10-Day Rwanda Big 5 + Chimps + Gorilla Ultimate Odyssey

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

Arrive in kigali, Karibu

A Nyumbu Beyond Journeys representative will meet you on arrival at Kigali International Airport. After a brief welcome and introduction briefing you will be transferred to and thereafter be transferred to Hotel Des Mille Collines to check-in. After settling in you will be taken to the Kigali Genocide Memorial and, if time permits, a city tour including food and Caplaki curio markets. Return to your hotel for a wonderful dinner and Overnight.

Main Destination:

Kigali International Airport (Kigali)

Accommodation:

Hotel Des Mille Collines

• Luxury hotel located in Kigali

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Meals & Drinks:

• Lunch & dinner (Breakfast not included)
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Transfer to Akagera National Park

After a delicious breakfast, your guide will drive you to Akagera National Park - a relaxed 2.5-hour journey of 109km. You may stop on the way at roadside curio and art markets to find Imigongo crafts and to taste superb Rwandan coffee. Your arrival at Akagera will be in good time for lunch and an afternoon activity.

The 1,122km2 (112,200 hectares) Akagera is on the eastern edge of Rwanda, where the sinuous bends of the Akagera River mark the boundary with Tanzania. The national park safeguards Central Africa’s largest protected wetland, consisting of a complex system of lakes linked by papyrus-lined swamps. Away from the marshes, the jagged lines of animal pathways weave across vast plains and sweeping highlands like a network of veins, a testament to Akagera’s status as a refuge for savannah-adapted wildlife. Akagera is a Big 5 safari destination.

Main Destination:

Akagera National Park

Best Time To Visit June to September and mid-December to mid-February (It is drier and wildlife is easier to spot)

High Season June to September (The park is busiest at weekends)

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

Wildlife in Akagera NP

GiraffeCommon

BuffaloAbundant

ZebraAbundant

HippoAbundant

White RhinoOccasional

LionOccasional

Show more

ElephantOccasional

Black RhinoRare

LeopardRare

HyenaRare

CheetahNone

WildebeestNone

Wild DogNone

Accommodation:

Akagera Rhino Lodge

• Mid-range lodge located just outside Akagera NP

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Meals & Drinks:

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

Morning game drive and Boat cruise on Lake Ihema

After early breakfast, you will depart on a morning game drive to find the park's Big 5 and other species. After returning in the late morning to your lodge, a scrumptious lunch awaits, followed by a siesta. Mid-afternoon is a great time to enjoy a boat cruise on Lake Ihema, with an evening game drive back to your lodge. Dinner and overnight.

Main Destination:

Akagera National Park

Accommodation:

Akagera Rhino Lodge

• Mid-range lodge located just outside Akagera NP

Meals & Drinks:

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

Fully safari time in Akagera

After another delicious early breakfast, you will head out into the park for another exciting day of exploration and wildlife sightings. This time you will take a packed lunch, to allow the time to explore the wildlife-rich northern area of Akagera. Depending on the route taken and encounters along the way, you may stop at the wonderful Lake Mihindi cafe for freshly brewed coffee and toasted sandwiches. You will return to the lodge via the many game drive tracks, for fireside drinks and dinner looking over magnificent Lake Ihema.

Dinner and overnight.

Main Destination:

Akagera National Park

Accommodation:

Akagera Rhino Lodge

• Mid-range lodge located just outside Akagera NP

Meals & Drinks:

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

Transfer to Kigali city

After an early Akagera breakfast, your guide will collect you from the lodge for the 2.5-hour drive back to Kigali. You may stop on the way at roadside curio and art markets to find Imigongo crafts and to taste superb Rwandan coffee. You will arrive in Kigali in time for a restaurant lunch and a possible city tour before checking in again.

