for relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Mount Gorilla View Hotel
Midrange: Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge
Budget: Muhabura Hotel
Day 6: Gorilla Trekking and relax at the lodge.
After a thrilling breakfast from your respective lodge in a chilly morning, you will assemble at the Volcanoes Park Headquarters in Kinigi at 8am for a pre-tour briefing and consequently embark on a journey to search for the mountain gorillas. The park rangers will give you the gorilla trekking rules and regulation with the dos and don’ts involved while sipping a thrilling Rwandese cup of hot coffee and listening to the soothing melodramatic cultural songs by the gorgeous Intore dancers clearly exposing the authentic tradition and the rich history of the Rwandese people.
Embark on the eagerly awaited gorilla tracking experience, penetrating amidst the forested jungles of the Volcanoes in search of the gorilla group assigned together with the eight team mates combined together with you to track a given group. The duration for this activity tends to range between 2 – 8 hours and the encounter with these unique species is an unusual experience. The hike amidst the jungle while viewing the lovely Rwandan flora and fauna, the impressive panoramic views and magical scenic landscapes of the Virungas would definitely leave you mesmerized. The eventual one hour direct contact with these world’s rarest animals eye to eye with them is worth remembering and getting attracted to their thick beautiful fur while being entertained by the playful young gorillas puts your stressful minds and thoughts into a state of relaxation and happiness quite worth the expensive price of a gorilla ticket.
Return from this encounter and retreat to the lodge for relaxation.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Mount Gorilla View Hotel
Midrange: Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge
Budget: Muhabura Hotel
Day 7: Golden Monkey tracking and relax the lodge
After breakfast, embark on the breath taking golden monkey tracking in the forested steep slopes of the Virunga Volcanoes. The golden monkey tracking just like gorilla tracking starts at Kinigi park headquarters at 8am with briefing before starting a hike to the forest that harbors these critically sought after primate species that are well known to be existing only in the Virunga massif. The golden monkeys have got a golden patch on their back making them very attractive species for the first time visitors to look at. They harbor and reproduce from the dense bamboo forest zones of the park and a one on one encounter with them lasts 1 hour while the entire activity can stretch to 4 hours.
Retreat from the activity, unwind at the lodge, refresh, dine and spend an overnight
Accommodation:
Luxury: Mount Gorilla View Hotel
Midrange: Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge
Budget: Muhabura Hotel
Day 8: Transfer to Kigali & visit the Gisozi genocide memorial center.
After breakfast at your place of stay in Ruhengeri, embark on the transfer to Kigali city 116km about 3 hours’ drive passing through the pleasant country side panorama rich with undulating savannah. You will arrive in Kigali early enough to visit the legendary Gisozi genocide memorial site to pay a visit to the counts of Rwandese who perished during the bloody genocide in cold blood where people were slaughtered in cold blood in the year 1994. The number of skulls line in the building and the respective writings offer you more fresh memories of what exactly befell Rwanda during that period. You will have lunch in Kigali and then retire for overnight.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Kigali Serena Hotel
Midrange: Hotel Chez Lando
Budget: Discover Rwanda Youth Hostel
Day 9: Visit the Nyamata genocide site and transfer to Akagera National Park.
After breakfast, embark on the visit to the Nyamata genocide memorial where other counts of Rwandese perished mysteriously during the bloody genocide.
This site is so special in a way that people, especially women and children who had sought refuge in the Nyamata church were later attacked and slaughtered in cold blood with in the same place by the ruthless war mongers. You retreat from the activity and transfer to Akagera National Park to the east of Rwanda arriving in the afternoon for relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Ruzizi Tented Camp
Midrange: Akagera Game Lodge
Budget: Dereva Hotel
Day 10: Morning game drive and afternoon boat cruise at Lake Ihema.
After an early cup of warm cup of coffee / tea, embark on the morning game drive with the beautiful sun rises clearing exposing the plain rolling savannah landscapes of the park with a short savannah grassland intertwined with woodlands stretching long to the boarder of Tanzania scattered with countless numbers of wild game. The game drive in the morning exposes you to possibilities of exploring numerous herds of elephants, buffaloes, Masaai giraffes, various antelopes like Impala, bushbucks, water bucks among others, the predators including leopards among other wild game that flourish within this natural shelter. A long stretch to the overhanging slopes of Mutumba generates a rewarding experience on your safari in Rwanda. This activity lasts for 3 – 4 hours after where you will return to the lodge for relaxation and a buffet lunch. In the afternoon, you will embark on a journey to Lake Ihema for a soothing boat cruise with its banks filled with countless populations of both aquatic and terrestrial animal species which include among others the hippos, buffaloes, and the Nile crocodiles plus a wide range of bird species that dwell within the swampy vegetation and the opportunity to encounter the Rwanda’s second largest lake. Retire for dinner and overnight thereafter.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Ruzizi Tented Camp
Midrange: Akagera Game Lodge
Budget: Dereva Hotel
Day 11: Transfer to Kigali & depart.
After breakfast, transfer back to Kigali city for final shopping and departure.
End of safari with Love Uganda Safaris
