7-Day Highlights of Rwanda Starting from Kigali

• You'll be collected from the airport.
• Accommodation before the tour starts can be arranged for an extra cost.

Arrival from the Airport

Welcome to the land of a thousand hills! This small but scenically stunning country is thus known for its endless rolling green hills, which you will experience on your fly-over to Kigali International Airport.

A representative from your hotel will pick you up and drive you to your hotel in a quiet leafy street in the heart of down-town Kigali.

If time allows, you are free to explore the city today. There are many activities in Kigali that are easily arranged through the reception at your hotel, for example city tours and visits to the craft markets browse amongst the pottery, carvings, batik, weaving, musical instruments, leather and fabrics on offer. Prepare to use your haggling skills! All activities today are at your own cost.

Accommodation at Heaven Boutique Hotel – Residence Queen Room with No meals included today.

Main Destination:

Kigali

Accommodation:

Heaven Boutique Hotel

• Mid-range hotel located in Kigali

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Meals & Drinks:

• Dinner (Breakfast & lunch not included)
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Visit Genocinde memorial site and travel to Nyungwe

Your Wild Gallery Tours guide will greet you at the hotel in the morning and drive you to Nyungwe Forest in western Rwanda. If time allows and you feel up for it, you can visit the Genocide Memorial in town before setting off. The Genocide Memorial is a place of commemoration for the 250,000 victims buried in mass graves here and an important remembrance of the unfathomable brutality of the 1994 genocide.

At the end of the day you will reach Nyungwe Forest National Park, one of the world’s oldest and most beautiful rainforest in Africa. The forest is incredibly biodiverse with 13 known primate species residing here, from colobus monkeys, mangabeys, blue monkeys and, of course, our nearest relatives, the chimpanzees.

Nyungwe Forest is also famous among the birding community who come to spot some of the 310 bird species recorded here, 26 of which are endemic to Rwanda.
Accommodation at Top View Hill Hotel with Breakfast & Dinner.

Main Destination:

Nyungwe National Park (Chimps)

Best Time To Visit June to September (Dry weather, best chimp trekking)

High Season June to September (Popular gorilla trekking time in Volcanoes NP)

Best Weather June to October (Sunny, but not too hot)

Wildlife in Nyungwe NP

ChimpanzeeCommon

White RhinoNone

Black RhinoNone

LionNone

LeopardNone

CheetahNone

Show more

ElephantNone

GiraffeNone

BuffaloNone

ZebraNone

WildebeestNone

HippoNone

Accommodation:

Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel

• Mid-range hotel located just outside Nyungwe NP (Chimps)

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Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Chimpanzi tracking and canopy walk

Today you will venture deep into Nyungwe Forest National Park in search of the chimpanzees.

On a Chimpanzee Tracking experience in Nyungwe Forest you will have the opportunity to follow an experienced guide into the forest to observe these fascinating creatures at a close range. Watching them interact with each other and go about their daily routine of grooming, playing and foraging is an incredible experience.

While your chances of encountering chimpanzees are high during your tracking excursion, it is never 100% guaranteed. These are, after all, wild animals with wills and minds of their own!

From the trails below the foliage you will now head up high into the forest canopy on one of East Africa’s first canopy walks. The network of suspension bridges will lead you on a 1.5 hour walk over a deep gorge, through beautiful and lush vegetation and difference animal habitats.

Accommodation at Top View Hill Hotel with Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

Main Destination:

Nyungwe National Park (Chimps)

Accommodation:

Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel

• Mid-range hotel located just outside Nyungwe NP (Chimps)

Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Lake Kivu

Nyungwe Forest is also famous among the birding community who come to spot some of the 310 bird species recorded

From the rainforests of Nyungwe you will travel north along the shores of Lake Kivu, one of the African Great Lakes in the Albertine Rift, creating a natural border between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The stunning shores of Lake Kivu contain some of the best inland beaches on the continent. Choose to relax at the lodge today, take a stroll on the long stretch of beach near the property, or explore the shorelines and bays on a half-day kayaking tour. Let your Travel Consultant know if you want to add a guided half-day kayaking tour to your program today.

Activities at Lake Kivu are at your own expense.

Accommodation at Rushel Kivu – Master Room with Breakfast, Packed Lunch & Dinner.

Main Destination:

Lake Kivu

Accommodation:

Rushel Kivu Resort

• Budget resort located at Lake Kivu

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Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Volcanoes national park

If you think after Nyungwe Forest and Lake Kivu, that Rwanda can’t get any more scenic, you haven’t seen Volcanoes National Park. The national park contains parts of the Virunga mountain range and its 5 volcanoes that form the border between Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Besides being one of the most scenic sights in Africa, the park is also the gateway to face-to-face encounters with the iconic mountain gorillas. There are other fantastic activities like, tracking excursions to find the rare golden monkeys, volcano hikes and a visit to the Dian Fossey research center.

Accommodation at Mountain Gorilla View Lodge with Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

Optional: Explore more of Lake Kivu

Lake Kivu offers some of the best outdoor activities in Rwanda from hiking or mountain biking the Congo Nile Trail, a network of over 200km of trail stretching along the length of the lake, to kayaking excursions to explore some of the islands scattered across the lake.

Main Destination:

Volcanoes National Park (Gorillas)

Best Time To Visit June to August (It is drier and hiking is easier)

High Season June to September (Permits are scarce)

Best Weather June to October (Sunny, but not too hot)

Wildlife in Volcanoes NP

GorillaCommon

ChimpanzeeNone

ElephantRare

BuffaloRare

White RhinoNone

Black RhinoNone

Show more

GiraffeNone

LionNone

LeopardNone

CheetahNone

ZebraNone

WildebeestNone

HippoNone

Accommodation:

Mountain Gorilla View Lodge

• Mid-range lodge located less than 1hr drive from Volcanoes NP (Gorillas)

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Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Gorilla tracking experience

Encountering the rare and endangered mountain gorillas is an experience of a lifetime.

In the company of an experienced park ranger you will be tracking the whereabouts of one of the habituated family groups who live in the park and can tolerate the presence of humans for a brief period every day.

Your gorilla tracking experience will be an exciting, yet challenging, journey along forested (sometimes muddy and slippery) slopes, tangled vines, thick vegetation and bamboo forests before you reach the territory of these gentle giants. Depending on the location of the gorillas on any given day, the walk can take anything from 1 to 7 hours.

Encountering the mountain gorillas in the wild is a truly humbling and emotional experience, one that you are sure to remember for the rest of your life. Gorilla Tracking is an optional activity at an additional fee of USD 1,500 per person.

Main Destination:

Volcanoes National Park (Gorillas)

Accommodation:

Mountain Gorilla View Lodge

• Mid-range lodge located less than 1hr drive from Volcanoes NP (Gorillas)

Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Return to kigali

Enjoy your last morning in the rainforest today before your guide drives you back to Kigali for your departure flight.

Please make sure your international flight departure is not before 3 pm. For flights departing before 3 pm we will arrange a night in Kigali for you at an additional cost.

Not ready to leave this beautiful spot? No problem. Extra nights at the lodge in Volcanoes NP can be booked upon request.

Accommodation at with not included today but there will be Breakfast.

Main Destination:

Kigali

Accommodation:

No accommodation (End of tour)

Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

• Additional accommodation can be arranged for an extra cost.
• You'll be dropped off at the airport.