Tours in Rwanda offers short but interesting holiday safaris to visitors in the “Land of a thousand Hills”. Explore the 30% of the world’s gorilla population hosted in the Bamboo forests of Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park which is located in Ruhengeri province in northwestern region of the country. The park is a home of over 300 to 380 mountain gorillas with over 12 fully habituated families which are ready and open for daily trekking.
- Kigali city tour- Gorilla trekking and a visit to Iby’iwachu cultural center.
Here you will explore the beautiful city of Kigali through visiting the Kigali genocide memorial, then after you will have lunch and transfer to Volcanoes National Park. The following day you will have a gorilla trekking experience plus a visit to Iby’iwachu cultural center inside Volcanoes National Park.
Day 1: Kigali- Volcanoes National Park.
At your hotel room in Kigali, have morning breakfast and get ready to be picked by the tour guide to start your holiday safari. In the early morning, the tour guide with a 4×4 safari vehicle will reach at your location to begin your safari with a Kigali city tour. Transfer to Kigali Genocide Memorial one of the top historical sites in Rwanda located in the heart of the capital.
About Kigali genocide memorial.
Explore Rwanda’s history by visiting the Kigali genocide memorial. This is where the massacre of estimated 800,000 to 1 million people took place in 1994. This was between the government forces (Hutu) against the local civilians (Tusti). The murder began in April 1994 after the shoot of the plane which was carrying Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana. Since 1994, the arts and statues of the slaughtered civilians (Tusti) are designed inside the gazzeted Kigali genocide memorial. After the city tour, have your lunch in Kigali city and proceed to Volcanoes National Park.
Embark to your tour guide and transfer to the park which is approximately 115 kilometers northwest via the NR2 highway, which typically takes 2 to 3 hours. The final destination for park briefings and activities is the park headquarters in Kinigi, located just after the Musanze town. Check in to your favorite safari lodge (Singita Kwitonda Lodge, Bisate Lodge, One&Only Gorilla’s Nest, Virunga Lodge, Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge, Amakoro Songa Lodge, Tiloreza Volcanoes Ecolodge, Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge, Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel among others) for dinner and overnight stay.
Day 2: Gorilla trekking and visit to Iby’iwachu cultural village.
Have early morning breakfast at your safari lodge, then after report to the park headquarters to present your valid gorilla permits and the briefing about mountain gorillas plus the forest at large.
How is the gorilla trek?
The trekking experience take place in the Bamboo forests and hikes are led by expert park rangers/guides to enforce rules and guidelines in the forest. Strict obedience to the core rules in the forest is a must. Hikes take around 1 to 2 hours depending on where the primates nested the previous night. Once they are located, visitors are allowed to spend strictly one hour observing and photographing gorillas following the guidelines given by park rangers/guides. Gorilla trekkers are recommended to bring waterproof long trousers, long-sleeved shirts, hiking boots, gardening gloves to protect against stinging nettles, a rain poncho, plenty of drinking water, and your packed lunch/snacks.
After the end of the trekking experience, reverse back to your safari lodge for lunch and relaxing. Then after prepare for your visit to Iby’iwachu cultural center.
What is expected at Iby’iwachu cultural center?
Iby’iwachu cultural village is a top tourism destination in Rwanda after the gorilla trekking experience in evening hours. Most visitors take a village walk in Volcanoes National Park to share the life style with the local people of Iby’iwachu village. Discover Rwanda’s culture like beer brewing, art and craft making, traditional dances, music and drama with the locals.
After the above community village, return back to your safari lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
Day 3: Volcanoes National Park back to Kigali.
At the last day of the safari, have morning breakfast and check out from your safari lodge. Embark on your tour guide to drive back to Kigali city depending on your flight schedule. After reaching to Kigali city, have your lunch in luxurious restaurants, after transfer to Kigali international airport of Rwanda for your flight back to your home country. This will mark the end of service for one of our 3-day tours in Rwanda.
- Kigali city tour- Gorilla trekking and Golden monkey trekking.
At your first day you will have a city tour by visiting the Kandt house museum (Natural history museum) in the heart of Rwanda’s capital plus lunch, then after transfer to Volcanoes National Park. The next two days will be for primates trekking (gorillas and golden monkeys) and transferring back to Kigali International Airport.
Day 1: Kigali city tour and transfer to Volcanoes National Park.
Depending on your location, you will be picked by our professional tour guide to start your city tour by visiting the Kandt house museum (Natural history museum) one of the historical sites of Rwanda.
What to Expect?
The Kandt House Museum is a historical landmark located in Kigali city, dedicated to exploring the country’s pre-colonial and colonial history which was built by Dr. Richard Kandt in 1908. Discover Rwandan life before European colonization and the founding of Kigali city right at the Kandt House Museum. After the city tour you will have lunch in Kigali then you transfer to Volcanoes National Park.
Set off your journey with your tour guide and transfer to the park which is approximately 115 kilometers northwest via the NR2 highway, which typically takes 2 to 3 hours. The final destination for park briefings and activities is the park headquarters in Kinigi, located just after the Musanze town. Check in to your favorite safari lodge (Singita Kwitonda Lodge, Bisate Lodge, One&Only Gorilla’s Nest, Virunga Lodge, Amakoro Songa Lodge, Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge, Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel among others) for dinner and overnight stay.
Day 2: Gorilla trekking experience.
At your safari lodge, have early morning breakfast, then after report to the park headquarters of Kinigi to present your valid gorilla permits and the briefing about gorilla trekking experience plus the forest at large.
Gorilla trekking experience.
The experience is done through hikes which take around 1 to 2 hours depending on where the primates nested the previous night in the Bamboo forests. Hikes are led by expert park rangers/guides to enforce rules and guidelines in the forest. Strict obedience to the core rules in the forest is a must. Once the gorillas are located, visitors are allowed to spend strictly one hour observing and photographing the primates following the guidelines given by park rangers/guides.
Gorilla trekkers are encouraged to bring waterproof long trousers, long-sleeved shirts, hiking boots, gardening gloves to protect against stinging nettles, a rain poncho, plenty of drinking water, and your packed lunch/snacks.
After the gorilla trekking experience, reverse back to your safari lodge for lunch, relaxing, dinner and overnight stay.
Day 3: Golden monkey trekking and transfer to Kigali International Airport.
Early morning at your safari lodge, have breakfast and report to the park headquarters to present your valid golden monkey permits, the briefing about the primates and the forest at large.
How is the trekking experience?
Treks begin daily at the Kinigi park headquarters and involve a gentle 30-minute to 2-hour hike through the bamboo forests at the base of the Virunga volcanoes. Once they are located, spend one magical hour with these endangered monkeys. Expert park rangers/guides are provided to trekkers to enforce rules guidelines in the forest and strict obedience to the core rules in the forest is a must. For a deeper experience, visitors are allowed to spend four hours with the primates (Golden Monkey Habituation) in the semi habituated groups. Permit Costs include; $90 (Foreign Non-Residents), $60 (Foreign Residents), $10 (East African Citizens), and 5,000 RWF (Rwandan Nationals) for tracking experience. For the habituation experience $250 (Foreign Non-Residents).
Golden monkey trekkers are encouraged to pack waterproof long trousers, long-sleeved shirts, hiking boots, gardening gloves to protect against stinging nettles, a rain poncho, plenty of drinking water, and your packed lunch/snacks.
After the trekking experience, reverse back to your safari lodge for lunch and then transfer to Kigali International Airport for your flight back home marking the end of service.