Day 1: Arrival in Kigali
Welcome to Rwanda the land of “a thousand hills.” Our guide/ representative staff will be at the airport to pick you.
Drive time – 20 minutes
Kigali Serena / Kigali Marriott /The Retreat
Day 2: Travel to Volcanoes national park gorilla trekking Safari
Today you will be picked up from either the airport on your arrival or your hotel depending on where you will be. You will take a short Kigali city tour exploring the major historic and cultural sites like the Kigali Genocide Memorial Center, Craft markets in Kigali, Kandt National Museum, and presidential museum depending on the time. After visiting some of these sites you will have lunch at a restaurant in the city and enjoy local foods or continental meals depending on your preference, remember to let your driver guide know your meal preferences so he chooses the right restaurant. After the lunch in Kigali city we embark on the journey to the home of the mountain gorillas in volcanoes national park.
Drive time – 2 hours 30 minutes Or Helicopter (Augusta) – 35 minutes
L & D
Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge / Virunga Lodge
Day 3: Gorilla Tracking in Volcanoes national park
Today after an early morning breakfast you are ready to start your gorilla trekking. The driver guide will transfer you to the briefing areas where you will learn from the ranger guide about the expectations while in the park. In the meantime as you wait for everyone to gather, enjoy the Rwandan hospitality of traditional dances and a hot Rwandan coffee. The ranger guide will share some of the gorilla trekking tips like no flash photography and later divide you in the different gorilla trekking groups. Depending on location of the family of gorillas you will trek, the driver guide will transfer you to the start of the trail head for the allocated gorilla group.
Spend the afternoon at leisure recuperating from the gorilla trekking experience or take on an optional activity of visiting the musanze caves or the twin lakes.
B, L & D
Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge / Virunga Lodge
Day 4: Golden Monkey
Have an early morning breakfast and your naturalist guide will transfer you to the park headquarters just like yesterday. You will receive a briefing from the ranger guide and about your time in the park. Golden monkeys are generally more active than gorillas and might require you to keep moving following them as they feed. You are allowed to stay 1 hour with them after which you leave.
B, L & D
Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge / Virunga Lodge
Day 5: Transfer to Kigali and proceed to Arusha
Today you transfer to the airport and leave for Arusha. You will be picked up from the airport at Kilimanjaro international airport and transferred to your hotel in Arusha.
Arusha Coffee Lodge / Onsea House / Machwewo Wellness / Legendary Lodge / Four points by Sheraton
Day 6: Transfer to Serengeti
After breakfast you leave the lodge and drive via Ngorongoro crater and head towards the Serengeti National Park, leaving the highlands behind, you descend into the heart of wild Africa – the Serengeti National Park – with its endless plains, rolling into the distance as far as the eye can see. En-route you will visit a Maasai Boma where you will get the chance to see the Maasai performing their traditional dances. You may even get a chance to join in! You then head to the central park area, known as the Seronera area, one of the richest wildlife habitats in the park, featuring the Seronera River, which provides a valuable water source to this area and therefore attracts wildlife well representative of most of the Serengeti’s species.
Drive time – 7 hours OR Scheduled flight – 40 minutes
B, L & D
Ole Serai Luxury Camp / Kleins Camp/ Nomad Lamai Serengeti/ Four Seasons Safari Lodge/ Sayani camp / Ewanjan Tented Camp
Day 7 & 8: Full Day Game drive
Spend a full day exploring the vast Serengeti plains. You will rise early to enjoy an early morning game drive. At sunrise, you may encounter animals grazing in the beautiful light of sunrise and predators may still be busy hunting before retiring to rest for the day. Sunrise on the Serengeti is not to be missed and extraordinary photographic opportunities will abound at this magical time of day. You have the option to return to your accommodation for a hot lunch or to opt for a packed lunch which can be enjoyed at one of the various picnic sites found in the Serengeti. After lunch, you will continue on a game drive. Around the time of dusk be on the lookout for lions.
Cheetah can also be spotted on the plains in the early morning and late afternoon when temperatures are not too high. They rely on daylight and speed to catch their prey. Hippo pods can be seen in the bigger pools and rivers while crocodiles can be seen sunning themselves on the riverbanks.
B, L & D
Ole Serai Luxury Camp / Kleins Camp/ Nomad Lamai Serengeti/ Four Seasons Safari Lodge/ Sayani camp / Ewanjan Tented Camp
Day 9: Transfer to Ngorongoro
You will have breakfast and then check out and drive via Ngorongoro to Karatu, enjoy the varied landscape.
Drive time – 2 hours
B, L & D
Neptune Ngorongoro Luxury Lodge/ Ngorongoro Tented Camp / Ngorongoro Crater Lodge / The Manor at Ngorongoro Crater / Gibbs Farm
Day 10: Game drive in Ngorongoro Crater
After an early breakfast, your guide will pick you up and drive to Ngorongoro crater. After check in you descend down 600 meters into the crater for a full day game drive. Supported by a year round water supply and fodder, the Ngorongoro crater supports a vast variety of animals, which include herds of wildebeest, zebra, buffalo, eland, warthog, hippo, and giant African elephants. Another big draw card to this picturesque park is its dense population of predators, which include lions, hyenas, jackals, cheetahs and the ever-elusive leopard, which sometimes requires a trained eye to spot. You will visit Lake Magadi, a large but shallow alkaline lake in the southwestern corner, which is one of the main features of the crater. A large number of flamingos, hippos and other water birds can usually be seen here.
B, L & D
Neptune Ngorongoro Luxury Lodge/ Ngorongoro Tented Camp / Ngorongoro Crater Lodge / The Manor at Ngorongoro Crater / Gibbs Farm
Day 11: Transfer to Arusha – Zanzibar
Afternoon transfer to Kilimanjaro International Airport/Arusha Airport for your flight to Zanzibar.
Flight time – 1 hour 20 minutes
B, L & D
Kono kono Beach Resort / Royal Zanzibar Beach Resort / Zuri Zanzibar / Kilindi Beach Resort / Park Hyatt Zanzibar
Day 12 & 13: Zanzibar Beach & Water experiences
Spend the days at leisure at the your resort. You can also choose to take on some of the different water activities offered by the resorts depending on your interests. This would be settled privately by you.
B, L & D
Kono kono Beach Resort / Royal Zanzibar Beach Resort / Zuri Zanzibar / Kilindi Beach Resort / Park Hyatt Zanzibar
Day 14: Departure
Today after breakfast and depending on the time of your flight, you will be transferred to the airport for your flight home.
B & L
