7 Day Rwanda Gorilla Tracking Tour with Chimpanzee & Wildlife Safari

A 7 Day Rwanda Gorilla Tracking Tour with Chimpanzee & Wildlife Safari for those interested in seeing primates, it will take you to the Kigali Memorial Genocide, trek gorillas in the Volcanoes, track golden monkeys, view wildlife and also track chimps.

Day 1: Arrival in Kigali Rwanda

On arrival at the Kanombe Airport in Kigali, the tour guide will drive you to your Hotel where you will dine and slumber. Dinner and sleep at Hotel in Kigali City.

Day 2: Kigali City tour

Following breakfast have a city tour and visit the Kigali Memorial Genocide Centre: which well exhibits Rwanda’s history of the genocide on video shows, see photographs, read some written accounts see a number of art crafts, read personal testimonies as well as exhibitions. The exhibition shows a section referred to as wasted lives which refers to the genocides plus holocausts in Southwestern Africa, Bosnia, Armenia and Cambodia. After your lunch drive to Volcanoes National Park to trek gorillas.

Accommodations: Budget Kinigi Guest House, Midrange: La Palme, Luxury Mountain gorilla view Lodge, Super luxury Sabinyo Silverback Lodge (FB)

Day 3: Gorilla Trekking Experience.

Gorilla trekking is usually the highlight of all African safaris. Parc National des Volcans is the best location to trek these uncommon yet fascinating mountain gorillas (the Gorilla beringei beringei) in Africa. This park is found on Rwanda’s border with DR Congo, and Uganda. This chain of mountains has 7 volcanoes and the Karisimbi is the highest standing over 4500 meters.

The slopes covered with bamboo and rainforest vegetation are home to some of the last surviving mountain gorillas that were first studied comprehensively by George Schaller and, not so many years ago by Dian Fossey who carried out her study there the 13 years until she died mysteriously at Bisoke.

Without her persistent efforts of fighting against gorilla poaching, maybe there wouldn’t be any gorillas left in Rwanda (you can read her book Gorillas in the Mist). There are 4 habituated gorilla families within Parc National des Volcans, counting the Susa Group having 35 individuals. The other gorilla families are: the Sabinyo has 13 individuals, the Amahura has 16 individuals as well as Group 13 has only 6.

It is not very challenging to find them and each gorilla family can be visited by a maximum of 8 people each day, hence availing 32 permits each day. After gorilla tracking, return to your hotel and relax.

Day 4: Golden Monkey Trekking

After breakfast drive to Gisenyi to trek golden monkeys. After lunch enjoy a community walk to interact with the resident who may actually entertain you with cultural dances. You may choose to observe the locals brewing local beer from yellow bananas.

Accommodation: Paradise Malahide Hotel or Serena Hotel (FB)

Day 5: Transfer to Lake Kivu for another Adventure

After breakfast and drive to Lake Kivu for a boat ride around the Virgin Islands like Napoleon’s Hat Island there you can ascend to the peak of the hat to view the thousands of Angola bats in the blue skies. Following lunch continue to Butare the intellectual centre of Rwanda to visit the national university plus the Institute of Scientific Research as well as the national museum.

Day 6: Nyungwe Forest- Night at Gisakura Lodge

Nyungwe Forest is among the greatly safeguarded montane rainforests in the whole of Africa. It extends over an expanse of 970 sq km and offers breathtaking scenery looking over the forest plus Lake Kivu, in addition to sights to the north of the faraway volcanoes of Parc National des Virunga.

The primary attraction here is the guided tours when tracking the large troops of black & white Angolan Colobus monkeys ( which may have as many as 400 members in every troop) or even chimpanzees. Roughly there are 270 species of trees, more than 70 species of mammals, 275 species of birds plus a profusion of orchids as well as butterflies. Dine and slumber at Gisakura Lodge

Day 7: Chimpanzee Trekking Safari in Rwanda

After breakfast proceed with chimpanzee trekking within the Nyungwe forest. This forest is home to huge chimpanzee troops only comparable to those in Uganda’s Kibale Forest national park. The L’Hoest’s monkeys plus the white Angolan Colobus monkeys do make primate tourism within this forest equivalent to no other in Africa. After lunch, drive to Nyanza the historical seat of the long ago kings of Rwanda.

Visit this palace and listen to the traditional storytelling done by village elders. Actually, The Intore dancers, who attained a reputation in the international cultural expo held in Brussels back in 1958, are currently part of the great Rwanda legends.

This warrior’s dance is a gem of the choreographic heritage of this country, adorned with a lion mane completed with sisal fibre plus rings of bells worn in their ankles together with an angelic choir and an exciting rhythm, this is the type of cultural dance which will be organized if you request. Dine and slumber at Hotel Ibis

Day 8: Return to Kigali

After the Morning breakfast drive to Kigali and later be transferred to the airport for your departure flight.