On this 8 day Rwanda wildlife safari, you will visit and experience all the 3 Rwandan national parks. You start with the scenic Akagera national park, proceed to Nyungwe forest national park and end with the home of mountain gorillas, Volcanoes national park. Enjoy the different backdrops of Rwanda as you turn along the winding roads. The parks are a mixture of Savannah, forest, and mountainous giving you varied sights of Rwanda.
Safari Highlights
- Game drive
- Boat ride
- Chimpanzee tracking
- Canopy Walk
- Gorilla tracking
Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival to Kigali International Airport
Today you start the amazing experience touring Rwanda on this wildlife and gorilla safari. Kagera Safaris driver guide will pick you up from your hotel or at the Kigali international airport on your arrival.
Drive time – 20 minutes
Day 2: Transfer to Akagera National park + Boat Safari
This morning after breakfast, have a short city tour with a visit to the Kigali genocide memorial to learn some history of this beautiful country. After this experience, leave for Akagera national park with short stopovers along the way – for photos and use of washrooms.
Arrive in the park and after a brief time at the park reception, leave for your lodge for check in and lunch. Have lunch and later leave for a boat safari on Lake Ihema. Return to lodge for lunch and take a boat trip on Lake Ihema for Hippos and Crocodiles OR you can alternatively spend the afternoon at the lodge enjoying nature as you read a good book.
Optional: Night game drive in search of some nocturnal animals.
Drive time – 2 hours 30 minutes or Helicopter ( Augusta) – 30 minutes
B, L & D
Day 3: Explore Akagera National Park
Akagera National Park is a Savannah park located in north eastern Rwanda on the boarder with Tanzania. It is home to several big mammals not found anywhere else in Rwanda. On a morning game drive right after an early breakfast, we will look out for Elephants, Zebras, Giraffes, Buffaloes, Water bucks, Bush bucks and recently introduced Lions. The game drives in Akagera national park usually take place in the the northern sector of the park. The game drives can last for almost an entire day depending on the animal sightings and your interests.
Return to the lodge after this game drive and have a restful time reading a book or simply hanging out taking in the air.
B, L & D
Day 4: Transfer to Nyungwe forest national park
This morning we depart for Nyungwe forest in southern Rwanda with a stopover for lunch in Huye formerly known as Butare. Huye hosts the ethnographic museum of Rwanda that was formerly known as the national museum of Rwanda, here we will learn about the culture and history of the Rwandan people. We arrive in Nyungwe forest later in the evening.
Drive time – 5 hours Or Helicopter (Robinson/ Augusta) – 45 minutes/ 35 minutes
B, L & D
Day 5: Rwanda Chimpanzee Tracking and Canopy Walk
Chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe forest takes you deep in the forest to experience and appreciate nature. Chimpanzee trekking is done early morning with packed breakfast or snack, unless you are the kind that can have an early breakfast. You are expected to be at the briefing point as early at 5.30 am from where you will receive information on how to behave and possible length of your trek. Nyungwe forest is rich in botanical diversity and home to 13 species of primates like L’Hoest’s monkeys, Rwenzori Colobus monkeys, red tailed monkeys, vervet monkeys, grey cheeked mangabeys etc. Your guide will lead you to either the Uwinka trail head or the Cyamudongo sector for chimp trekking.
In the afternoon you will be transferred to the Uwinka centre to start your canopy walk as you explore the park even more.
B, L & D
Day 6: Transfer to Volcanoes national park
Today morning after a beautiful and engaging day in the forest yesterday, you prepare to start journey to the Volcanoes national park in northern Rwanda. We leave for Volcanoes national park after breakfast, enjoy the sights of Lake Kivu and winding roads in the land of a thousand hills.
Drive time – 6 hours Or Helicopter (Robinson) – 35 minutes
B, L & D
Day 7: Gorillas in the Mist
Meet the mountain gorillas in the dense jungles of the Virunga ranges. The trek to the gorillas starts with a briefing at the park headquarters in Kinigi where you are assigned a ranger and gorilla family to trek. The Rwanda gorilla trek through volcanoes national park is an unforgettable experience that many people look to undertake. The gorilla trek can last from an hour or less to several hours later depending on where the gorillas nested the previous night – you need to be relatively fit to enjoy this experience and remember to pace yourself as you trek the gorillas.
Depending on the time the gorilla tracking lasts, you have opportunities for a cultural group performance by visiting a cultural village or take a community walk.
B, L & D
Day 8: End of the Rwanda wildlife Safari
Today is your last day on this Kagera Safaris – Rwanda wildlife safari. Start your day with breakfast and transfer to the airport for your exit flight, in case you have some time before your flight you can have a short Kigali city tour.
Drive time – 2 hours 30 minutes Or Helicopter (Robinson) – 35 minutes
B & L
