7-Day Rwanda Wildlife Safari, Gorilla Trekking, Golden Monkey Tracking, and Chimpanzee Tracking Experience

Upon arrival at Kigali International Airport, you will be warmly welcomed by a professional representative from Deks Safaris & Tours Ltd. After a short briefing and refreshing, begin your adventure with a Kigali City Tour, showcasing Rwanda’s transformation from its tragic past to a model of peace and progress. Kigali is a vibrant and clean city, bustling with markets, cultural centers, and modern infrastructure. Highlights of this city tour include the Kigali Genocide Memorial Center, which offers a powerful and respectful insight into the country’s history and remarkable recovery. You will also visit local craft markets, art galleries, and the presidential palace museum.

Enjoy lunch at a top-tier restaurant featuring authentic Rwandan cuisine before continuing your cultural exploration. This tour not only provides historical context but also allows you to interact with friendly locals, giving you an immediate sense of the country’s hospitality. After your immersive city experience, you’ll be transferred to your luxurious hotel for dinner and overnight rest. Accommodations are thoughtfully selected for comfort, elegance, and outstanding service.

• Meals: Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: Hotel Des Mille Collines

After an early breakfast, embark on a scenic road transfer eastwards to Akagera National Park, Rwanda’s only Big Five Park. The drive takes approximately 2.5 hours and is an experience in itself, offering picturesque countryside views of lush hills, farmlands, and traditional homesteads. Upon arrival, check into your lodge and freshen up before setting out for a thrilling game drive.

Akagera is a unique blend of savannah plains, rolling hills, and freshwater lakes. On your drive, you may spot elephants, giraffes, buffaloes, lions, antelopes, and zebras grazing across the open plains. The park has made significant conservation strides, making it an excellent place to observe diverse wildlife populations.

In the afternoon, enjoy a serene boat cruise on Lake Ihema, the park’s largest lake. This excursion brings you closer to aquatic life such as hippos, crocodiles, and a myriad of water birds including African fish eagles, kingfishers, and herons. The cruise is also a great chance to photograph animals gathering along the shoreline.

• Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Accommodation: Akagera Game Lodge

Begin your day with an early morning game drive to catch sight of predators and nocturnal species before they retreat. The golden morning light offers incredible photography opportunities as the savannah stirs to life. You may see lions on the hunt, leopards resting in trees, or large herds of buffalo moving across the grasslands. After your safari adventure, return to the lodge for a hearty breakfast and check out.

Later, commence your afternoon transfer to the northwestern region of Rwanda towards Volcanoes National Park. The drive will take approximately 5-6 hours, with a scenic route offering panoramic views of Rwanda’s dramatic landscape, terraced hillsides, and rural villages. Arrive in Musanze, the gateway town to Volcanoes National Park, by evening.

Check in at your luxurious lodge nestled in the foothills of the Virunga Volcanoes. Relax, unwind by the fireplace, and enjoy gourmet cuisine while preparing for the next day’s highlight—gorilla trekking.

• Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Accommodation: Da Vinci Gorilla Lodge

This is the highlight of your safari—an encounter with the endangered mountain gorillas. After an early breakfast, you will be transferred to the park headquarters for a briefing on gorilla trekking etiquette and safety. Groups are divided based on fitness levels, and you’ll be guided by experienced rangers through the lush bamboo forests of the Virunga Mountains.

Trekking can take 2-6 hours depending on the location of the gorilla family. Once you locate them, you are allowed an unforgettable hour to observe them in their natural habitat. Watch as the gentle giants feed, groom, and interact, often with the silverback keeping a protective eye on his family. This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience filled with emotion and awe.

After your trek, return to the lodge to refresh and relax. Spend the evening recounting your adventure, enjoying a fire-lit dinner with panoramic views of the surrounding volcanoes.

• Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Accommodation: Da Vinci Gorilla Lodge

After breakfast, return to the park for a golden monkey tracking excursion. These rare and playful primates are endemic to the Virunga Mountains and are known for their vibrant golden-orange fur and entertaining antics. The trek is relatively easier than gorilla trekking and takes you through dense bamboo vegetation where these monkeys leap through the canopy and forage on the forest floor.

Following your golden monkey adventure, enjoy a scenic transfer to Nyungwe Forest National Park in the southwest of Rwanda. The drive takes about 6-7 hours and includes beautiful scenery along Lake Kivu and lush tea plantations. En route, stop for lunch and stretch breaks to absorb the charming countryside.

Arrive at your lodge near Nyungwe in the evening, and unwind after the long journey. Nestled on the forest edge, the lodge offers comfort and proximity to the chimpanzee tracking trailheads.

• Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Accommodation: Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel

Today offers another extraordinary primate experience—chimpanzee tracking in Nyungwe Forest. Wake up early and set out with your guide into the forest, home to over 500 chimpanzees. Tracking can be strenuous, but the reward is exhilarating. Listen for the vocalizations of these intelligent primates, and once located, spend a magical hour observing their behavior.

Chimps are highly social and curious, often seen grooming, swinging between trees, and expressing a wide range of emotions. The lush forest also offers sightings of other primates, birds, and unique flora.

After the trek, return to your lodge for a relaxing afternoon. Enjoy a wellness treatment, sip Rwandan tea, or simply take in the sounds of the forest.

• Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
• Accommodation: Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel

Your final morning in Rwanda begins with the famous Nyungwe Forest Canopy Walk. Suspended over 50 meters above the forest floor, the canopy walkway offers a thrilling perspective of the treetops and a chance to spot birds, butterflies, and monkeys in the canopy layers.

After the walk, return to the lodge for breakfast, then begin your transfer back to Kigali. The journey takes about 6-7 hours, with a lunch stop en route. Depending on your flight schedule, you may have time for a final craft market visit before being dropped off at Kigali International Airport for your onward journey.

• Meals: Breakfast and Lunch