DAY 1:  Arrival for the Rwanda Cultural Tour Experience

On your arrival to the Kigali Airport, you will be welcomed by a guide to transfer you to your preferred hotel. On your journey to the hotel, you will be enlighted on the tour activities and the flow of the whole itinerary. Feel free to ask questions and get clarity on some things you may need to know. Spend your night in Kigali city with the curiosity to experience typical cultural tours and wild encounters in the 9 days of this safari holiday.

DAY 2 :  Visit to Kigali Genocide Memorial and Kigali City Tour.

Wake up to a sumptuous delicious locally made Rwandan breakfast and then begin of your day with a tour experience of Kigali City beginning with the remarkable historical sites in Kigali. You will take a trip to the Kigali Solaire, Stade regional, Kigali Genocide memorial site, Kandt Museum, Belgian camp for an ainsightful knowledge about the cultural and historical background of Rwanda. Thereafter, you will be transferred to Bugesera in the afternoon to visit the reconciliation village, Nyamata and Ntarama genocide churches. Later you will return to lodge for dinner and overnight.
Accmmodation Options: Up Market: Kigali Serena Hotel, Mid Range: Classic Hotel, Budget: Flame Tree Village Kigali, Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

DAY 3 : Transfer to Akagera National Park

After a hearty breakfast, leave for Kirehe early in the morning. Stop for lunch en route, visit the Imigongo art center, where you may practice ancient crafts, and see the waterfalls at Rusumo, which is on the border between Tanzania and Rwanda. Proceed to Akagera National Park, which is home to a variety of wild game species, after a leisurely beautiful drive, and settle into your safari lodge for dinner and the night.

DAY 4 : Game Drive and Visit to Local Communities

You will go for an early morning game drive and birding through the Akagera National Park after having your coffee-only breakfast. Wildlife and bird species to be seen include, among others, elephants, lions, rhinos, antelopes, kobs, zebras, and buffaloes. Later, as you wait for lunch, you’ll go back to your room to relax. Prepare to leave the southern portion of the park after a delectable lunch in order to see the pastoralist heritage experience. After dinner, stay the night at the resort.

DAY 5 : Boat Trip and Evening Game Drive

Wake up at 7:00 am to get ready for the game drive. After having breakfast, you will take a stunning boat ride on Lake Ihema to spot aquatic wildlife like crocodiles, schools of hippos and over 50 species of water birds like pelicans, sun birds among others. You will later return for your lunch and get some time of relaxation before an evening game drive. You will be on the lookout for more wildlife that you may have missed on the previous morning game drive. Later return to lodge for dinner and overnight.

DAY 6 : Culture Visit and Visit to Twin Lakes

Today you will wake up early in the morning, have breakfast and check out of the hotel/lodge and thereafter transfer to Ruhengeri for unique ethnobotany tours. Have lunch en-route and then visit the twin lakes of Burera and Ruhondo. This will be accompanied with community project initiatives like brick making sites and bee hive locations among others. You will then embark on your journey to Musanze to book your hotel / lodge for dinner and overnight.

DAY 7 : Gorilla Trekking in Volcanoes National Park 

You will wake up very early in the morning, have breakfast and set out for your briefing before Rwanda gorilla trekking adventures and how to conduct yourself while with the gorillas in the forest. Be sure to carry essential gorilla trekking items such as the hiking boots, rain jackets, a hat, sunscreen, and insect repellent is much required while in the tropical rainforest. If you have not met your gorilla group assigned by lunchtime, you will take a break and enjoy your packed lunch and then proceed on with the trek till you find the gorillas in their habitat. After spend your one hour with the gorillas, you will hike out of the forest and head to Buhanga forest for a Kinigi Cultural Village experience where you will also have a taste of local cuisine in Rwanda. Spend dinner and overnight here.

DAY 8 : Community Tour & Excursion in Gisenyi (Lake Kivu)

After your breakfast, you will check out of your hotel / lodge and transfer to the beautiful Lake Kivu. Lake Kivu, is Rwanda’s largest waterbody and the deepest in the country. On your way to Gisenyi, you will visit the Banana and Sorghum beer production plants and you could even have a taste if you dare. You will then proceed to the shores of Lake Kivu to relax. Dinner and overnight.

DAY 9: Cultural Visit to Butare & Transfer back to Kigali

After breakfast at your lodge/hotel around Lake Kivu, you will take a journey back to Kigali but visiting Butare first. Butare is dubbed as “the intellectual town of Rwanda” with remarkable cultural experience you can explore by yourself. On your way back to Kigali, you will also visit the Basilica of Kabagayi, the ancient King’s palace at Nyanza, National Museum and end your 9 days Rwanda cultural tour in Kigali with scheduled drop-offs at the Airport or your hotel/residence in Kigali city. Meal plan: Breakfast and Lunch.

End of the 9 Days Rwanda Cultural tour and Gorilla trekking Safari.