Explore Rwanda, the 'Land of a Thousand Hills,' with our Rwanda Safaris, offering affordable and luxury safari holidays. Our tours include gorilla and chimpanzee safaris, primate tours, cultural encounters, city tours, and wildlife safaris.
Rwanda, a landlocked country in East-Central Africa, boasts a scenic landscape of rolling hills. Despite its dark past, Rwanda has undergone significant social and economic transformation. Bordering Uganda, DRC, Tanzania, and Burundi, Rwanda's high elevation and strategic location make it a breathtaking destination. Kigali, the capital, is known for its cleanliness and safety.
Rwanda features four unique parks: Volcanoes National Park for gorilla trekking, Akagera National Park for big game safaris, Nyungwe Forest National Park for primate adventures and canopy walks, and Gishwati-Mukura National Park.
Key activities include gorilla trekking, chimpanzee tracking, game drives, boat cruises, volcano hiking, nature walks, and cultural encounters. The best time to visit is during the dry months of June-September and December-February, although birding is ideal in the wet months.
Go Rwanda safaris and discover Rwanda-the Land of a Thousand Hills. We arrange the most affordable safari holidays in Rwanda for you to explore different tourist destinations. Our Rwanda safaris include remarkable and memorable gorilla safaris and tours, chimpanzee safaris, primate tours, cultural encounters, city tours, wildlife safaris and tours. We take you on amazing budget safaris in Rwanda as well as luxury safaris in Rwanda.
About Rwanda.
Rwanda is a land locked country in East-Central Africa and undoubtedly a splendid safari destination. For any nature lover, Rwanda safaris should be a must-do to explore and experience the spectacular rolling hills in this different part of Africa. Rwanda to most people is known for its dark past but a lot of transformation has been recorded both social and economic development.
Located along the Great riftvalley, Rwanda is part of East Africa community and Kigali is the capital city. Kigali alone has been ranked as the cleanest and also the safest city in the world thus making Rwanda safaris a must-do. The border countries to Rwanda include Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Tanzania and Burundi. Its strategic location in high elevation makes it an outstanding destination with breathtaking landscape.
Rwanda’s distinct landscape is characterized by rolling hills which make this beautiful country, the Land of a Thousand Hills. As you head to the Western side of Rwanda, you will notice that it is mostly mountainous and the savannas/grassland range in the Eastern part.
Uniqueness of Rwanda.
Geographically, Rwanda is a distinct country with amazing natural wonders. There are many factors that make Rwanda unique from the rest of the world. It is one destination that is safe and secure for Rwanda safaris, gorilla safaris, chimpanzee tracking, game viewing, bird watching and others.
Rwanda is a unique safari destination with a distinct landscape largely comprising of green vegetation. It is scenic country with 5 of the 8 volcanoes that make up the Virunga Massifs. Unlike other countries, Rwanda only has 4 parks but each with unique wildlife which East Africa boasts as a leading safari region. They include;
Volcanoes National Park; this park features as one of the 4 places on earth where a section of the world’s unique mountain gorillas lives. It is an ancient park-gazetted back then in 1925 and currently occupies only 160sq.kms of land area. Today, most Rwanda safari holidaymakers come mainly to see mountain gorillas in the jungles of Volcanoes National Park Ruhengeri. About 13 gorilla families are available for gorilla trekking so far in Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park.
Akagera National Park; the only park with savanna grassland in Rwanda and where big game tours are conducted by Rwanda safaris travelers. This park hosts all the big five game (elephants, leopards, lions, rhinos and buffaloes) plus others which you can have amazing view on Rwanda safaris holiday. Akagera lies in the East and it is close to Tanzania.
Nyungwe Forest National Park; this is nestled in the south and it is one of the beautiful parks to visit for primate adventures like chimpanzee trekking. Also, it is the only park in East Africa where a canopy walk is done. The park houses 13 primate species including an estimate of 500 chimpanzees, colobus monkeys, L’Hoest monkeys, vervet monkeys, silver monkeys and others.
Gishwati-Mukura National Park is another important destination worthy visiting for primate watching and it is the newly established park in Rwanda-the Land of a Thousand Hills. Rwanda is a distinct destination with about 23 beautiful lakes and numerous rivers, some of these make up the source of the River Nile.
Gorilla trekking safaris in Rwanda.
When it comes to gorilla adventures, Rwanda never goes unmentioned. A portion of the world’s remaining 1063 mountain gorillas thrives within Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park which also makes up part of the Virunga Conservation Area. With only 4 parks where these humble and rare apes live, trekking to see them in the jungles of Volcanoes National Park is undoubtedly a mind-blowing experience.
