This 3-day safari will combine great highlights of gorilla trekking, insight into the Rwandan culture by visiting the Ibyiwachu cultural village and hiking Karisimbi which is one of the 8 volcanoes which make up the Virunga ranges.
You will venture into the perfect inhabitant for mountain gorillas in northern Rwanda. The route to this park takes you through the communities where you enjoy the scenery of ‘the thousand hills’.
Safari details.
Day 1-Drive to Volcanoes National park.
Today the guide will pick you up from either the airport or your overnight hotel. He will then brief you about the entire tour. You will take a short Kigali city tour exploring the major historic and cultural sites like the Kigali Genocide Memorial Center, Craft markets in Kigali among others.
After you will then have lunch at a local foods restaurant. After the lunch in Kigali city, immediately embark on a journey to the home of endangered mountain gorillas in Volcanoes national park. On reaching the park after about a 2-hour drive, relax and visit the Ibyiwachu cultural village, mingle with the locals and learn about their culture and history.
Day 2-Gorilla tracking.
Today after an early morning breakfast, the driver guide will transfer you for briefing at the park headquarters where you will learn more about the expectation while in the jungles from the ranger guide. You will gather at the headquarters as you enjoy traditional dances or a hot cup of Rwandan coffee.
The ranger guide will share some of the gorilla trekking dos and don’ts like no flash photography and later divide you in the different gorilla trekking groups. Depending on location of the gorilla group you have been assigned to trek, the driver guide will transfer you to the exact trail head of the allocated group. Enter the forest for the trek; the activity can take about 3-6 hours depending on the movement of the gorillas.
You are only allowed an hour with these giant apes and later return to the lodge for relaxation as you await the next day’s adventure to summit Karisimbi.
Day 3- Karisimbi Hike and transfer to Kigali.
Today after breakfast, you drive back to park headquarters and you will assemble at the briefing point, just like visitors going for gorilla trekking and will receive a briefing overview of how the entire hike. At this point you can choose to take a guide for $5 or carry your backpack yourself.
Immediately begin the hike with 2 guides, porters, security guard and the trek moves at a pace of the slowest person in the group, and leaves no one behind. On summiting the 4507m mountain you will be rewarded with great views of the Crater Lake at the top of this volcano and great sights of other volcanoes in the Virunga conservation region.
Later descend from the volcano and find your guide waiting to drive you back to the hotel, check out and drive to Kigali.
