This 7-day Rwanda safari offers a diverse experience of the country’s top destinations. It begins in Kigali and takes you to Akagera National Park, the sole savannah game park in Rwanda.
You’ll enjoy game drives, a boat trip on Lake Ihema, and explore Nyungwe Forest National Park for chimpanzee trekking and a canopy walk.
Afterward, you’ll visit Lake Kivu for relaxation and water activities before heading to Volcanoes National Park.
There, you’ll embark on a thrilling gorilla trekking adventure, immerse in cultural experiences, and finally return to Kigali, concluding your 7-Day Rwanda Primates, Culture & Wildlife Safari Tour.
7-Day Rwanda Safari Highlights
- Day 1: Kigali to Akagera National Park
- Day 2: Game Drive & Boat Trip
- Day 3: Transfer to Nyungwe Forest National Park
- Day 4: Chimpanzee Trekking and Canopy Walk
- Day 5: Transfer to Lake Kivu and Volcanoes National Park
- Day 6: Gorilla Trekking
- Day 7: End of Safari
Detailed 7-Day Rwanda Safari Itinerary
Day 1: Kigali to Akagera National Park
First of your 7-day Rwanda safari will be the Akagera National Park, the only Savannah game park in the country.
You will set off from Kigali after a half day city tour and lunch arriving in Akagera in the late afternoon, check in and relax a bit.
Thereafter, head out for a rewarding evening game drive in the Savannah plains of Akagera National Park.
Day 2: Game Drive & Boat Trip
Pre-sunrise game drive to catch up with the early risers of Akagera national park and a chance to see some nocturnal.
Get to watch the animals during their most active hours of the day like the predators on a morning hunt. Back to the lodge for breakfast and then head out again for a mid-morning game drive.
Look out for elephants, zebras, buffalos, giraffes, lions, leopards, water-bucks, antelopes, hyenas among other animals.
After lunch in the afternoon, you will go on a boat safari on Lake Ihema, the largest lake within the park.
Look out for different water bird species, crocodiles and hippos.
Day 3: Transfer to Nyungwe Forest National Park
After breakfast, you start your road trip to Nyungwe forest national park via Kigali.
You will have some stopovers at some places of interest and lunch en-route.
Arriving in Nyungwe in the late afternoon, check in at your accommodation facility for dinner and an overnight.
Day 4: Chimpanzee Trekking & Canopy walk
Your day starts with an early breakfast and then you drive to the park head offices for a briefing.
You will be led into the Nyungwe forest by an experienced team of ranger guides to track down a habituated troop of chimpanzees.
Chimpanzees are very playful and make a lot of noise, you are most likely going to hear them before you see them swinging from one tree to another, spend an hour with then and then return from the forest back to your safari lodge for lunch.
Later on, you will go for a canopy walk over the tree tops of Nyungwe forest for a different view of the forest.
Day 5: Transfer to Lake Kivu & Volcanoes National Park
Transfer further West to Rwanda’s largest lake, Lake Kivu, shared with the Democratic republic of Congo.
Take a boat trip to one of the islands on the lake, enjoy birding moments and scenic views.
Enjoy other available activities like canoeing and kayaking.
Take a moment to enjoy some lunch and then later depart to Volcanoes national park which is just 1-2 hours’ drive away. Spend your evening at leisure.
Day 6: Gorilla Trekking
A 2–6-hour trekking experience that will see you get close and see the endangered mountain gorillas in their national habitat.
In groups of 8, you will be led by a ranger guide who will guide you through the forest leading you to the gorilla family that you are assigned too.
Enjoy an hour with the gorillas and then return to your lodge for lunch.
Later in the day, visit the Gorilla Guardians village to a cultural experience getting to know and understand Rwanda’s customs and traditions.
Day 7: End of Safari
Transfer back to Kigali and connect to the airport for your flight.
