5 Days Rwanda gorillas and Lake Kivu safari

The 5 days Rwanda gorillas and Lake Kivu safari will take you to Volcanoes national park which is one of the most visited protected areas in northwestern Rwanda. While in the park you will engage in an adventurous gorilla trekking and golden monkey trekking which give you an opportunity to spend one hour with the primates in their natural environment. From Volcanoes national park you will connect to Lake Kivu for a boat cruise where you will take beautiful photos, view various bird species, terraced hills, scenery, landscapes, fishermen in dugout canoes among others which makes your safari exciting and unforgettable .

Highlights of the 5 days Rwanda gorillas and Lake Kivu safari

Day 1: Pick up and transfer to volcanoes national park

Day 2: Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park

Day 3: Golden monkey trekking and cultural tour

Day 4: Transfer to Lake Kivu

Day 5: Departure to Kigali

Detailed itinerary

Day 1 of the 5 days Rwanda gorillas and Lake Kivu safari

Transfer to Volcanoes national park, depending on your arrival time on the first day of the 5 days Rwanda gorillas and Lake Kivu safari you will be welcomed by our driver guide who will brief you about the safari and then start the journey to Volcanoes national park in northwestern Rwanda. On your way you will have great views of the rolling hills, homesteads, beautiful scenery, landscapes among others and upon arrival in the park you will check into the lodge for an evening relaxation, have dinner and overnight.

Day 2: Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park

Gorilla trekking, after an early breakfast on the second day of your 5 days Rwanda gorillas and Lake Kivu safari you will carry packed lunch and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kinigi park headquarters for a briefing about the rules and regulations of gorilla trekking. Gorilla trekking is done in groups of 8 people where each group is allocated a gorilla family to trek and a park guide who will be sharing information about the gorillas and also showing you the trails to follow. Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park starts at around 8:00am and takes 30 minutes to 6 hours depending on the location of the gorillas and during trekking you will have views of the bird species, animals, plant and tree species, primates among others. Once the gorillas are found you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural environment which gives you an opportunity to take photos, record videos, learn more about their lifestyle, behaviors, habits, watch them carry out their daily activities, breastfeed among others. After spending one hour with the gentle giants you will trek back to the park headquarters, meet up with your driver guide and transfer to the lodge for an evening relaxation, dinner and overnight.

Day 3: Golden monkey trekking and cultural tour

Golden monkey trekking, on the third day of your 5 days Rwanda gorillas and Lake Kivu safari  you will have an early breakfast and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to the park headquarters for a briefing about the rules and regulations to follow during golden monkey trekking. After the briefing you will be allocated a park guide who is well conversant with the trails in the forest and then start trekking which takes about 30 minutes to 4 hours depending on the location of the golden monkeys because they like to move from one place to another in search of food. Once the golden monkeys are found you will be able to spend one hour with them in their natural habitat which gives you an opportunity to take photos, record videos, learn more about their behaviors, habits, lifestyle, watch them jump from one tree to another which gives you interesting moments on your safari. After the one hour encounter with the golden monkeys you will trek back to the park headquarters, meet up with your driver guide and drive to the lodge for lunch.

Cultural tour, after lunch you will go for a cultural tour in the communities around Volcanoes national park. during the cultural tour you will visit Ibyi’wacu cultural village where you will have an opportunity of interacting with the local people, tasting Rwandan traditional food, learning how to locally brewed beer from bananas, enjoy Kinyarwanda songs, dances, music and drama, listen to ancient stories among others. After the cultural tour you will transfer back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.

Day 4: Transfer to Lake Kivu

After breakfast on the fourth day of your 5 days Rwanda gorillas and Lake Kivu safari, you will check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Gisenyi for a boat cruise on Lake Kivu which is the largest fresh water lake in Rwanda. During the boat cruise you will have spectacular views of the steep terraced hills, beautiful scenery, view the sunset, various bird species like malachite kingfishers, majestic crowned cranes, interact with the fishermen who will be fishing in dugout canoes, engage in various activities along the lake shores such as swimming, sunbathing, speed boating, canoeing among others which gives you lifetime memories. After the amazing experience on the lake you will go back to your lodge for dinner and overnight.

Day 5: Departure to Kigali

On the last day of the 5 days Rwanda gorillas and Lake Kivu safari you will have a relaxed breakfast, check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kigali for a city tour. During the city tour you will visit Kigali genocide memorial centre where you will know about brutal killing of many people in Rwanda during the 1994 Rwanda genocide between the Hutus and Tutsi. After the genocide tour you will visit Kandt museum of natural history, craft centers where you will buy souvenirs to take back home. After the city tour you will have lunch in one of the restaurants where you will taste Rwandan dishes and after continue with the journey to Kigali international airport for your next flight.

End of 5 days Rwanda gorillas and Lake Kivu safari

Tour includes

Tour excludes