5 days Nyungwe chimpanzee tracking and Akagera wildlife safari

This 5 days Rwanda tour will give you a classic African safari experience in the savanna grasslands and a primate adventure in an ancient mountain forest. There are few countries that can offer this unique combination of experiences like Rwanda! You will go on a safari trip to Akagera National Park which has Rwanda’s only savanna habitat and harbors a variety of animals like zebras, antelopes, elephants, lions, hyenas, hippos etc. After the rewarding safari experience in the warm savanna, the tour shall lead you to Nyungwe Forest National Park, one of the oldest montane forests in Africa that is popular for its high concentration and variety of primates including the chimpanzees. You shall do the chimpanzee trekking adventure in Nyungwe and experience a memorable encounter with the chimps, and also not to be missed is the canopy walk which will provide incredible views of the forest.

Tour itinerary

Day 1 – Transfer to Akagera national park, game drive and boat safari

Your trip driver and guide shall pick you from Kigali at 7.00am and drive east of Rwanda to Akagera National Park. This is a 2.5 hours journey. Upon arrival you will go on a short game drive to see some animals before continuing to your lodge and have lunch. At 3pm you shall go for a boat safari on Lake Ihema, the biggest lake in the park. Expect to see hippos, crocodiles, monitor lizards and other animals along the shores. For the keen birder the boat offers excellent birding opportunities with lots of water birds sighted along the shore and on the islands.

Optional activity:

Night game drive: Starting from 5.30pm you can go on a night safari to see nocturnal life. The most sought after animals such as the cats become active at this time. Expected sightings include bush babies, leopards, nightjars

Accommodation to choose from:

Midrange – Akagera game lodge

Upmarket – Ruzizi Tented Lodge

Luxury – Magashi Camp

Day 2 – Full safari in Akagera and transfer to Kigali

Have breakfast and check out of the lodge by 6.30am and set off for the full safari through Akagera national park lasting 5 – 6 hours. Setting off from the south of the park you will drive along varied habits including woodlands, thickets, forest, swamp, lake shore and savannah grasslands, which will provide a variety of wildlife and amazing scenery! You will wind up in the Kilala plains, a vast open plains where lots of animals can be seen roaming. This is the main animal viewing area of the park due to the abundant wildlife and uninterrupted views.

After the game drive you shall have picnic lunch and head back to Kigali.

Accommodation to choose from:

Budget – Yambi Guesthouse

Midrange – Heaven Boutique Hotel

Luxury – The Retreat

Day 3 – Travel to Nyungwe – canopy walk tour

At 7am you shall set off to Nyungwe Forest National Park in the southwest of Rwanda. This is a 6 hours trip including a lunch stop at a hotel along the way.

You will set out to do the canopy walk tour in Nyungwe with the park guide. The canopy walkway suspended 50 meters from the ground provides amazing views across the forest and sighting at eyelevel of some wildlife in the canopy like monkeys and birds.

After the canopy walk you shall proceed to your hotel for dinner and overnight.

Accommodation to choose from:

Budget – EAR Guesthouse

Midrange – Nyungwe Top View Hill Lodge / Emeraude Kivu Lodge

Luxury – One&Only Nyungwe House

Day 4 – chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe

After early breakfast you will go to meet the park guides at 5am and transfer to the park for your chimpanzee trekking adventure in Nyungwe National Park. Nyungwe National Park has a population of about 500 chimpanzees and is one of the best places to see the chimps in their natural home.

Optional activities:

In the afternoon you can do one of the following light activities

Tea plantation tour: Visit a tea plantation at the edge of the Nyungwe forest and learn how tea is grown, harvested and processed.
Colobus monkey tracking: You can go tracking a group of the habituated Colobus monkeys in Nyungwe near the edge of the forest at Gisakura. These monkeys are exciting to watch and photograph.

Accommodation to choose from:

Budget – EAR Guesthouse

Midrange – Nyungwe Top View Hill Lodge / Emeraude Kivu Lodge

Luxury – One&Only Nyungwe House

Day 5 – transfer to Kigali via Lake Kivu

After breakfast check out of the lodge and drive back to Kigali going via Lake Kivu for a chance to glimpse at Rwanda’s biggest lake and one of the most beautiful in central Africa.

Optional activities

Nature walk: In the morning before departure to Kigali you can do nature walk on the Isumo waterfalls trail and immerse yourself in nature. You will encounter several species of monkeys, unique plant life, birds and beautiful waterfalls.