This 9-Day Rwanda Safari starts and ends in Kigali, Rwanda’s capital. It will take you to the most sought-after travel destinations in Rwanda.
These include Kigali city, Akagera National Park, famous for its amazing launch trip on Lake Ihema, the Big Five mammals, and unique flora.
The 9-Day Rwanda Safari also presents Nyungwe Forest National Park, known as the primate capital of Rwanda. Volcanoes National Park, on the other hand, is a highlight of the Rwanda safari.
This national park shelters over 400 mountain gorillas, making up over a quarter of the remaining mountain gorilla population in the world.
9-Day Rwanda Safari Highlights
- Day 1: Arrival in Kigali, City Tour & Overnight
- Day 2: Transfer to Akagera National Park
- Day 3: Game Drive & Boat Cruise
- Day 4: Morning Game Drive & Transfer to Volcanoes National Park
- Day 5: Gorilla Trekking & Evening Cultural Tour
- Day 6: Golden Monkey Trekking & Dian Fossey/Musanze Caves Tour
- Day 7: Transfer to Nyungwe Forest
- Day 8: Chimpanzee Trekking & Canopy Walk
- Day 9: Return to Kigali
Detailed 9-Day Rwanda Safari Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival in Kigali, City Tour & Overnight
Upon your arrival at Kigali airport for your 9-Day Rwanda Safari, meet and greet with the company guide. The guide will brief you about the final itinerary of the safari. Transfer thereafter to your booked hotel in Kigali city. Depending on the arrival time, you can undertake a city tour in Kigali, Africa’s most beautiful and cleanest city.
During a city tour, visit the Kigali Genocide Museum, which presents a commemoration of the horrible 1994 genocide that happened in Rwanda. Visit the Kigali craft market in Rwanda to interact with the local people and to purchase some souvenirs.
Visit the Presidential Palace Museum, Nyarutarama Golf Club, Richard Kandt Museum, and the Belgium Memorial Site. Retreat from the excursion, go for lunch in one of the traditional restaurants in the city.
Time permitting, visit the Ntarama and Nyamata Genocide Memorial sites on the outskirts of Kigali city. These are other historical sites that portray the tragedy of the 1994 genocide that befell Rwanda. After the tour, the guide will drive you back to your hotel in Kigali city for dinner and an overnight stay.
Day 2: Transfer to Akagera National Park
Depart early to Akagera National Park, a drive of approximately 2-3 hours. This park is set amidst the plains of Akagera River and is home to a wide variety of wildlife, including elephants, lions, hippos, buffaloes, antelopes, and numerous species of birds.
The journey to Akagera is about 110 km, taking about 2.5 hours to reach the park. En route, the journey offers you beautiful scenery of rolling hills, for which the country Rwanda is well known.
You will arrive at park headquarters in mid-morning and register before undertaking an interesting behind-the-scenes tour. Here key park management will go through the history of Akagera National Park (Africa’s 2nd oldest National Park), their anti-poaching methods and confiscated items, conservation measures, and a look at their innovative tracking room which monitors the movements of the park’s newest inhabitants – the lions and rhinos. Dinner and overnight stay at a lodge.
Day 3: Game Drive & Boat Cruise
Following an early breakfast at your lodge overlooking the scenic plains, proceed on a game drive to discover the Big 5 residents of Akagera National Park. While on this morning game drive, look out for the early risers, nocturnal, as well as large predators, including lions, leopards, and hyenas.
The Akagera game drive lasts between 3-4 hours. Return to the lodge thereafter for lunch and relaxation. In the afternoon after lunch, embark on a leisurely boat cruise along Lake Ihema. This is a 3-hour cruise along Rwanda’s second biggest lake.
Lake Ihema shores are dotted with herds of lazy buffaloes, pods of hippos wallowing, and uncountable birdlife. In the evening, return to the lodge for relaxation and an overnight stay.
Day 4: Morning Game Drive & Transfer to Volcanoes National Park
Have an early breakfast and prepare for yet another short game drive as you make your way out of Akagera all the way to the northern province, Volcanoes National Park.
Akagera National Park has a myriad of savannah animals, and it is where one can spot lions and rhinos. The lions were introduced 4 years ago, and their numbers are increasing healthily. The rhinos are only less than a year in the park, so it will be a great day if we manage to spot them.
This is big savannah country with several lakes dotting the landscape, creating further opportunities to spot birdlife and hippos. The game drive lasts between 3-4 hours. Return to the lodge thereafter for refreshing.
Transfer to Volcanoes National Park in the Northern Province of Rwanda, arriving for dinner and an overnight stay.
Day 5: Gorilla Trekking & Evening Cultural Tour
Have an early delicious breakfast at the lodge, and your safari guide will lead you to the park headquarters to attend a briefing session about the dos and don’ts of gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park.
