10 Days Rwanda Gorillas & Wildlife Safari

After you have arrived at the Kigali International Airport (KGL), you will be met by Alba Wonders Africa driver for pick up. Exit the airport on a safe drive to the pre-booked hotel in the vibrant Kigali and have a long evening to relax. The company representative will take you through the itinerary providing insight about what you should expect on this enriching package.

Overnight Stay

• Budget: Hotel Chez/Step Town Hotel
• Midrange: Five-to-Five Hotel/Flame Tree Village

Luxury: The Retreat by Heaven

Catch up with your city guide for a briefing and after, start the 2 hour tour in Kigali. In the vibrant Kigali city, you will be visiting the Kigali genocide memorial centre, local markets, and craft shops. After a round city excursion, you continue to Akagera National Park which lies in the Eastern Province nearby the Tanzanian border.

Arrive early at Akagera to safely check into your wildlife safari lodges. In the afternoon, you will have lunch, and you can have some time to rest. Leave the safari camp to enjoy the late afternoon game drive. Along the game tracks in Akagera, expect amazing wildlife encounters ranging from Big 5 game to small mammals and bird species.

Overnight Stay

• Budget: Akagera Safari Camp/Dereva Hotel
• Midrange: Akagera Game Lodge/Rhino Lodge
• Luxury: Magashi Luxury Tented Camp/Rusizi Camp

Embark on a journey to discover the wonders of Akagera with a local expert. Today’s morning game drive will introduce you to the vast plains of Akagera National Park. This is the only savanna park and holds a wide variety of wildlife, including Maasai giraffes, zebras, leopards, buffaloes, elephants, impalas, elands, topis, rhinos, and numerous bird species.

The morning game drive in Akagera will take 2-3 hours and you will return to spend a short afternoon in the safari camp/lodge. You will conclude your excursion with a launch/boat cruise along Lake Ihema. Along the scenic Lake Ihema, you will be viewing mostly hippos, crocodiles, and aquatic birds.

Overnight Stay

• Budget: Akagera Safari Camp/Dereva Hotel
• Midrange: Akagera Game Lodge/Rhino Lodge
• Luxury: Magashi Luxury Tented Camp/Rusizi Camp

Start traveling from Akagera to Nyungwe early after breakfast. It will be a long journey involving connecting from the Eastern Province to the Northern Province using a 4WD safari vehicle. En route visit to be paid to the Nyanza King’s palace and National Museum –these are found in Butare. You will leave Butare early for you to connect to Nyungwe Forest National Park to have an overnight stay.

Overnight Stay

• Budget: Gisakura Guesthouse/EAR Ken Guesthouse
• Midrange: Nyungwe Top view Hotel/Golden Monkey Hotel/Nziza Eco-Lodge
• Luxury: One&Only Nyungwe House

After a heavy breakfast, you will safely drive to the briefing reception in Nyungwe. The ranger guide from Nyungwe will escort you on the trek to see chimpanzees. Nyungwe alone holds a total of about 500 chimpanzees with about 3 chimpanzee trekking sectors (Gisovu, Uwinka, and Cyamudongo). Tracking with Nyungwe chimps is a bit strenuous considering the altitude of the park and requires some fitness levels.

Luckily, once you meet a chimpanzee community, you will be spending 1 hour face-to-face with chimpanzees. This session includes photography and observing the unique behaviors of chimpanzees. Expect to walk back to the reception and meet the driver, who then takes you back to the lodge for relaxation.

Overnight Stay

• Budget: Gisakura Guesthouse/EAR Ken Guesthouse
• Midrange: Nyungwe Top view Hotel/Golden Monkey Hotel/Nziza Eco-Lodge
• Luxury: One&Only Nyungwe House

A canopy walk will be a perfect option to start your morning in Nyungwe and you will be led by an experienced guide. The canopy walk journey includes exploring a suspended walkway 60-70 meters from the forest floor and comes with astonishing sightings of primates, birds, and the forest canopy.

After the 2-hour canopy walk, return and settle for early lunch before departing for Lake Kivu one of the scenic Great Lakes on the African continent. At Lake Kivu, you will spend most of the evening relaxing at the shores or take a boat ride.

Overnight Stay

• Lake Kivu Serena Hotel

Enjoy an early morning breakfast, and later, you will proceed on a boat ride to enjoy sunrise on Lake Kivu. After the rewarding Lake Kivu excursion, you will transfer to Volcanoes National Park in Ruhengeri, about 2-3 hours. Enjoy scenic views of the countryside rolling hills, and on arrival, you will check into the lodge.

Overnight Stay

• Budget: Amahoro Guesthouse/Kinigi Guesthouse.
• Midrange: La Palme Hotel/Da Vinci/Mountain Gorilla View Lodge
• Luxury: Virunga Lodge/Sabyinyo Lodge/Bisate Lodge

After a hefty breakfast, your actual gorilla trekking day starts with registration and a briefing. The Rwanda ranger guide will be allocated to take you on a search for mountain gorillas, and the entire trek lasts for 2-6 hours starting from Kinigi. When you have finally met a gorilla group, a maximum of one hour will be set for you to enjoy a face–to–face encounter. Enjoy every moment as you capture unique pictures and observe how these apes behave. In the evening, you will return and spend the rest of the time in the lodge.

Overnight Stay

• Budget: Amahoro Guesthouse/Kinigi Guesthouse.
• Midrange: La Palme Hotel/Da Vinci/Mountain Gorilla View Lodge
• Luxury: Virunga Lodge/Sabyinyo Lodge/Bisate Lodge

Begin your day with early morning breakfast and then proceed to Kinigi to embark on golden monkey trek. A guided golden monkey tracking session takes about 2-4 hours inclusive of 1 hour for photography and observing the unique behaviors of golden monkeys. After interacting with golden monkeys, get back to chill as you wait for cultural immersion at the Iby’Iwacu community.

Overnight Stay

• Budget: Amahoro Guesthouse/Kinigi Guesthouse.
• Midrange: La Palme Hotel/Da Vinci/Mountain Gorilla View Lodge
• Luxury: Virunga Lodge/Sabyinyo Lodge/Bisate Lodge

Meet your driver for pick up and transfer back to Kigali, which concludes the 10 days best of Rwanda tour.

End of Tour