With 9 days Akagera, Volcanoes & Nyungwe tour, you will get the best of what Rwanda has to offer to the world. Rwanda – ‘the land of a thousand hills’ is endowed naturally, so on this 9 days, you will be visiting 3 of its premier destinations, that is, Akagera National Park, Volcanoes National Park and Nyungwe Forest National Park.
The safari to explore Rwanda starts and ends in Kigali City, taking 8 nights and 9 days.
The long Rwanda safari incorporates wildlife viewing experience in the savannas of Akagera National Park and tropical forest adventure, including trekking mountain gorillas and golden monkeys in Volcanoes National Park. Don’t miss chimpanzee tracking in Nyungwe Forest National Park. You get to see all the BIG FIVE in a single habitat and combine that experience with mountain gorillas and chimpanzee encounter in this rain-forest.
Detailed Itinerary of 9 Days Akagera, Volcanoes & Nyungwe Tour
Day 1: Drive to Akagera National Park
Meet your Rwanda safari leader for a warm welcome and briefing about your 9 days ultimate vacation. You will leave the hotel or Kigali airport and drive for 2 and half hours to the Eastern side of Rwanda to visit Akagera National Park. For early arrival, you will have lunch and late in the afternoon, a guided boat cruise on Lake Ihema, but this is optional. So, you will enjoy sight of aquatic life including hundreds of swimming hippos, basking crocodiles, birds and more.
Accommodation
- Luxury: Magashi Tented Camp
- Midrange: Ruzizi Tented Camp
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Travel time: 2.3 hours. 30 Min Helicopter.
Day 2: Akagera day guided game drive, boat cruise
Enjoy a hefty breakfast, and thereafter begin the big 5 game expedition via the savanna plains of Akagera National Park. The game drive will likely take you 2-3 hours and expected animal sightings range from leopards, elephants, lions, buffaloes, Maasai giraffes, rhinos, roan antelopes, impalas, elands, and kobs among others.
You will return to be provided a delicious lunch back at the lodge in Akagera, refresh and later go view more species of the Park on a boat cruise along Lake Ihema. On Lake Ihema, guided boat cruise excursions, lots of hippos, crocodiles, aquatic birds will be clearly seen.
Accommodation
- Luxury: Magashi Tented Camp
- Midrange: Ruzizi Tented Camp
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Travel time: 2.3 hours
Day 3: Journey to Nyungwe – part of 9 days Akagera Tour
After breakfast, exit the spectacular Akagera National Park for Nyungwe Forest National Park a home to 13 primate species, 6 hours’ drive. Over 500 chimpanzees plus 400 colobus monkeys and other primates, 310 birds and other species all live in Nyungwe Forest. Relax the entire evening as you wait for the chimp trek the next day.
Accommodation
- Luxury: One & Only Nyungwe House
- Mid-range: Nyungwe Top View Lodge
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Travel time: 6 hours. 40 Min Helicopter.
Day 4: Nyungwe chimp trek and canopy walk
2-4 hours of chimpanzee tracking in Nyungwe kick starts at 7:00am with briefing about dos and don’ts to be followed on a visit to see chimpanzees. A park ranger will be allocated to you, to escort you to the chimpanzee communities that are open for tracking and upon locating the chimpanzees, you will spend about one hour with them.
What is amazing about Nyungwe forest chimpanzee trek is that you also have a chance of seeing diversity of other primates, birds and more. After tracking chimps, you will return to relax at the lodge and have lunch. Then the afternoon will take you through a Canopy Walk – the only forest canopy walk in East Africa.
Accommodation
- Luxury: One & Only Nyungwe House
- Mid-range: Nyungwe Top View Lodge
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Travel time: 6 hours. 40 Min Helicopter.
Day 5: Volcanoes National Park in Ruhengeri
Drive to Volcanoes National Park in a 4×4 safari vehicle for about 5 hours while enjoying the beautiful countryside. En-route you will enjoy view of Lake Kivu and get lunch at Musanze upon arrival. You will proceed for a cultural tour in Iby’Iwacu Cultural Village to interact with the ex-poachers who now turned into strong advocates of wildlife conservation.
Accommodation
- Luxury: One & Only Gorilla’s Nest
- Midrange: Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel
Meals: Lunch and Dinner
Travel time: 6 hours. 40 Min Helicopter.
Day 6: Gorilla trekking in Musanze, Volcanoes National Park
After breakfast, the long awaiting day has finally reached and being a special day, make sure that you wake up early. By 7:00 am you will be at Kinigi with snacks, and bottled water, well dressed for briefing on gorilla trekking guidelines before being allocated to a group of gorillas to visit. Musanze’s Volcanoes National Park is a home to 12 habituated gorilla families and you will be allowed to visit only one this day.
Tracking gorillas in Rwanda’s Volcanoes can last 2-6 hours which includes one hour of photo taking, and exploring more about their behaviors. Directly observe these apes, enjoy their body gestures and more and return to relax at the lodge the entire evening.
Accommodation
- Luxury: One & Only Gorilla’s Nest
- Midrange: Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel
Meals: Lunch and Dinner
Day 7: Golden monkey tracking – part of 9 days Akagera, Volcanoes and Nyungwe Tour
After you have had breakfast, gather at the offices of Volcanoes National Park to be allocated a park ranger. You will also have insight into golden monkey tracking rules or Dian Fossey trek.
To see golden monkeys in the wild is another remarkable experience and it takes you 2-4 hours to wind. This is the forest to search for these apes that are endemic to only Virunga region.
After one hour of striking encounter with golden monkeys, walk back to have rest of evening or a guided nature walk at the lodge.
Accommodation
- Luxury: One & Only Gorilla’s Nest
- Midrange: Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel
Meals: Lunch and Dinner
Day 8: To Kigali
Get your breakfast at leisure and after, you will check out and meet with your driver guide for transfer back to Kigali City. In Kigali, you will engage in a city tour which lets you to visit a local market to purchase some fresh fruits, visit the Kigali Genocide Site to learn what happened during the 1994 Rwanda genocide. Rest the entire evening and overnight sleep at the lodge.
Accommodation
- Luxury: Serena Hotel Kigali
- Mid-range: Kigali Marriott Hotel
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Travel time: 2.3 hours. 30 Min Helicopter.
Day 9: Departure
After a leisurely cup of tea or coffee, drive to Kigali International Airport to fly back home or the next destination – this marks the end of 9 days Akagera Volcanoes & Nyungwe.
Meals: Breakfast and Lunch.
9 Days Akagera, Volcanoes & Nyungwe Tour Inclusions:-
- Full time 4×4 vehicle for road trip
- English or French speaking driver guide
- Meals
- Bottled water
- All park entrance fees
- All relevant Rwanda government taxes
Safari Exclusions
- All international airfares
- Tips
- Porter fees
- Laundry
- Insurance
- Telephone etc