A gorilla trek in Rwanda is an exciting adventure as it provides unmatched views of the Virunga ranges in all directions. Follow a trail that penetrates the rainforest filled with an array of wildlife species.
Wildlife in Volcanoes National Park includes buffaloes, forest elephants, primates, and a huge population of birds.
After a long hike through the jungles, you will finally come face to face with these wonderful giants and be allowed up to a full hour to interact with them, take photos, and get acquainted with their daily lifestyle.
This is the highlight of any wildlife safari in Rwanda. You will see the gorillas play, feed, jump, and go about their daily routine.
After trekking, take your picnic lunch/snacks and get back to the starting point. Link up with your guide, who will drive you back to the lodge.
In the evening, if you are not tired, opt for a community tour to the nearby Iby’Iwachu village and enjoy cultural performances, traditional activities, local brew, songs, and stories. Return to the lodge for an overnight stay.
Day 6: Golden Monkey Trekking & Dian Fossey/Musanze Caves Tour
Have breakfast and proceed to Volcanoes National Park headquarters for another briefing, this time for golden monkey trekking; and not gorilla trekking. Enter into the bamboo forest, on the lower slopes of the Virunga Mountains where these shy, rare primates inhabit. Golden monkey trekking tours last between 1-5 hours, depending on the movements of the golden monkeys.
During trekking, you will meet other resident primates in the park like blue and black colobus monkeys, vervet monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, and olive baboons, among others.
After trekking the golden monkeys, spend the rest of your afternoon touring either Musanze Caves or taking a hike to Dian Fossey’s grave to pay your last respects to a famous primatologist, Dian Fossey, who died during her effort to save mountain gorillas from extinction in the Virunga region.
Day 7: Transfer to Nyungwe Forest
Depart after breakfast to Nyungwe Forest. The drive passes via rural villages and bustling small towns, taking approx. 5-6 hours, stopping for a picnic lunch at Lake Kivu. View the towering Congo Blue Mountains, plus the Congo-Nile drive.
Nyungwe is an enchanting ancient rainforest that harbors a notable range of flora and fauna, birdlife, forest mammals, and most importantly, primates.
Nyungwe Forest is the biggest in Rwanda and famous for its remarkable primate population, including chimpanzees, diademed monkeys, olive baboons, red-tailed monkeys, and black-and-white colobus monkeys.
Optional excursions around Nyungwe include a guided forest walk, visits to the tea plantations, cultural tours, hiking, cycling, etc. Have an overnight stay at the lodge overlooking the dense forest.
Day 8: Chimpanzee Trekking & Canopy Walk
Today is sure to be amazing! After breakfast, join your guide and drive to Nyungwe Forest Park headquarters, a 30-minute drive bringing you to the chimpanzee pre-trek briefing point.
Enter into the forest to begin your hunt for chimps, following well-defined paths marked with their droppings, or hearing them pant-hoot up in the trees. Trackers and rangers will help you locate a chimpanzee troop as fast as possible.
Their sightings cannot be guaranteed, but chances of spotting them are as high as 95%. Once you finally find them, spend approximately an hour observing and following their movements as they jump from one tree to another.
Have lunch, and start the canopy walk experience by 1400 hrs. Nyungwe Forest Canopy Walk is one of the few canopy walk experiences in Africa and the first of its kind in East Africa.
It is a hanging bridge suspended to offer 360-degree views over the valley and the entire forest. The walking trail extends to Kamiranzovu swamp, with its numerous birdlife, orchids, and waterfall.
This canopy walk lasts close to 2 hours and provides an exhilarating perspective on the ancient treetops and resident wildlife. The notable primate sightings during the walk include various species of monkeys like the black-and-white colobus, L’Hoest’s monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, blue monkeys, and an array of birdlife endemic to the Nyungwe forest.
Day 9: Return to Kigali
After breakfast on this last day of your 9-Day Rwanda Safari, embark on a journey to Kigali. Drive for 2 hours until you make a first stop in Butare (the second largest city in Rwanda after Kigali) for a cultural experience.
Visit the King’s Palace, which avails a detailed insight into the Rwandan traditional setting and their monarchy. It presents a breathtaking historical display, reinstated to its 19th-century state and made up of entirely traditional materials.
An Ethnographic Museum of Rwanda is located nearby and presents an impressive display of ancient and historic antiquities from throughout Rwandan history.
While here, you’ll be entertained by an organized traditional Rwandan dance troupe. After this excursion, have lunch and proceed to Kigali city in the evening. Check in at your pre-booked lodge for an overnight stay or be dropped off at the airport for an onward flight.
End of 9-Day Rwanda Safari.