Today, visitors on Rwanda gorilla safaris have 13 gorilla families to track, each group is assigned to a group of 8 visitors. Holidaymakers on Rwanda safari and they are interested in gorilla trekking require a valid gorilla permit, issued at US Dollars 1500 per visitor. Considering the tedious process of booking for a gorilla permit, our team is always on standby to help you not only book for a permit but also plan for your successful gorilla safari in Rwanda.
With experience we have had about gorilla safaris, we recommend that your gorilla permit is booked in advance about 2-4 months prior landing in Rwanda for actual gorilla trek.
Wildlife.
Like most East African countries, Rwanda is a nature-based tourism destination. There is a lot to explore and experience in Rwanda when it comes to wildlife. If you are interested in primates then no better place to visit than Rwanda. Not only does it protect mountain gorillas but also a wide array of other primate species including golden monkeys, L’Hoest’s monkeys, chimpanzees, silver monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys, olive baboons, species of bush babies, red tailed monkeys, red colobus monkeys to mention but a few.
Most of the protected area also offer refuge to a number of reptiles, amphibians and bird species. Rwanda’s popular destinations include Akagera National Park, Nyungwe, Gishwati-Mukura National Park and Volcanoes National Park.
For all wildlife viewing experiences, Akagera should be a must-visit to sight the big game, birds and many of the savanna species. Generally, 200 species of birds are in Volcanoes National Park, 310 bird species in Nyungwe Forest, Lake Kivu 60 mostly Rwandan based bird species and over 500 bird species in Akagera. On birding trip in Rwanda, expect to come across shoebill storks, red throated wrynecks, Kivu thrush, flycatchers and others.
The popular species to come across on game viewing in Rwanda include the Masai giraffes, zebras, elephants, buffaloes, lions, leopards, antelopes with the unique roan antelopes; hyenas, warthogs.
People/cultures.
Rwanda is a small landlocked country with total population of 12.6 million people who are widely spread across the 26338sq.kms of land area. The largest population is comprised of the youths and mainly rural accounting for 85 percent. However, the Rwandese are warm welcoming and you can witness this on Rwanda safaris. The country is comprised of 3 sub-groups of tribes; Hutu, Tutsis and Twa. The Twa are famously forest dwellers and amazing to interact with on cultural safaris.
While in Rwanda for a holiday, the common language which most people speak is Kinyarwanda. This is in addition to the principal languages; English and French. Tribal groups aside, Rwandans have had a peaceful stay together in Rwanda especially from the post Rwanda genocide of 1994. It is easier to recognize the togetherness among Rwandese today than before. Most significantly, you have plenty to explore ranging from dances, traditions, music performances, norms, values and others.
What to do in Rwanda?
Our Rwanda safaris come with plenty of activities for you to do. These include gorilla trekking experience which is offered in the country’s only gorilla park-Volcanoes National Park. Participating in gorilla trekking in Rwanda is only for persons above 15 years and a permit is a must-have. You can purchase a Rwanda gorilla permit at $1500 through our reservation team based or deal directed with Rwanda Development Board (RDB).
Chimpanzee tracking is one interesting activity our Rwanda safaris cover and we take you through 2 magical places to see chimpanzees. Our chimpanzee safaris usher you into Nyungwe Forest and Gishwati-Mukura National Park.
Dian Fossey tomb hike; this mainly gives insight into Dian Fossey legacy for gorilla protection in the Virunga volcanoes. A trek to tomb site of Dian Fossey starts at Kinigi-Volcanoes National Park Ruhengeri.
Game drives & boat cruise; the best place to visit for unforgettable game viewing in savannas while on Rwanda safaris is Akagera National Park. Go game drive in Rwanda to sight rhinos, lions, giraffes, antelopes.
Volcano hiking; while on Rwanda safaris, you have more than gorilla trekking/chimpanzee adventures. We take you through unforgettable hike to Mt. Karisimbi summits (4507m), Mt. Bisoke (3711m) for a day trek of 6-7 hours in Volcanoes National Park or go explore the Congo Nile Divide trail and canopy walk in Nyungwe Forest.
Other activities covered during Rwanda safari holidays include primate walk/watching, nature walks, birding, visit the Twin Lake (Ruhondo and Burera), cultural encounters in different communities.
Best time to visit.
Safaris in Rwanda are possible whether you plan to travel during the dry or wet season of the year. Rwanda warmly welcomes all holidaymakers at any time of the year but the best months are the dry months of the year. These are preferable for holidaymakers with plan to trek mountain gorillas and they start from June-September/December till February.
During the wet/rainy months, most parks or tourist sites in Rwanda are ideal for birding as some migratory birds confine for breeding and reproduction. The wet months like dry months come in 2 phases; March till May and October to November.
