5 Days Gorilla Special & Akagera Wildlife Safari

Trekking the endangered mountain gorillas is here, just get your backpack and hiking boots ready. These five days takes you to Volcanoes national park for double gorilla trekking to have real up close encounters with these beautiful apes.

The trip then proceeds to Akagera national park for wildlife viewing and a boat cruise on Lake Ihema. You will see both the mountain gorillas as well as the big five animals.

TRIP HIGHLIGHTS.

Day 1: Travel to Volcanoes national park

Day 2: Gorilla trekking and Ibyiwachu cultural village

Day 3: Gorilla trekking and travel to Akagera national park

Day 4: Morning game drive and boat cruise on Lake Ihema

Day 5: Departure to Kigali.

TRIP DETAILS.

Day 1: Travel to Volcanoes national park.

Upon arrival at Kigali international airport, the guide picks you and transfers you to Volcanoes national park. Alternatively, the guide picks you from the hotel where you spent the previous night and transfers you to Volcanoes national park. Drive at your pace through Rwanda’s beautiful roads curved in the hills and valleys.

The journey offers amazing views of the country’s landscape and the beautiful local people walking along the highway. Have several stopovers at places of interest for pictures, arriving in the evening to just have dinner and overnight.

Day 2: Gorilla trekking and Ibyiwachu cultural village.

Early morning, have breakfast and head to the park station for a simple orientation about the rules and regulations of gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park. The local ranger divides you into groups of eight trekkers to visit a single gorilla family in a day. Then enter the jungle and search out for the mountain gorillas. Hike through the rugged trails with slippery rocks, getting support from your hand stick or tree branches. The guide leads to the traced locations of the gorillas till you meet them.

You will strictly spend one hour in the presence of the mighty apes, learning more about them, watching them as they carry on their normal lives and taking as many pictures and short videos as you want. When the one hour elapses, slope back to the headquarters and to the lodge for lunch and relaxation.

Spend the evening at Ibyiwachu cultural village. The center exhibits almost everything that is Rwandan. All ethnic groups of the country, the Twa, Hutu and Tutsi are represented. Enjoy the traditional performances, taste the local cuisines and buy souvenirs to carry back home.

Day 3: Gorilla trekking and travel to Akagera national park

Today, still have an early breakfast and set off to the park headquarters again to catch up with the gorilla trekking briefing. You will still be divided into groups of eight trekkers and then enter the forest just like yesterday. However, today you trek a different gorilla family, adding you to a list of the very few people who have been able to encounter with more than one gorilla group in Volcanoes national park. From the forest, receive your certificate of participation and head back to the lodge for lunch.

Immediately after lunch, start travelling to Akagera national park; Rwanda’s only savanna park. Arrival is in the evening for checking in at the lodge, dinner and overnight.

Day 4: Morning game drive and boat cruise on Lake Ihema

Having had a very heavy and delicious breakfast, set out for a game drive in Akagera national park. This park offers the best game drive experiences in Rwanda. Game drives here are ones that expose you to countless wildlife species just in a few minutes of the drive. You will see lions, buffaloes, rhinos, elephants, leopards, warthogs, waterbucks, topis, zebras, antelopes and many others.

The afternoon will be for a boat cruise on Lake Ihema after a very palatable lunch meal. The cruise is to feed your eyes with extremely outstanding views of the surrounding landscape, filled with doomed hills and valleys in the sides of the gigantic Ihema Lake. For bird lovers, this is a haven, numerous bird species call this lake a home. On the shallow ends of the lake, spot hippos, crocodiles and other animals that come along the lake shores for drinking water.

Day 5: Departure to Kigali.

Today you depart from the lodge after breakfast and travel back to Kigali at the lodge of your choice or straight to the airport to catch up with your exit flight. The journey still furnishes amazing views of the Rwanda’s thousand hills.

Top Rwanda Gorilla Tours & Safari Packages

Known by many as the “Land of a Thousand Hills”, remarkable Rwanda is a beautiful country. A gorilla safari in Rwanda does not only come alone, but with a lot of other optional experiences including wildlife safaris in Akagera National Park, chimpanzee trekking tours in Nyungwe National Park and tours to Genocide Memorial Centers. See see some of our top gorilla tours in Rwanda and safari packages.

