8 Days Essence Of Rwanda

You will be greeted at Kigali international airport by a Luxury Africa Tours representative. Who’ll assist you with your luggage and after transfer you to Radisson Blu one of the city’s premier five-star hotel. Multiple on-site dining options await you at the hotel with its two bars and two restaurants. For Rwandan specialties or continental favorites, stop by at the Larder again. The Lounge, with its long opening hours, gives you a cozy setting to unwind with a drink any time during the day.

After breakfast, you’ll 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. From here, you’ll travel overland to the scenic Akagera National Park, covering 1122 sq. km.  Estimated distance is 2-3 hours’ drive via the fascinating landscape of Rwanda.  the diversity of habitats is unique including complex network of lakes and channels, marshes, savannah and rolling hills to make a spectacular scenery. You will quickly find the majestic panoramas sweeping from white thorn acacia to papyrus rising out of the vast savanna supporting the likes of elephants, zebra, buffalo, and approximately 500 different bird species. Proceed to the lodge to unwind before heading out into the park for a night game drive. During the night game drive in Akagera National Park, the bushes are different with reflection of the star and moon, seeing the eyes of the animals reflect the car light gold. End your day in the superb Magashi tented suite overlooking Lake Rwanyakizinga set in the idyllic sanctuary of the park.

You will have an early morning breakfast followed by a full day game drive, As the sun sets fire to the savannah, you’ll have the chance to view more animals around the park including lions, elephants, giraffes, leopards, zebras, hippos, some antelope enthusiastic in the morning ambiance among many others with your guide coming in hand to give you all the details of the fauna you will have spotted plus their ways of life and later drive back to the lodge. Relax as you enjoy a sundowner before another an incredible dinner.

This being your last day in the safari park, you’ll have a leisurely breakfast and then proceed to a Boat ride on the lake Ihema. where you’ll drift along the forest-fringed body of water amidst hippos and crocodiles, later after the experience and lunch you’ll then carry on with your journey to Kigali.

After breakfast, you’ll drive to the Nyungwe National Park via King’s Palace Museum, a reconstruction of the traditional royal residence, a King’s Mutara III Rudahigwa’s Palace that offers a detailed look into the Rwandan monarchical system and its abolition in early 1960s due to colonialism. and then venture into the grounds to meet the long-horned cows, known as Inyambo, they descended from the king’s herd, whose keepers carefully tend and sing to them, keeping alive a unique tradition. You will proceed to Huye for a lunch before heading to jungle and check in at One & Only Nyungwe House.

Nyungwe Forest National Park protects the largest single tract of Montane forest remaining in Africa and the heart of the forest is like a scene from a fairy tale. Tall old mahoganies, ebonies and giant tree ferns tower above you, whilst orchids and other epiphytes cling to every branch. Brightly colored birds flit around, butterflies are everywhere. With an expert guide leading the way, venture deep into the heart of the forest, traversing leafy, mountainous terrain until you find a group of chimps. Once you find chimpanzee, spend one hour simply watching quietly as they dash through the foliage, hooting and playing as they go.

To get a real sense of the scale of Nyungwe, after lunch, you’ll go for a guided canopy walk. With breathtaking views across the forest as you’re guided along the short Igishigishigi Trail. The trail can be steep in places, and you’ll walk for about half an hour to the starting point of the canopy trek. It’s quite an experience walking 60m above the forest floor, over the tree canopy, along the 200m, rope-style metal bridge. This hanging wooden bridge offers a unique and spectacular viewpoint of the rainforest’s flora and fauna, and your guide will be able to introduce you to different species as you walk. Afterwards, head back to the lodge for relaxation .

After breakfast, you will go for waterfall hike. The trail is 10.6km taking 4 hours to trek. This trail takes hikers through verdant tea fields, steep rainforest ravines and to top it off, the biggest waterfall in the Nyungwe National Park. After lunch, spend the afternoon as you please, in the comfort of your luxury lodge surroundings. At 4 pm, you will go for a tour in tea plantation; you walk into the tea estate to adventure close the variety of parallel ridges of tea plus the attractive mountains that provide a beautiful back drop for the plantation.

No trip to Rwanda is complete without spending some quality time at the Kigali Genocide Memorial. After breakfast, you drive back to Kigali, 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. The memorial also serves as the final resting place for more than 250,000 victims of the genocide. Later you will drive to Kigali International Airport for departure.