7 Days Rwanda Primates & Game Safari

Early in the morning, you will be collected by an expert from Alba Wonders Africa & today, your day will start with 2-hour Kigali city tour. The Kigali city excursion comes with a range of exploration opportunities, which include visiting the prominent Kigali genocide site, craft centres/markets, plus many other historical sites. After the city tour, you will connect to one of the restaurants/hotels for a quick lunch and later proceed to Akagera National Park in Eastern Rwanda. Arrive at Akagera early and continue with a short afternoon game drive to enjoy surprising wildlife encounters.

Accommodation

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

Meals: Lunch plus Dinner (excludes breakfast)

Travel time: 2.5 hours

The early morning game drive will begin immediately after your breakfast. An experienced guide will be present to take you to one of the best game tracks in Akagera National Park that can guarantee you an amazing wildlife encounter. Akagera is largely a savanna-dominated Park with abundant wildlife ranging from lions, African elephants, leopards, buffaloes, spotted hyenas, zebras, rhinos, roan antelopes, and over 500 bird species.

A normal game drive takes at least 2-3 hours, and after that, you will return to be served lunch in your respective pre-booked hotels/safari camps. Get back to explore more of Akagera National Park, and today’s afternoon session includes a guided boat cruise/ride. During the boat ride, you will be amazed by aquatic life sightings ranging from hippos, crocodiles, and birds. This enriching boat cruise will be experienced on Lake Ihema, and later, you will get back to chill in your respective lodges.

Accommodation

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

Meals include Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner

Enjoy a delicious breakfast, and after, you will officially depart from Akagera for Nyungwe National Park. This is expected to take long hours, about 8 hours, and en route, you will have a stopover at Butare. The Butare excursion will include exploring the Nyanza King’s palace, the National Museum, and if time permits, proceed to the Murambi genocide memorial. You will have lunch break still in Butare, then continue on a scenic drive to Nyungwe for your evening relaxation, dinner, and overnight.

Accommodation

• Budget: Gisakura Guesthouse
• Midrange: Nyungwe Top View Hotel.
• Luxury: Nyungwe’s One & Only

Meals include Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner

Get up early to have breakfast, and after, drive to Uwinka or Cyamudongo forest sector to have a briefing on Nyungwe chimpanzee trekking rules. Considering the altitude of Nyungwe, your trek with Nyungwe chimps will take slightly longer hours and expect to start your adventure early. Nyungwe Forest protects up to 500 chimpanzees, with a significant population of them already habituated and open for tourism.

Today’s chimpanzee tracking excursion rewards you with an hour of face-to-face encounter with chimpanzees. Beyond chimps, Nyungwe is also blessed with other primates, which you stand a chance to encounter, including l’hoest, vervet, colobus monkeys, olive baboons, and more.

Expect to return to the lodge to have a leisurely lunch plus some rest. In the afternoon, you will get back for a guided canopy walk. The canopy walk takes you through a 200m long canopy walkway suspended about 60-70m from the forest floor. A wide range of playful primates and birds await you to spot on a canopy walk without forgetting the scenic forest canopy view.

Accommodation

• Budget: Gisakura Guesthouse
• Midrange: Nyungwe Top View Hotel.
• Luxury: Nyungwe’s One & Only

Meals include Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner.

Begin your day with a hefty breakfast and later check out. Leave Nyungwe for Volcanoes National Park in Ruhengeri, and en route, you will have a scenic view of Lake Kivu. Proceed to Volcanoes for you to check in your pre-booked accommodation option, and prepare for tomorrow’s long-awaited gorilla trekking adventure.

Accommodation

• Budget: Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge or Kinigi Guesthouse
• Midrange: Da Vinci/Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel
• Luxury: Singita/Bisate/Virunga Lodge

Meals include Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner.

With a pack of lunch and adequate bottled drinking water, leave your lodge for registration and briefing at the Kinigi. Expect to start your gorilla trekking adventure after allocation of ranger guides and gorilla families. The actual trekking session will run for 2-6 hours, inclusive of an hour for a close encounter with gorilla. You will be accompanied back to the lodge for afternoon relaxation. Leave the camp/lodge after lunch and proceed to the Gorilla Guardian Village to explore more of the Rwandan cultures and traditions.

Accommodation

• Budget: Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge or Kinigi Guesthouse
• Midrange: Da Vinci/Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel
• Luxury: Singita/Bisate/Virunga Lodge

Meals include Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner.

Get yourself a delicious cup of tea/coffee, and after, proceed to Kinigi to meet the Volcanoes National Park officials for a briefing. Today, your attention will focus on exploring more about the endangered golden monkeys.

Expect to begin your golden monkey tracking early morning, and the entire adventure will run for about 2-4 hours. The golden monkey trek includes an hour for a close encounter with these endangered species, then you can get back to officially check out of the lodge.

After checkout of the lodge, start driving back to Kigali for you to be dropped off to the hotel/airport. Your enriching 7 Days Rwanda primate and game safari ends today.

End of safari