Sándor Jakubinyi

14:31 22 Feb 24

2019 megigazulás

12:45 21 Feb 24

We went on a two-week trip with my family, organised by Coleb from Standard Safaris.I had my concerns about organised trips, but this one didn’t justify any of those. Everything went very smoothly, even when some problems arose with one of the cars it got fixed by next morning, the accomodations were clean and comfortable, the programs were exciting and well-balanced - everything was done to a truly high standard.If you plan to visit Uganda and are looking for a guide, I warmly recommend Coleb and his team. In case you have a choice of drivers, go for Godwin, his presence made this trip even more enjoyable - cheerful, helpful, good sense of humour, generally a great person. Just look for the guy with a big smile and big heart:)

Bert Simoens

09:38 08 Jan 24

We recently embarked on a safari adventure with Standard Safaris in Uganda, which was truly exceptional. Our guide, Yonah, was outstanding - his kindness, knowledge, and discretion significantly enhanced our experience. He was the heart of our trip.The local company's planning was offering a tailor-made journey that matched our interests. We saw an array of wildlife in Murchison, enjoyed rafting at Jinja, and experienced mountain biking at Sipi. A visit to Kidepo National Park was a highlight and comes highly recommended.The vehicle provided was comfortable and reliable. We highly recommend Standard Safaris for anyone seeking an unforgettable safari in Uganda. Their professionalism and the exceptional guidance of staff like Yonah make them an great choice.

Michał Kostrzewa

00:41 15 Nov 23

We are all extremely grateful Standard Safaris for an incredible East Africa experience. I recently booked a custom trip for group of 8 people, including an 8-year-old boy, from Kampala through Queen Elizabeth National Park and on to Rwanda and Burundi. Coleb delivered on everything that was discussed and agreed upon beforehand.The car provided was in great condition and our driver Meddy went above and beyond to make sure we were comfortable, informed, and had the best possible time. He was friendly, knowledgeable, and professional. All local services were inlcuded in (reasonable) price that we agreed, so there was no need to worry about payments during the 6 day trip. Also Standard Safaris agreed took care about safety and security by helping us organize armed ranger while in the park.The whole trip was hassle-free and smooth. We saw amazing wildlife in Queen Elizabeth NP, took in the sights of Rwanda and Burundi, and made lifelong memories.I would happily book with Standard Safaris again in a heartbeat and recommend them wholeheartedly to anyone looking for the best East Africa trip. They provide top-notch service while ensuring you have an incredible, customized experience. If you want a hassle-free, flawlessly organized African adventure, Standard Safaris is the tour operator to book with.

Ivan Nammanda

18:31 27 Oct 23

Very organized travel operator who chose awesome guide to make our trip wonderful.We booked a nine days trip with Standard Safaris and all was perfect from start to finish. Coleb was very prompt at replying and easy to liaise with ahead of the trip. We had done a lot of research and had an itinerary in mind and Coleb helped us to put everything together to make this happen for a very reasonable price.  On the trip we had a private vehicle for the whole tour which was exactly what we wanted. Bryan was our driver and an amazing guide - really friendly and knowledgable, working hard to find the things that we wanted to see and quickly understanding what was of interest to us/how much information to give.Would highly recommend a trip to Uganda with Standard Safaris. We are definitely coming back soon!

MUGAIGA KENNETH

18:01 27 Oct 23

The company has very courteous tour guides with wide knowledge of fauna and frola in the whole of East Africa.The choice of safari Lodges is good with first class treatment.Game drive security is assured.Almost The whole of September I was traversing through DRC, Uganda,and Rwanda on a gorilla tour and wildlife expedition.Everything was arranged and booked perfectly by Standard Safaris.The owner, Coleb was always helpful whenever we needed to ask questions about this gorilla safari in Uganda and beyond.It was a complex expedition but Standard safaris and Coleb made it look amazingly easy.I’ll recommend Standard safaris 200%, for all gorilla safaris in Uganda, Rwanda and wildlife tours in east africa.

travel uganda

16:35 27 Oct 23

This is so far the best gorilla trekking company in Uganda, and africa, by far. I had a wonderful time with Standard Safaris as a solo traveler.My guide was excellent and our safari planner, Coleb was quick with responses and the prices were very friendly.I’ll definitely book with Standard safaris on my next gorilla tour in Rwanda and Uganda.