3 Days Gentle Giants
Our 3 days enchantment experience of meeting gentle giant apes takes you to the misty forest of Rwanda. Sitting a few meters from the silverback and his whole family is a lifetime experience. It will stay will you for a lifetime, and that’s not the kind of thing you buy at your favourite supermarket.
- Overview
- Itinerary
- Price
- Before You Go
Itinerary at a Glance
Arrival
Genocide Memorial and Meeting Locals
Gorilla trekking
Arrival
After being greeted at Kigali International Airport by a Luxury Africa Tours representative, you’ll be transferred to the finest luxury stay in the city that offers the perfect combination of leafy tranquility, Rwandan flair and contemporary buzz. Go for massage and rejuvenate that jetlag in the salty pool.
Genocide Memorial and Meeting Locals
No trip to Rwanda is complete without spending some quality time at the Kigali Genocide Memorial. This is the best place to learn about the worst human tragedy to affect the country and one of the most awful historical times in the world. The memorial serves as the final resting place for more than 250,000 victims of the genocide.
After breakfast, pay an emotional visit to the Genocide Memorial Site and learn how the country has dealt with its past and recovered to stand today as a testament to humankind’s resilience. Drive to the north, weaving through beautiful terraced hillsides, culminates at the base of the awe-inspiring Virunga volcanoes.
After lunch, meet the experts at the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund’s Karisoke Research for a behind-the-scenes look at ongoing gorilla research and conservation efforts. Continue with Red Rocks for banana beer experience; the most widespread, popular and strongest local beer in Rwanda produced mainly at homes as a family business. You will learn how we used to make this “friendly” banana beer, by participating in the production process, which involves stone grinding sorghum to produce flour which is used in the fermentation process, if you wish you may have a chance to taste it. You will also learn how solid waste from banana fibers can be used to produce handmade paper, which helps to conserve our natural environment.
Papers from banana fibers are useful for soft usage like tissues, wipes, tracing papers, etc. Afterwards, proceed to Amakoro Songa Lodge.
Gorilla trekking
After an early breakfast,your driver guide will take you to the park headquarters in Kinigi village. You’ll be divided into groups of 8 and, after a briefing on safety and gorilla trekking etiquette; you’ll be driven to the start of the trail to reach your mountain gorilla group.
Your experienced trackers use their knowledge of the gorillas’ habits to locate their whereabouts. Upon sighting the gorillas, you stay with them for a magical hour, admire the behavior of the gorillas as they go about their daily lives feeding, youngster playing and picking open fruit and throwing it through the air, resting and raising their young. Occasionally one, often a playful youngster, will approach you with curiosity, sometimes coming so close that you’ll have to move away. At that moment, the world seems to come alive, and your view of the natural world is changed to include creatures humans have so feared for thousands of years.
Afterward, go for lunch and later drive to Kigali for departure.
Prices are in USD, per person, based on double occupancy
Tour Includes
Tour Excludes
Getting here
Airlines servicing Kigali International Airport are: RwandAir, Kenya Airways, Ethiopian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, KLM, Qatar Airways and Turkish Airlines. Scheduled helicopter transfers within Rwanda are available through Akagera Aviation.
Passport and visas
Applicants should have a valid passport or another acceptable travel document. The document must have a validity of at least six months on the day of entry into Rwanda. As of 1st January 2018, nationals of all countries receive a visa on arrival at Kigali International Airport and all land borders. Visas can be applied for before departure, by submitting an application online, with the option to pay online or upon arrival.
Vaccinations
Travelers should ensure they are up to date with vaccinations, following the advice of their local healthcare provider. A certificate of yellow fever vaccination is required. At least 8 weeks before your trip, check the latest country-specific health advice from the National Travel Health Network and Centre (NaTHNaC) on the TravelHealthPro website. https://travelhealthpro.org.uk/country/187/rwanda, each country-specific page has information on vaccine recommendations, any current health risks or outbreaks, and factsheets with information on staying healthy abroad.
The greatest health risks in Rwanda are accidents and malaria. Much of Rwanda lies at too high an elevation for malaria to be a major concern, but the disease is present and prophylactic drugs are recommended. Travellers should seek professional medical advice on taking anti-malarial medicines and take precautions to avoid mosquito bites, especially between dawn and dusk.
COVID-19 Requirements
All travellers must provide printed, documented proof of a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR test, taken within 72 hours of boarding your flight to Rwanda, immediately upon arrival.
Note: The negative RT-PCR test result will be the only type accepted. Other tests, such as Rapid Diagnostics Test (RDTs), are not accepted.
All travellers are required to complete and submit a “Rwanda Passenger Locator Form” to assist in contact tracing. To access this form, please https://travel.rbc.gov.rw/travel/.
You must provide printed, documented proof of a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR test each time they visit Volcanoes and Nyungwe National Parks. Rapid Diagnosis Test (RDTs) is accepted for check-in at any hotel or lodge and in Akagera National park
Note: all passengers arriving from or have traveled to India and Uganda in last 7 days are required to complete 7 days in mandatory quarantine upon arrival at the designated hotels. Please visit https://rbc.gov.rw/index.php?id=188 for an up-to-date list of approved. This quarantine requirement does not apply to transit passengers.
Note: COVID rules and regulations are subject to change from time to time. Get in touch with us for accurate new rules before travel.
Climate
Fractionally south of the Equator and with much of the country lying at altitude, Rwanda enjoys an agreeable tropical highland climate. Peak temperatures rarely exceed 30°C (86°F) in the daytime or drop below 15°C (59°F) at night. Akagera is generally the warmest and the Virunga Mountains the coolest and the average daily temperature in Kigali is 21°C (70°F). There are two rainy seasons in a year, from mid-February to May and mid-September to mid-December. The dry season, from June to mid-September, sees light cloud cover and occasional light rainfall. The roads and paths tend to be easier to navigate in this period
Money
The Rwandan franc (Rfw) is the principal currency, although US dollars are widely accepted. Expect to pay for local services in cash, in Rwandan francs. Dollar series of 2006 below are note accepted in national park and for exchange they have a lesser exchange value together with smaller notes below 50$. A growing number of places accept credit and debit cards, with Visa being more widely accepted than Mastercard. It’s best to check when making a booking. Cash can be exchanged at banks and private forex bureaux (bureau de change) but Both are closed on Sundays and public holidays. ATMs can be found in Kigali and nearly all major cities. It may be impossible to exchange traveler’s cheques away from the capital. Western Union facilities are common.
Electricity: 230v 50Hz
Time: GMT + 2:00
Telephone: International telephone code +250
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