10 nights
Round Trip
Rwanda Primates & Safaris
Kigali, Nyungwe Forest, Lake Kivu, Volcanoes National Park, Akagera National Park

By Vehicle Travel by road to Kigali Serena Hotel
1 night Kigali Serena Hotel, Kigali

Taken over by the Serena group in 2007, Kigali Serena Hotel is now a modern, contemporary hotel providing a good accommodation option in Kigali.

From standard room to presidential suite, this 150-room hotel offers various categories of accommodation. All rooms come with 24 hr service, air conditioning, WiFi, telephone, minibar, safe, hairdryer and coffee station.

The hotel boasts several in-house restaurants, a large swimming pool, fitness studio and spa.

Location
Situated just 10 km from the international airport, Kigali Serena is the perfect option for early leavers or late arrivers.

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Transport Mode Your private Rwanda guide expects you!
Our Rwanda Guide is already waiting for you and welcomes you warmly. You have a private vehicle at your disposal which is equipped with all that is required to work under difficult road conditions. Our guides are among the best in Rwanda and can tell you a lot about the country and its people. Of course, they are also very good scouts and will show you animals in the parks that others simply pass by. Your guide is your faithful friend & helper for the next days.

By Vehicle Travel by road to Nyungwe House
The journey to Nyungwe Forest takes about 6 hours. Your guide will stop for lunch in the village Butare/Huye. The road then crosses the Nyungwe Forest from east to west. Expect arrival at your accommodation in the course of the afternoon.
3 nights Nyungwe House, Nyungwe Forest

Nyungwe House is refreshingly modern and the best choice for visiting Nyungwe Forest. The lodge is surrounded by tea fields and during the week the workers pick the delicate top tea leaves and carry the harvest to the factory.

The main house is centrally located and elevated on the hill and is surrounded in a semicircle by the individual rooms. The lodge offers a good restaurant, a tea lounge, a bar and a beautiful terrace. Here you can have a wonderful breakfast in the morning when the sun rises behind the forest and the first rays of sun fall on the lush green meadows.

The rooms are in single houses, four rooms per house. In addition there are three suites featuring two bedrooms each. All rooms have a fireplace, air conditioning, safe, tea/coffee station, hairdryer, telephone and WiFi. From your balcony you can see the green of the Nyungwe Forest and sometimes some curious monkeys appear.

There is also a separate heated swimming pool and spa with fitness room.

Location
Established as a national park in 2004, Nyungwe Forest is Africa’s largest mountainous rain forest (970 km²). It is located on the western foothills of East Africa’s Albertine Rift, to which belongs the adjacently situated Mount Huye. The flanks of the Albertine Rift rise up to 3000 metres, traversing Rwanda from north to south.

With an annual rainfall of over 2000 mm, the evergreen Nyungwe Forest is a so-called cloud or fog forest. Nyungwe House is located close to Gisakura on the forest’s western edge.

The lodge can be reached by car from Kigali in approximately 6 hours. You actually cross Nyungwe Forest from East to West before reaching the lodge.

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Transport Mode Visit the Colobus Monkeys in the morning
After an leisurely breakfast you will visit the Colobus monkeys. The Colobus monkeys are often found in an area called Gisakura Forest which has been added to the park in 2005. It is an easy walk from the Reception Center along some tea plantations and takes about 20 minutes. There are other places to find the Colobus monkeys, your guide and the ranger will advise accordingly.

Transport Mode Activities at Nyungwe Forest Lodge
Nyungwe House offers diverse activities that can be booked through the lodge. You may want to visit the Isumo waterfall (5.3km, 2h each way) or visit the Tea Ceremony at Gisakura Tea Estates, which is located close to the lodge. Please report at the reception the evening before and talk to the lodge staff to plan your day accordingly. You may also decide to do nothing at all and just read a book or visit the spa?

Transport Mode Early morning visit of the chimpanzees
You need to get up early this morning! Your guide will drive you to the starting point of the Chimpanzee trekking.

There are two habituated chimp groups in Nyungwe Forest. One of them stays around Uwinka deep in the forest, the second one lives in a forest on the outskirts of Nyungwe, called Cyamudongo (say: Cha-mu-dongo). It is about a one hour-drive from Gisakura Reception Center. Chimp trekking at Cyamudongo offers the best chance to see the chimpanzees.

Transport Mode Activities at Nyungwe Forest Lodge
Nyungwe House offers diverse activities that can be booked through the lodge. You may want to visit the Isumo waterfall (5.3km, 2h each way) or visit the Tea Ceremony at Gisakura Tea Estates, which is located close to the lodge. Please report at the reception the evening before and talk to the lodge staff to plan your day accordingly. You may also decide to do nothing at all and just read a book or visit the spa?

