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Mountain gorilla in Rwanda

Rwanda gorilla tracking safari

8 days from £6,750pp
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Tour highlights

  • Spend time tracking the fascinating mountain gorillas.

  • Enjoy driving through the rolling hills.

  • Take a boat ride on Lake Kivu.

  • Visit local villages and markets.

Price includes:

  • Scheduled international flights
  • In-destination transfers
  • Activities and excursions as detailed
  • All accommodation
  • 24-hour support while you travel
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Itinerary idea in detail

Includes international flights from a choice of UK airports, including London, Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

  • Today you begin your journey by boarding your international outbound flight to Kigali.

  • On arrival in Kigali, you will meet your private driver-guide and vehicle, which will take you through the highlands to Ruhengeri, the base for gorilla trekking. You will have this afternoon to relax and recover from your journey and we recommend an early night to prepare you for tomorrow's excitement!

    • The road from Ruhengeri to the Volcanoes National Park
      The road from Ruhengeri to the Volcanoes National Park
    • Rwandan tea-picker
      Rwandan tea-picker
    • Farmland at the base of Sabyinyo Volcano
      Farmland at the base of Sabyinyo Volcano

  • Today, you will set off early after breakfast for the park headquarters, where you will register for the gorilla trekking. Once you've been assigned a group and have had a briefing from your guide you will be driven to the trailhead where you will start the walk. Trackers leave before the tourist groups to locate the gorilla groups, so your guide should know where to take you. Once you've found the group, you will have one hour with them to take photos and observe them as they interact.

    • Silverback gorilla, Volcanoes National Park
      Silverback gorilla, Volcanoes National Park
    • Male silverback gorilla, Volcanoes National Park
      Male silverback gorilla, Volcanoes National Park
    • Juvenile mountain gorilla, Volcanoes National Park
      Juvenile mountain gorilla, Volcanoes National Park

  • After breakfast today you will set off to track the golden monkeys in the Volcanoes National Park. This will be a completely different but just as rewarding experience to tracking the gorillas. You will track the monkeys with a guide through the forest of the Volcanoes National Park and spend an hour with them once you find them. The walk is generally easier than the trek to the gorillas, although this depends on the monkeys' movements. There are two habituated troops of golden monkeys, both of which have around 80 members in the family. They are incredibly lively, so they can be quite hard to photograph until they settle down or go into a clearing, but they are fascinating to watch leaping from tree to tree!

    • Golden monkey, Volcanoes National Park
      Golden monkey, Volcanoes National Park
    • Gorilla, Volcanoes National Park
      Gorilla, Volcanoes National Park
    • Golden monkeys, Volcanoes National Park
      Golden monkeys, Volcanoes National Park

  • You can have a leisurely breakfast this morning before setting off with your driver for Lake Kivu. The drive takes around an hour and a half, and the rolling hills that characterise Rwanda's landscape become much more dramatic and cliff-like as you drive on. You will pass small farming villages and banana plantations before descending into the valley to Gisenyi, north of Lake Kivu. Your driver will take you to your hotel, where you can relax for the night unwinding and resting your weary legs after two days of trekking in the Volcanoes National Park.

    • Lake Kivu
      Lake Kivu
    • Tea plantations near Gisenyi, Rwanda
      Tea plantations near Gisenyi, Rwanda
    • Lake Kivu, Rwanda
      Lake Kivu, Rwanda

  • Today is free for relaxing or exploring Lake Kivu — you can go swimming in the hotel pool, or in the lake itself, have a tour of Gisenyi town, or hire a boat to visit some of the nearby islands on the lake. You can decide on the day what you'd like to do and your driver will help you with all of your arrangements.

    • Lake Kivu, Rwanda
      Lake Kivu, Rwanda
    • Scenery near Gisenyi, Rwanda
      Scenery near Gisenyi, Rwanda
    • Dugout canoe on Lake Kivu, Rwanda
      Dugout canoe on Lake Kivu, Rwanda

  • This morning, you will depart Lake Kivu and drive back to Kigali Airport. The drive will take around two and a half hours, or longer if you stop frequently to take photographs. On the way, you will pass the Virunga Volcanoes and Ruhengeri.

    • Caplaki Handicraft Centre, Kigali
      Caplaki Handicraft Centre, Kigali
    • Market stallholder, Rwanda
      Market stallholder, Rwanda
    • Traditional woven baskets, Rwanda
      Traditional woven baskets, Rwanda

  • Arrive home today to complete your journey.

Accommodation options

While the itinerary price reflects the suggested accommodation, Audley trips are 100% tailor-made, and a specialist can help you select the option best suited to your tastes and budget.

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The specialist who designs your trip to Rwanda will have explored the country many times and, in some cases, lived there. Their first-hand knowledge gives us the belief that no other travel company can match our expertise in helping you plan your trip.

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When to go

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Place Daily max temperature (°C) Monthly rainfall (mm)
Kigali
 
Ruhengeri
 
Volcanoes National Park
 
Lake Kivu
 

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