Main Destination:

Kigali Genocide Memorial (Kigali)

Accommodation:

Hotel Des Mille Collines

• Luxury hotel located in Kigali

Meals & Drinks:

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

Drive to Nyungwe National Park

After a leisurely breakfast, your guide will pick you up for the 224 km drive from Kigali to Nyungwe National Park. The drive takes about 6 ½ hrs via a fascinating tour of the famous Butare National Museum, which offers a superb display of ethnographic objects such as traditional ceramics and basketry and explanations of daily rural life in Rwanda. The museum remained surprisingly untouched during the civil war in 1994. After lunch en route, you will arrive in good time for dinner at lodge, which lies close to the national park boundary.

Nyungwe National Park hosts Africa's most extensive protected tract of montane forest and a biodiversity hotspot of note. Nyungwe covers 1,019km2 (over 100,000 hectares) of forested mountains, burbling streams, sun-starved valleys, and extensive swamps. Part of the Albertine Rift and ranging in altitude from 1,600-3,000m, this high-altitude montane forest towers above Lake Kivu and comprises the watershed between the Congo and Nile Rivers.

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)

Chimpanzee trekking and the Canopy Walk

After an early morning breakfast, you will head out with a packed lunch to the starting point of your chimpanzee trek.
After your chimp trek, prepare for the most spectacular views of Afromontane forest anywhere. Nyungwe 160m long Canopy Walkway hangs 70m above the forest - making for excellent photographic moments and canopy-level views of birds and monkeys. After this exhilarating experience, you will return to lodge for dinner and a well-earned sleep.

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)

More primate encounters, then drive to Volcanoes National Park

After an early morning wakeup, you will drive to the Nyungwe NP visitors centre at Uwinka to embark on a walk to find the local mega-troop of over 400 Rwenzori pied colobus monkeys. After this exhilarating activity, you will head back to your hotel for a delicious breakfast and to check out.

Your guide will then pick you up for the 5-6-hour 245 km drive to Volcanoes National Park.
Volcanoes is renowned as one of the leading mountain gorilla trekking destinations in Africa. This volcanic landscape's breathtaking scenery includes tropical, bamboo and montane forests, Afroalpine shrubland, thicket, and grassland with marshes and small lakes interspersed. Tucked in Rwanda’s north-western corner on the borders of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, this 160km 2 (16,000 hectare) gem consists of five major (non-active) volcanoes.

You will arrive in good time for lunch. Spend the afternoon relaxing before dinner and overnight at the lodge.

Main Destination:

Nyungwe National Park (Chimps)

Accommodation:

Da Vinci Gorilla Lodge

• Mid-range lodge located just outside Volcanoes NP (Gorillas)

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Meals & Drinks:

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

Mountain gorilla trekking and Cultural experience

After an early breakfast, your guide will drive you to the national park headquarters for your gorilla trekking experience.
Your time with mountain gorillas is limited to one hour once you find them, so make the most of what is one of the most breathtaking wildlife experiences on earth!

After your gorilla trek, you will return to your lodge for lunch and an afternoon of leisure. You will also visit the Iby’Iwacu Cultural Village and mingle with the local community in the cultural activities and traditional Rwandan dances. After an exhilarating and full day, return for dinner and overnight at lodge.

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:

Da Vinci Gorilla Lodge

• Mid-range lodge located just outside Volcanoes NP (Gorillas)

Meals & Drinks:

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

Golden monkey trekking and transfer to Kigali

After an early breakfast at the lodge, you will return to Volcanoes National Park, this time to trek for golden monkeys. Golden monkeys are an endangered primate species found only in the Virunga Mountains range, which covers the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda.
Entering dense stands of bamboo interspersed with open glades, you will make your way deep into golden monkey territory where you will have one hour of up-close time with these fascinating and beautiful monkeys.

Back to the lodge for an early lunch and check out for a drive back to Kigali, with a stop en route for photographic moments. This relaxing activity of about 2-3 hours includes a few modest rapids and gliding through rural Rwandan countryside.

Your arrival at Kigali International Airport will be timed for your departure.

Main Destination:

Volcanoes National Park (Gorillas)

Accommodation:

No accommodation (End of tour)

Meals & Drinks:

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

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