6 Days Volcanoes lake Kivu and Nyungwe

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Overview

The tour starts from the capital - Kigali where you’ll have initial craft shopping, relax after a long flight and transfer to Volcanoes national park. Engage in gorilla trekking adventure and cultural tour at Ibyiwachu village. Other destinations will be Lake Kivu for R & R experience, swimming and Nyungwe forest for chimp trekking and canopy walk.

Day 1: Kigali -Parc National des Volcans. Cultural tour in the Ibyiwachu village

Arrive through Kigali international airport, pick up by your private safari guide in a 4WD safari vehicle who will transfer you to a restaurant in the city for refreshment, relax a bit, take breakfast and go hopping in a nearby craft center where you buy a few souvenirs for your onward safari.

Thereafter leave the lively Kigali capital and begin a 3 hours’ drive to the north west of Rwanda in Ruhengeri / Musanze region, the home of Volcanoes national park. This park is a famous destination for 10s of habituated families of mountain gorillas, and it was made more popular when it featured in a movie “Gorillas in the mist” by Dian Fossey.

Check in at your lodge in the afternoon, have lunch and proceed on a cultural tour to Ibyiwachu village. While here, let the Intore traditional dancers entertain you, meet the local brewers, and so much more.

Overnight stay at your lodge.

Day 2: Gorilla trekking in Parc National des Volcans

This morning, have breakfast and proceed to park headquarters and join other visitors for briefing. Begin your long awaited trek up to the tropical forest to meet your allocated gorilla family. With the watchful eye of park rangers, gorilla families are well protected and rangers know their movements on daily basis. The search will last for about 6 hours or even 2 hours depending on the location of a gorilla group you are tracking.

Upon meeting the family, have up to 1 hour to observe them at a closer distance – 7 meters, watch their lifestyle during this encounter, take pictures / videos and ask any questions you may be having.

Return to your lodge for overnight stay and dinner.

Day 3: Volcanoes NP – Lake Kivu

On this day, you have an option of either going to visit the Twin Lakes (Burera and Ruhondo) or a hiking adventure to Dian Fossey grave – a site where fallen primatologist Dian Fossey was buried alongside Digit- one of her beloved gorillas.

After these experiences, go on a 3 - hour drive southwards to Gisenyi, home of Lake Kivu. This is Rwanda’s largest lake and famous for its calm serene waters, acrobatic fishermen and relaxation. Arrive for lunch and in the afternoon, engage in various activities like swimming or take a speed boat cruise to visit the interior islands including napoleon island.

Day 4: Explore Lake Kivu and transfer to Nyungwe forest

Wake up to the serenity of Lake Kivu, watch the sun rising over the shimmering waters – a great opportunity for pictures. Have breakfast and go for a short canoe ride to explore various islands in the interior of Lake Kivu, a canoe on sun rise is also a great adventure to meet local fishermen and other islanders.

Return from this exploration and embark on a journey further southwards to Nyungwe forest - home of primates and birds. Arrive in the evening for relaxation and dinner.

Day 5: Nyungwe forest: Chimp trekking and canopy walk

Since this will be a busy day, breakfast is served as early as 5:30am, move to the park headquarters for briefing ahead of your chimpanzee trekking adventure. Nyungwe forest is a thick forest known for its marvelous populations of chimpanzees and other small primates such as baboons, monkeys and abundant bird species.

Chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe forest begins at 6:00am and trekkers hike up to the lush tropical forest looking for these sough after primates. Chimpanzees are known to be swift, and they don’t stay in one place. But with the help of rangers who keep a 24-hour watch on each troop, you will be lucky to find them after 2 -6 hours of tracking.

Other primates to look out for in this rich forest other than chimps, include colobus monkeys, red – tailed monkeys and black and white monkeys and so many bird species. Return from this adventure, have lunch and relax a little bit before you proceed to encounter canopy walk.

A canopy walk will follow after an adventure of chimpanzee trekking. The canopy walk is a highlight in this park where visitors have a memorable aerial view of Nyungwe tropical forest, seeing all its rare residents like butterflies, elusive birds and primates. It’s such an incomparable adventure that you can’t miss while in Nyungwe forest.

Dinner and accommodation will be at your booked lodge.

Day 6: Nyungwe forest to Kigali. Departure

This is the last day of your 6 days Gorillas, Lake Kivu and Nyungwe forest tour, and prepare for the return trip to Kigali and take an outbound flight.

Enroute stopovers will be in Butare city for culture tour, Nyanza ethnographic museum and traditional lunch at a local restaurant. Continue to Kigali for your outbound flight in the evening.