9 Days Best Of Rwanda Safaris give you the top 9 things to do on a Rwanda safari Tours Our 9 Days Best Of Rwanda, Rwanda Gorilla tours that reward you with an all-around educational and enriching experience of this beautiful country. Apart from 9 Days Best Of Rwanda safaris, or Rwanda facts, you also track chimpanzees, golden monkeys and see more 10 other primate species, relax at Lake Kivu, visit cultural villages, wildlife game drives in Akagera National Park seeing lions, giraffes, leopard, hippos among others.
Best of Rwanda Safaris overview
Day 1: Kigali City Tour
Day 2: Kigali – Akagera National Park – Game Drive
Day 3: Akagera National Park – Kigali
Day 4: Kigali – Nyungwe – Rwanda Cultural Tour
Day 5: Nyungwe Forest National Park | Chimpanzee Trekking & Cultural Tour
Day 6: Colobus Trails of Nyungwe & Lake Kivu
Day 7: Volcanoes National Park & Golden Monkey Tracking
Day 8: Parc National des Volcans – Gorilla Trekking
Day 9: Parc National des Volcans | Golden Monkey Trekking & Kigali
Day 1: Rwanda City Tour
On your arrival at Kigali International Airport meet our Driver guide who brief you about your 9 Days Best Of Rwanda Safaris and later he will drive you to the hotel for check in. You can opt for a city tour depend on your time of arrival.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Serena Kigali Hotel
Mid-range: Flame Tree Hotel
Best Budget: Step Town Hotel
Meal Plan: Breakfast and Lunch
Day 2: Drive to Akagera National Park – Game Drive
Have breakfast at the hotel and drive through Rwanda’s phenomenal landscapes to Akagera National Park. Afternoon Proceed with the southern game drive alongside the Lake Ihema circuit where a plenty of animals can be seen, including elephants, Masai giraffes, buffaloes, zebras, hippos, Nile crocodiles and also many other mammal species. This game drive will also enable you to clearly view the gentle hills blending beautifully with lowland swamps and water bodies.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Ruzizi Tented Lodge
Midrange: Akagera Game Lodge
Best Budget: Akagera Game Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 3: Morning Game drive – Return to Kigali
After breakfast you will have your second game drive in the southern sector of Akagera National Park. After we drive back to Kigali for dinner and overnight.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Serena Kigali Hotel | Marriot Hotel | Des Milles Colline Hotel
Mid-range: Flame Tree Hotel | Golf Hills Residence
Best Budget: Step Town Hotel | Five to five Hotel
Meal Plan: Breakfast and Lunch
Day 4: Drive to Nyungwe – Rwanda Cultural Tour
An early morning breakfast is followed by a drive to Nyungwe Forest National Park. On the way visit Nyanza King’s Palace, the National Museum of Butare. Nyanza was the headquarters of the ancient Rwanda Kingdom before the arrival of the Europeans. The compound has the ancient palace constructed by King Mutara in 1934. Next to it is the reconstructed King’s hut as it was on the arrival of the Europeans. It is tastefully decorated with the traditional mats and utensils. The Butare Museum is reputed to be the best ethnographic museum in East Africa. It is the home of the national ballet-intoro dancers.
Have lunch at Butare and proceed to Nyungwe National Park.
Accommodation:
Upmarket: Nyungwe Top View Hill Lodge | Nyungwe Forest Lodge
Mid-range: Nyungwe Top View Hill Lodge
Best Budget: Gisakura Guesthouse
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 5: Chimpanzee Trekking & Canopy walk
Have breakfast at 4:30 am before you enter Nyungwe Forest in search for 13 primate’s species and over 300 bird species, making it a bird watcher’s paradise! Nyungwe Forest is one of the destinations in the world where you can see up to 13 primate’s species; these include chimpanzees, the blue monkeys, L’Hoest’s monkeys, endangered golden monkeys and the black and white colobus monkeys among others. Nyungwe forest has huge concentrations of habituated primates whose troops can include 400 to 500 individuals! This is a unique tourism phenomenon.
Nyungwe forest is a nature lover’s paradise. The only remaining mountain rain forest in East and Central Africa, Nyungwe boasts of 260 species of trees and shrubs, over 200 species of orchids and giant lobelias, 275 Species of birds of which 25 are endemic, colorful butterflies and 13 recorded species of primates (25% of Africa’s total) including the chimpanzees.
Afternoon we go for Canopy walk before we return for dinner and overnight.
Accommodation:
Upmarket: Nyungwe Top View Hill Lodge | Nyungwe Forest Lodge
Mid-range: Nyungwe Top View Hill Lodge
Best Budget: Gisakura Guesthouse
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 6: Colobus Trails of Nyungwe & Lake Kivu
After breakfast enter Nyungwe Forest to track the Nyungwe colobus monkey at Uwinka.The Uwinka troop is reputed to be 400 strong is reputed to be the largest troop of arboreal primates in Africa. A walk in the forest is a whole learning experience conducted by knowledgeable guides well versed in botany, ornithology and inter species relationship in this forest.
Enjoy a breath-taking scenery of the Virunga Mountains and the green vegetation enroute. You will have lunch enroute and proceed to Lake Kivu or relaxing on the shores. Enjoy the rolling hills for which Rwanda is well known.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Serena Lake Kivu Hotel
Midrange: Paradise Malahide.
Best Budget: Paradise Malahide.
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 7: Drive to Volcanoes National Park
Have breakfast and drive to Volcanoes National park, In the afternoon, you will go for cultural walk at Iby’wachu for cultural entertainment by the Banyarwanda community.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Mountain Gorilla View Lodge | Five Volcanoes Lodge
Mid-range: Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge
Best Budget: Kinigi Guest House | Hotel Muhabura | Lapalm Hotel
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 8: Parc National des Volcans – Gorilla Trekking
Have breakfast and go to park offices for briefing after that proceed in the forest for gorilla trekking. A thrilling trek through the refined foothills of the Virunga provides inspiring views in all directions. Then, suddenly, the trail enters the national park, engrossing trekkers in the strange closeness of the rain-forest, alive with the calls of colorful birds and chattering of the rare golden monkey, and besieged with fresh spoor of the mountain’s elusive populations of buffalo and elephant.
Through gaps in the forest canopy, the marvelous peaks are sighted, easily to get to and among the uppermost in Africa, indicating an ascent. Rwanda Gorilla trekking Safaris is quite strenuous but a worthwhile on encounter of these gentle giants. The enthusiasm of your coming across with these apes will wipe away your intricacy of the strenuous trek.
Spend time watching gorillas, watch the adults feeding their young ones, brushing and resting as the youngsters play from vines in a pleasurably playful display
Accommodation:
Luxury: Mountain Gorilla View Lodge | Five Volcanoes Lodge
Mid-range: Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge
Best Budget: Kinigi Guest House | Hotel Muhabura | Lapalm Hotel
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 9: Parc National des Volcans | Golden Monkey Trekking & Kigali
Today 9 Days Best Of Rwanda Safaris start with early breakfast at the lodge and enter the forest in search for golden monkeys and other primates. The trek will expose you to excellent birding and other primates like colobus monkeys, blue monkeys, red-tailed monkeys and grey-cheeked mangabeys among others.
After the trek, proceed to Kigali Airport for your scheduled flight back home
Please note that this is a guideline program that may be customized according to traveler’s needs and preferences. The variations are normally made to improve the tour and your experience.