The Epic 9-Day Rwanda Primates and Wildlife Safari Itinerary
Detailed Itinerary: 9-Day Rwanda Primates and Wildlife Safari
Day 1: Arrival at Kigali and transfer to hotel
Upon touching down at Kigali International Airport, you will be met and greeted by our driver guide at the arrivals. He will be carrying a placard bearing your name for easy identification. He will then transfer you to the hotel for briefing about what to expect during the safari.
Accommodation: Retreat by heaven (Luxury)/ Governor’s residence (Midrange)
Meal plan: Dinner
Day 2: Transfer to Akagera National Park with afternoon boat cruise
After breakfast, you will checkout of the hotel and transfer to Akagera National Park. The transfer from Kigali to Akagera national park takes approximately 3 hours driving. Upon arrival, you will check in at the lodge for lunch in preparation for the afternoon boat cruise. After lunch, you will be driven to the docking point of the boat cruise along lake Ihema. The launch cruise along lake Ihema will give you a golden opportunity of spotting animals like Nile crocodiles along the shores, hippos, elephants, buffaloes and numerous bird species.
Accommodation: Magash camp (Luxury)/ Ruzizi tented camp (Luxury
Meal plan: Full board
Day 3: Full day game drive
Following early breakfast, you will get into the safari vehicle and embark on the game drive in the spectacular savannah plains. The game rive can last between 3 to 5 hours and the time spend in the game drive is determined by the animal seen that day. During the game drive, expect to see animals such as lions, elephants, giraffes, antelopes among others. After the game drive, you will return to the lodge for lunch and relaxation.
After lunch, you will go back to the savannah plains for yet another exciting game drive. After lunch, you will go for an afternoon game drive in the Akagera national park savannah plains. Expect to see the big five such as elephants, buffaloes, rhinos, lions and the rare leopards. Other animals to be spotted include zebras, giraffes, hyenas, antelopes, topis, oribis among others.
Accommodation: Magash camp (Luxury)/ Ruzizi tented camp (Luxury
Meal plan: Full board
Day 4: Transfer to Volcanoes national park
After breakfast at your convenient time, you will checkout of the lodge and embark on the 5 hours journey to Volcanoes national park. You will have a stopover for enroute hot lunch and bathroom break. Upon arrival at the park, you will be driven to the Ellen DeGeneres by Dian Fossey Museum for virtual gorilla trekking. Afterwards, you will be transferred back to the lodge for relaxation, dinner and overnight stay.
Accommodation: Amarembo by touchdown (Luxury)/ Five volcanoes boutique hotel (Midrange)
Meal plan: Full board
Day 5: Gorilla trekking and Ibwiwachu cultural tour
After breakfast and with packed lunch, the driver guide will transfer you to the park headquarters for briefing about the code of conduct during gorilla trekking. After briefing, you will be allocated a gorilla family and in company of the armed ranger guide, you will be driven to the starting point of the trek. The gorilla trek takes between 2 to 6 hours depending on where the gorillas slept the previous night. After 1 hour with the gorillas, you will be transferred back to the lodge for relaxation.
In the evening, you will go for the Ibwiwachu cultural tour where you will learn more about the breath-taking Kinyarwanda traditional, cultural dances, and drama.
Accommodation: Amarembo by touchdown (Luxury)/ Five volcanoes boutique hotel (Midrange)
Meal plan: Full board
Day 6: Golden monkey trekking and boat ride along the twin lakes
After breakfast, you will be transferred to the park headquarters for briefing about the dos and don’ts of golden monkey trekking. Volcanoes national park is a home to these endangered golden monkey species. Golden monkey trekking takes less time compared to gorilla trekking because golden monkeys are located easily. After the trek, you will be taken to the twin lakes of Burera ad Ruhondo for a relaxed boat ride. During the boat ride, you will appreciate the lake’s beautiful scenery and watch the setting sun. The boat cruise offers golden opportunities to be amazed by the magnificent appearance of the Virunga mountains which are found in the area. There is also the scenery of the spectacular terrain, the charmingly terraced hills, tropical rainforests, and attractive tinny islands located within the lakes.
Accommodation: Amarembo by touchdown (Luxury)/ Five volcanoes boutique hotel (Midrange)
Meal plan: Full board
Day 7: Transfer to Nyungwe Forest National Park
Following breakfast, you will checkout of the lodge and transfer to Nyungwe forest national park with enroute lunch. The transfer from Volcanoes national park to Nyungwe takes approximately 5 hours driving hence on this day, expect no activity.
Accommodation One & Only Nyungwe House (Luxury)/ Nyungwe hilltop view (Midrange)
Meal plan: Full board
Day 8: Chimpanzee trekking and canopy walk
Wake up very early, have breakfast and then transfer to the park headquarters with parked lunch. At the park headquarters, you will be briefed about the dos and don’ts of chimpanzee trekking and after briefing you will embark on the chimpanzee trekking experience. You will hike for a short period of time until you locate where the chimpanzees slept the previous night. You will spot chimpanzees jumping from one tree to another making a lot of noise. In case you are interested in taking pictures, you must be very attentive because the chimpanzees the jump st a very high speed. When you spot them, you will only be permitted to spend with them an hour. In the evening, you will go for the canopy walk which lasts about 2 hours. Afterwards, you will return to the lodge for relaxation, dinner and overnight stay.
Accommodation: One & only Nyungwe house (Luxury)/ Nyungwe hilltop view (Midrange)
Meal plan: Full board
Day 9: Colobus monkey trekking and transfer to the airport
After breakfast, you will transfer to a walking trail to take part in Colobus monkey trekking. This will take you to the black and white colobus monkey. This amazing experience begins at 7:00 am in the company of an armed ranger guide. After the trek, you will be transferred to Kigali international airport for your flight to the next destination.
End of tour
Inclusions
Private transportation
English speaking guide
Gorilla permits
Golden monkey permits
Chimpanzee permits
Colobus monkey permit
Accommodation
Meals as mentioned above
Ibwiwachu cultural tour
Canopy walk
Boat ride along the twin lakes
Park entrance fees
Game drives
Boat cruise
Al transfers
Exclusions
Visa fees
Tips & gratuities
Visa fees
Air tickets
Personal expenses