4 Day Gorillas and Lake Kivu tour
The 4 days gorillas and Lake Kivu is an amazing adventure that will take you to Volcanoes national park which is situated in northwestern part of Rwanda. Volcanoes national park is one of the most visited protected area in Africa due to the fact that it harbors mountain gorillas and offers exciting activities such as gorilla trekking and golden monkey trekking which allow you to spend time learning about the behaviors, habits, taking photos and recording videos of these primates. During the safari you will also visit Lake Kivu which is the largest fresh water lake in western part of Rwanda where you will engage in an incredible boat cruise which gives you an opportunity to take beautiful photos, view various bird species, terraced hills, landscapes, interact with fishermen among others.
Highlights of the 4 days gorillas and Lake Kivu tour
Day 1: Pick up and transfer to Volcanoes national park
Day 2: Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park
Day 3: Golden monkey trekking and transfer to Lake Kivu
Day 4: Boat cruise and departure to Kigali
Detailed itinerary
Day 1 of the 4 days gorillas and Lake Kivu tour
Transfer to Volcanoes national park, depending on the time of arrival at Kigali international airport on the first day of your 4 days gorillas and Lake Kivu tour, you will be welcomed by our driver guide who will brief you about the safari and then start the journey to Volcanoes national park which is located in northwestern part of Rwanda. On your way you will have en-route lunch and great views of the rolling hills, homesteads, beautiful landscapes among others and upon arrival you will check into the lodge, have an evening relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Day 2: Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park
Gorilla trekking, after an early breakfast on the second day of your 4 days gorillas and Lake Kivu tour you will carry packed lunch and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kinigi park headquarters for a briefing about the rules and regulations of gorilla trekking. After the briefing you will be grouped into 8 people and each group will be allocated a gorilla family to trek and a park guide who will be sharing information about the gorillas and also showing you the trails to follow during trekking. Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park starts at around 8:00am and takes 30 minutes to 7 hours depending on where the gorillas are located because they like to move from one place to another in search of food. During trekking you will have views of different bird species, animals, plant species, primates like vervet monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys among others. When the gorillas are found you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural environment which gives you an opportunity to take photos, record videos, watch them carry out their daily activities like feed, breastfeed, play and also learn more about their lifestyle, behaviors and habits. After the face to face encounter with the gorillas, you will trek back to the park headquarters and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to the lodge for an evening relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Day 3: Golden monkey trekking and transfer to Lake Kivu
Golden monkey trekking, on the third day of your 4 days gorillas and Lake Kivu tour you will have an early breakfast and meet up with your guide to transfer to the park headquarters for a briefing about the rules, regulations and expectations of golden monkey trekking. After the briefing you will be allocated a park guide who is well conversant with trails in the forest and then start trekking. Golden monkey trekking takes about 30 minutes to 4 hours depending on where they are located because they like to move from place to place in search of food. Once the golden monkeys are found you will be able to spend one hour with them in their natural habitat and during the one hour you will get an opportunity to take photos, record videos, learn more about their behaviors, habits, lifestyle, watch them play and jump from one tree to another which is exciting. After the one hour encounter with the golden monkeys you will trek back to the park headquarters, meet up with your driver guide and drive to the lodge for lunch.
After lunch you will check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Gisenyi for an amazing boat cruise activity on Lake Kivu. Lake Kivu is the largest fresh water lake in Rwanda and during the boat ride, you will have spectacular views of steep terraced hills, beautiful scenery, sunset, aquatic bird species like malachite and pied kingfishers, majestic crowned cranes, cormorants, fish eagles, view the fishermen who will be fishing on the lake in dugout canoes among others. Lake Kivu offers other interesting activities such as swimming, sunbathing, speed boating, canoeing among others therefore in case you want to explore and enjoy your safari you can also engage in other activities on the lake shores for lifetime memories. After the amazing experience on the lake you will go back to your lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 4: Departure to Kigali
On the last day of the 4 days gorillas and Lake Kivu tour you will have a relaxed breakfast, check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kigali for a city tour. During the Kigali city tour you will visit Kigali genocide memorial center where you will know more about brutal killing of many people during the 1994 Rwanda genocide between the Hutus and Tutsi. After the genocide tour you will visit art and craft centers where you will buy souvenirs, Kandt museum of natural history among others. After the city tour you will have lunch in one of the restaurants which give you an opportunity to taste different Rwandan dishes and after lunch you will start the journey to Kigali international airport where your driver guide will drop you off for your next flight.
End of 4 days gorillas and Lake Kivu tour
Tour includes
- Gorilla trekking permit
- Golden monkey trekking permit
- Kigali city tour
- Boat cruise on Lake Kivu
- Services of an English speaking driver guide
- Full board accommodation
- Pick up and drop off
- Vehicle and fuel
- Bottled water
Tour excludes
- Air flight tickets
- Visas
- Optional activities not included on the itinerary
- Personal expenses like buying souvenirs, crafts, drinks, laundry services, tips among others.