Rwanda - Gorilla Experience Safari - Sample Itinerary

Sample Rwanda Gorilla Experience Safari Itinerary at a Glance

DAY 1 – Kigali Serena Hotel/Kigali – Bed and Breakfast – Today on arrival into Kigali airport, you will be met and escorted through customs and immigration and then driven to Kigali Serena hotel for an overnight stay.

DAY 2 – Virunga Lodge/Twin Lakes of Burera and Ruhondo – Fully Inclusive – This morning, your private driver and guide will take you on a tour of Kigali and to the Genocide Museum. After lunch you will be driven across The Land of a Thousand Hills, rolling and rising towards Ruhengeri to Virunga Lodge where you will be staying for the next 2 nights.

DAY 3 – Virunga Lodge/Twin Lakes of Burera and Ruhondo – Fully Inclusive – After an early breakfast you will be taken to the Volcanoes National Park Headquarters where you will receive your briefing and prepare for your gorilla trek. Tracking mountain gorillas through the dense African forests is a magical experience. Tracking can take from 3 to 8 hours.

DAY 4 – Virunga Lodge/Twin Lakes of Burera and Ruhondo – Breakfast – This morning, you will be driven about 3 hours back to Kigali airport in time to check-in for your onward connection.

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Serena Hotel/Kigali

Ideally located on one of Kigali’s most charming boulevards, the five-star Kigali Serena Hotel is built around a polished granite atrium, which showcases the very best of Rwandese cultural art. Relaxed yet elegant, the hotel centers on the Executive Lounge and Bar, which opens onto a wide sundeck overlooking the newly refurbished swimming pool. Also overlooking the pool, the popular Milima Restaurant offers a wide range of all-day buffet choices, while the relaxed Sokoni Café offers inside and outside poolside seating.

Rwanda’s capital and biggest city stretches across undulating lush hills surrounded by towering mountains, the largest of which is Mount Kigali, rising 1,850 meters above sea level. Kigali is the country’s financial, commercial and cultural hub, served by an international airport and featuring a wide range of accommodation options, restaurants and points of interest, including the Kigali Genocide Center, an atmospheric market and numerous craft shops. With its interesting architecture, busy streets, meandering boulevards, and green hillsides, Kigali is said to be one of the most attractive cities in Africa and is definitely worth a visit.

ACTIVITIES

Tour of Rwanda Genocide Museum
Tour of Kigali markets and city

ROOM CONFIGURATION

The hotel features 148 rooms. Guests can choose from a selection of 60 Standard Rooms, 37 Superior Rooms, 19 Deluxe Rooms, 18 Junior Suites, 7 Prime Rooms, 6 Executive Suites and a luxury Presidential Suite. In-room facilities include 24-hour room service, air-conditioning, Wi-Fi, tea/coffee making facilities, mini-fridge, hairdryer, private safe and a flat-screen satellite TV.

Virunga Lodge/Twin Lakes Burera & Ruhondo

The magnificent Virunga Lodge is the premier luxury gorilla lodge of Rwanda and one of Africa’s finest and most renowned lodges. The lodge is perched high on a ridge with stunning views of the Virunga Volcanoes and the Musanze valley to the west and Lake Bulera and Ruhondo to the east. It offers uniquely decorated rooms in the Rwandese style, scrumptious food and exceptional personalized service by carefully trained staff.

Located at the base of the Volcano Muhabura in northern Rwanda, the Twin Lakes of Burera and Ruhondo are picturesque blue water masses surrounded by the Virunga high hills and separated by a one-kilometer strip of land. Visitors can take canoe or boat trips along the waters to take in the magnificent views. Other activities include gorilla or golden monkey tracking in the neighboring Volcanoes National Park, cultural tours from Iby’iwacu Cultural Village, or visits to the tropical Musanze Caves. The lakes’ Swamp Rugezi is one of the most important birding areas of Rwanda, and provides a photogenic, serene area to see a number of species. The lakes provide a wonderful opportunity to see people fishing along the shorelines with traditional methods.

ACTIVITIES

Gorilla tracking
Golden monkey tracking
Intore Dancers – The troupe perform the traditional Rwandan ballet called The Intore
Visit Dian Fossey’s Grave
Birding
Climb a Volcano
Lake Bulera Village Walk
Virunga Water Tank Project
Virunga “One Sheep per Family” Community Project
Dian Fossey Map Room

ROOM CONFIGURATION

•10 luxurious bandas (6 Doubles, 2 Twins, 2 Deluxe). Each banda has a private terrace where guests can watch the sunrise over the dramatic landscape of mountains and lakes. Luxuriously appointed, with the accent on vibrant Rwandese fabrics and stylish locally inspired furniture

•All rooms are complete with a fireplace, en-suite bathrooms with flushing toilet, double vanity and shower with hot & cold running water. All included is:

Wifi access in the main lodge building and Dian Fossey Map Room.
One complimentary massage per guest.
Full board accommodation including all soft drinks and house alcoholic beverages.
Complimentary laundry and boot cleaning service.
Personal butler service for all guests.
Power sockets/charging facilities and hairdryers in the rooms. No air conditioners.

PROPERTY FACILITIES

24-hour Security, Bar, Battery Charging Facilities, Communal Dining, Eco Friendly, Internet Access (Complimentary), Library, Mobile Connectivity, Private Vehicle Available, Restaurant, Secure Parking, Spa

ROOM FACILITIES

Dressing Gowns, En-Suite, Fireplace, Hair Dryer, Laundry Service (Complimentary), Lounge Area, Mosquito Nets, Safe, Shower, Verandah

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