By Vehicle Travel by road to Virunga Lodge
Today's trip with your guide takes you along Lake Kivu to Ruhgengeri / Musanze. The journey takes about 5 hours. You will stop at Cormoran Lodge for a lunch break.
3 nights Virunga Lodge, Volcanoes National Park

Virunga Safari Lodge is built on a 2'300 m high mountain with a terrace that offers breathtaking views of the Virunga volcanoes and the Ruhondo and Bulera lakes. The lodge comprises eight large standard bandas with stylishly furnished rooms and two deluxe bandas with with stone fireplaces, open living room and private terrace.

The central lounge is the lodge's social hub, where guests meet for dinner and exchange stories by the crackling fireside; further entertainment is provided by a local dance troupe. This eco-lodge has been built with local natural materials and runs on solar electricity.

Location
Volcanoes National Park is covered by approximately 160 km² of cloud forest, and home to the Rwandan Mountain Gorilla. Six inactive volcanoes, Muhavura, Mt Gahinga, Karisimbi, Visoke, Mikeno and Sabyinyo, create an incredible backdrop. Volcanoes National Park is known for the scientific studies carried out here by Dian Fossey, who was the first scientist to make detailed studies of the Mountain Gorilla.

Virunga Safari Lodge is situated on a spectacular slope overlooking the Ruhondo and Bulera lakes. The drive to the national park's headquarters takes about an hour; Kigali is located about 3,5 hours drive away.

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Transport Mode Gorilla Trekking Volcanoes National Park
Early next morning, our guide will take you to the headquarters of the park. All guests are assigned to a ranger and a gorilla family. Our guide will drive you to the starting point of the hike where you start trekking with your ranger. Porters are available to carry your backpack.

The trekking takes anything from two hours to seven hours, depending on the location of the gorilla group. Please note that the duration of stay with the gorillas is strictly limited to one hour. The gorillas are often very curious towards guests, especially the teenagers in the group like to investigate.

Transport Mode Golden Monkey Trekking Volcanoes National Park
Today you visit the Golden Monkeys, which is an easy walk in a beautiful bamboo forest and well worth it. You are back around noon.

Heli Ride Flight to Magashi Camp
Your guide will say goodbye to you today and you will enjoy a unique helicopter flight over the Twin Lakes and the hilly landscape to the savannahs and lakes of Akagera National Park. The flight takes about 45 minutes. You will be greeted at the landing site and taken to the camp.
3 nights Magashi Camp, Akagera National Park

Magashi Camp is small and personal six-tented camp with access to some of the most scenic savannah in east Africa. It is situated in the north-eastern part of Akagera overlooking Lake Rwanyakazinga.

Location
Akagera National Park sits on the north-eastern edge of Rwanda. It is the largest National Park in Rwanda and covers an area of 1'122km². It borders Tanzania and incorporates the Kagera River which feeds a myriad of smaller and larger lakes, channels and flood planes. The western side of the park is dominated by a mountain rage (highest point 2300m), wheras the northern part is rather flat with a good number of buffaloes, giraffes, zebras and antelopes roaming the savannah.

Akagera was founded in 1934. Sadly much of the park was re-allocated as farms to returning refugees following the Rwandan Civil War. As a result, in 1997 the park was reduced in size from more than 2,500km² (nearly 10% of the surface area of Rwanda) to its current extent of 1,122km².

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By Vehicle Travel by road to Kigali
The Magashi Team takes you to the park gate in the morning. Our transfer vehicle leaves the the gate at 11 am. Please do not expect your arrival at Kigali before 14:30.
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Details & Prices

Basic Information
Individual journey. A professional guide will accompany you on this trip. The journey will be planned on your preferred dates.

Duration 10 nights. Min 2 guests. Weight limit of luggage 20 kg. Luggage in one soft bag only.
Your travel in your private vehicle with your personal driver / guide. On the way to Nyungwe we stop for lunch in Butare. Includes a helicopter transfer from Ruhengeri to Akagera in a Robinson (R44). Maximum weight of passengers + luggage is 180kg. A larger helicopter is available, at an additional price, should this be required.
Inclusive / Exclusive
Includes all transfers from Kigali to the hotels/camps to Kigali
  • Kigali Serena Hotel: Superior Room. Breakfast.
  • Nyungwe House: Double Room. All meals, drinks (except premier brands).
  • Virunga Lodge: Standard Banda. All meals, drinks (except premier brands), laundry service.
  • Magashi Camp: Double Room. All meals, drinks (except premier brands), laundry service, twice daily activities with one of the camp guides.
Included Permits Nyungwe:
1 x Chimpanzee Trekking
1 x Colobus Monkey Trekking

Included Permits Volcanoes:
1 x Gorilla Trekking
1 x Golden Monkey Trekking
Not included are international flights, gratuities, compulsary comprehensive travel insurance, visa fees, local airport fees, personal purchases.

Learn more about these areas
Kigali
Kigali
Akagera National Park
Akagera National Park
Nyungwe Forest
Nyungwe Forest
Volcanoes
Volcanoes
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