5 days gorilla trekking and wildlife tour in Rwanda

5 days gorilla trekking and wildlife tour in Rwanda will take you to Volcanoes national park and Akagera national park for adventurous experiences.

You will start your safari with a journey to Volcanoes national park for gorilla trekking and cultural tour at Iby’Iwacu cultural village before transferring to Akagera national park for a rewarding game drive safari and a boat cruise at lake Ihema.

Akagera national park is a home to a number of animals such as, elephants, bushbucks, Topis, buffalos, Oribis, zebras, leopards, klipspringer, impala, Cape eland, giraffe, water-buck, hyenas, lions among others.

5 days gorilla trekking and wildlife tour in Rwanda highlights

• Day 1: Pick up and transfer to volcanoes national park
• Day 2: Go mountain gorillas and cultural tour
• Day 3: Transfer to Akagera national park
• Day 4: Game drive and boat cruise
• Day 5: Drive back to Kigali

Day 1: Pick up and transfer to volcanoes national park

Open arrival at Kigali international airport, our English-speaking driver-guide will be already at the airport and he will welcome you and then brief you about your 5 days gorilla trekking and wildlife tour in Rwanda. After the whole greeting and briefing, he will drive you to volcanoes national park in the northwestern part of Uganda where you will meet the mountain gorillas. Upon arrival at Musanze, you will drive to your booked accommodation, check-in, have lunch, an evening relaxing as you prepare for gorilla trekking, get served dinner and an overnight stay.

Meal plan

Lunch and dinner

Accommodation 

Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel – luxury, Da Vinci Gorilla Lodge – mid-range, Kinigi Guest House – budget

Day 2: Go mountain gorillas and cultural tour

On the second day of 5 days gorilla trekking and wildlife tour in Rwanda you will wake up very early in the morning and have breakfast before meeting your driver guide who will take you out for a briefing at the sector offices. Once you have reached the park headquarters you will meet the rangers who will brief you about the safari and thereafter group you with others and give you a gorilla family to trek.

The driver-guide will drive you to the starting point where ranger guides will lead you into the jungle to look for mountain gorillas using different park trails. As you look for the mountain gorillas, there are high chances of seeing other park animals such as hyenas, giant forest hogs, duikers, monkeys, different bird species, and much more.

After locating the assigned mountain gorilla family, you will keep the rules as taught at the briefing center and you will be allowed to be around these gentle apes for 1 hour as you watch them do daily activities like hunting, playing, nesting, getting to learn about their habits and take photos. Later you will trek out of the forest, meet your driver-guide and get back to the lodge for lunch.

In the afternoon, you will be taken to Iby’Iwacu cultural village where you will meet ex poachers and other local community members. You will get to see them do daily activities, be part of ceremonies if there is any taking place, taste their local foods, listen to their old stories, and get entertained by the local dances through traditional songs and drama. Later you will drive back to the lodge, have dinner, and have an overnight stay.

Meal plan

Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Accommodation 

Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel – luxury, Da Vinci Gorilla Lodge – mid-range, Kinigi Guest House – budget

Day 3: Transfer to Akagera national park

On the third day of 5 days gorilla trekking and wildlife tour in Rwanda, you will wake up have breakfast, meet your driver and start on the journey to Akagera national park in the northeastern of the country near Tanzania. The journey to Akagera from volcanoes national park goes to Kigali first and then from Kigali you drive to Akagera national park. It’s a bit long as it takes 4-5 hours of beautiful scenery, rolling hills, smiling people, and much more. You will have an en-route lunch and on arrival at the park, you will check in your lodge, relax, later you can have a simple nature walk around your lodge and then dinner and an overnight stay.

Meal plan 

Breakfast, dinner, and lunch

Accommodation 

Magashi Camp – luxury, Ruzizi Tented Camp – mid-range, Mutumba Campsite – budget

Day 4: Game drive and boat cruise in Akagera national park

Wake up to a morning break and then meet your driver guide who will take you through different game trucks looking for animals. If you are early enough, you will meet nocturnal animals on their way to the hiding places. While on a game drive in Akagera national park, expect to see animals such as buffaloes, zebras, rhinos, cape elands, elephants, warthogs, lions, giraffes, hyenas, roan antelopes, waterbucks, and oribis to mention but a few. Bird lovers will also see different bird species on the game drive and after the amazing activity, you will drive back to the lodge and have lunch.

Later in the afternoon, you will embark on your journey to Lake Ihema where you will have a boat cruise that runs for 2 hours. The boat cruise on Lake Ihema introduces you to different water animals like the hippos and crocodiles, then the water birds such as shoebill stork, giant kingfisher, African darter, black-headed lawping, veracious dove, and long-toed plover among others. While on a boat cruise on Lake Ihema, you will also see some of the park animals at the lake shores drinking water or bathing most especially in the dry season. Later you will get back to the lodge, have an evening relaxing, dinner, and an overnight stay.

Meal plan 

Breakfast, dinner, and lunch

Accommodation 

Magashi Camp – luxury, Ruzizi Tented Camp – mid-range, Mutumba Campsite – budget

Day 5: Drive back to Kigali

Day 5 will be the last day of your safari and on this day, you will wake up to morning breakfast, meet your driver who will take you for a morning game drive in another sector of the park before you head back to Kigali. You will have an en-route lunch and the driver guide will drop you off any place of your convivence or at Kigali international airport to end your 5 days gorilla trekking and wildlife tour in Rwanda

Meal plan

Breakfast and Lunch

Tour includes

• Gorilla trekking permit
• Park entrance fees
• Cultural visit
• Transport
• Service of the English-speaking guide
• Accommodation
• Drinking water and meals indicated in the itinerary

Tour excludes 

• International tickets
• Visas
• Personal insurance
• Tips
• Personal expenses
• Porter fee