Courtesy of Intayoberana Cultural Group
Our Trips
SEE ICONIC RWANDA
Maybe you’re here for Just Gorillas or All the Highlights. We're experienced in securing gorilla permits and arranging seamless private journeys.
GO DEEPER WITH OUR SIGNATURE TRIPS
Take advantage of our expertise to explore Rwanda through one of our Signature Journeys:
- Building Peace After Genocide
- Primates, Seriously
- Gorillas, Wilderness & Wellness
- Active Adventure
- Birds & More
- Coffee & Tea: From Crop to Cup
OR EXPLORE SOMETHING ELSE
Have another interest in mind? We draw on our specialized knowledge and Rwandan roots to create journeys for individuals, families and friends, universities, and special-interest groups.
All journeys customizable * Private vehicle and dedicated driver-guide
Plan ahead! Gorilla permits are limited, and the most sought-after eco-lodges can fill months in advance.
We recommend planning early for the greatest choice of dates and accommodations.
See Iconic Rwanda
Just Gorillas or All the Highlights
These are starting points, not a fixed catalog.
Choose a journey that fits your interests, or use one as the basis for something entirely your own.
Just Gorillas
3 Days / 2 Nights
For travelers with one goal: to see Rwanda’s mountain gorillas. This short private journey takes you from Kigali to Volcanoes National Park for an unforgettable gorilla trek, with all logistics taken care of.
DAY 1 | ARRIVE KIGALI • VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK
Arrive in Kigali and meet your private driver-guide for the scenic drive to Volcanoes National Park.
DAY 2 | GORILLA TREKKING
Set out early to trek through the forest with experienced guides to encounter a mountain gorilla family at close range.
Optional: Visit the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund to learn more about gorilla research and conservation.
DAY 3 | GOLDEN MONKEYS • RETURN TO KIGALI
Enjoy a leisurely morning or take an optional golden monkey trek. Afterwards, return by private vehicle to Kigali for your onward journey.
Why not add a day? You’ve come a long way to a very special place. Take another trek to meet another gorilla family in a different part of the forest. Hike up to Dian Fossey’s camp or take a quiet walk in the bamboo forest. Visit a nearby cultural village. Get a distinctive spa treatment. Or simply bask in the beauty and stillness of the Virunga Mountains.
ICONIC RWANDA:
All the Highlights
Gorillas • Rainforest • Lake Kivu • Big Five Safari
10 days / 9 nights
Discover the remarkable diversity of Rwanda on a 10-day journey through ancient rainforest, volcanic mountains, Lake Kivu and the savannas and wetlands of Akagera. Track mountain gorillas and chimpanzees, walk above the rainforest canopy, spend time along Lake Kivu and search for the Big Five on safari. Along the way, experience Kigali and gain context for Rwanda’s history, culture and renewal.
Trip Highlights
• Mountain gorilla trekking
• Chimpanzee tracking in Nyungwe Rainforest
• Walk on a suspension bridge above the rainforest canopy
• Lake Kivu with optional boat, kayak, walking or cycling
• Golden monkey trek in the Virunga Mountains
• Safari drives in search of lions, elephants, giraffe, zebra, and more
• Boat safari to see hippos, crocodiles, and water birds
• Kigali, museums, heritage and contemporary Rwanda
Go Deeper
Take one of our Signature Journeys
Rwanda Reset:
Gorillas, Wilderness, and Wellness
8 Days / 7 Nights
Begin with one of the world’s most moving wildlife encounters: time in the quiet company of Rwanda’s mountain gorillas. Then let the magic stay with you as you retreat into the wilderness of the Virunga Mountains and Nyungwe rainforest.
Here, luxury is found in pristine landscapes, fresh mountain air, stillness and slowed time; in wholesome local food, exceptional hospitality, and the freedom to spend each day exactly as you choose.
Stay in two of Rwanda’s exceptional lodges—Bisate and One&Only Nyungwe House—each a destination in its own right and set within a distinctive ecosystem. With few moves, there is time to settle in.
Be as active or as still as you desire. Trek for golden monkeys or chimpanzees, walk through the forest, watch birds, explore a tea estate, enjoy yoga or a spa treatment—or spend an afternoon with a book and a view. Activities and adventures are built into the journey; partake if and when you want.
Your trip includes a private vehicle and driver throughout. From Nyungwe, return to Kigali by road or, optionally, by private flight.
Optional Safari Extension: Continue to the tranquil savanna of Akagera for a safari, spending two nights at Magashi, an exceptional base for wildlife viewing, with opportunities to see lions, elephants, buffalo, rhinos and other big game. It is a natural final chapter to your reset: from mountain gorillas and volcanic landscapes, to ancient rainforest, and finally to the open skies and wildlife-rich savanna of eastern Rwanda.
Primates, Seriously
Gorillas • Chimpanzees • Monkeys • Research & Conservation
9 Days / 8 Nights | 4 person minimum
For travelers who want to go beyond seeing primates to understanding them. This journey combines encounters with mountain gorillas, chimpanzees and monkeys with opportunities to learn from the trackers, researchers and conservation professionals who study and protect them. No scientific background is required—only curiosity.
Rwanda is unusually rich in primate life, with 13 species found in Nyungwe National Park alone. Along the way, see how conservation and restoration helped bring wildlife and landscapes back from widespread devastation.
Trip Highlights
• Mountain gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park
• Chimpanzee tracking in Nyungwe
• Golden monkeys and other primates
• Conversations or specialist sessions on primate research & conservation
• Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund campus and conservation context
• Optional second gorilla trek
• Alternative activities for travelers who do not want a second trek
• Private vehicle and dedicated English-speaking driver-guide
Specialist talks and habituation experiences are arranged when available. If a particular session cannot be confirmed for the travel dates, comparable programming will be sought.
Active Adventure
Gorilla Trekking • Hiking • Cycling • Kayaking • Adrenaline
10 Days / 9 Nights | Optional 2-Day Safari Extension
Minimum 2 Persons
Designed for active travelers, this journey combines rewarding physical activities with wildlife, varied landscapes and well-timed opportunities to recover and enjoy the surroundings.
You don’t have to be an elite athlete, but you should be fit, comfortable with sustained physical activity and excited by the idea of earning some of Rwanda’s most memorable experiences on foot, bicycle and water.
The trip accommodates a range of fitness levels. Cycling distances can be shortened or extended, and alternatives are available for travelers who prefer to skip more demanding activities. A private vehicle and dedicated English-speaking driver-guide provide transportation, luggage transfers and support throughout.
Trip Highlights
• Cycling in Rwanda’s hill country
• Mountain gorilla trekking
• Dian Fossey/Karisoke hike
• Kayaking on Lake Kivu
• Walk or cycle a scenic section of the Congo Nile Trail
• Coffee country and a washing-station visit
• Chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe
• Nyungwe canopy walk and zipline
• Optional Akagera safari extension
Birds & More
Birdwatching • Gorillas • Chimpanzees • Rainforest • Safari
9 Days / 8 Nights | Minimum 2 Persons
For such a compact country, Rwanda has extraordinary birdlife: some 700 recorded species, from montane rainforest specialists and Albertine Rift endemics to savannah and wetland birds, including sought-after rarities such as the shoebill. Its small size, good roads and variety of habitats make it possible to experience remarkably different birdlife within a relatively short journey.
Birds & More is designed for bird enthusiasts who want expert guides on birding outings—but don’t want to miss Rwanda’s other highlights. It is equally well suited to travelers whose companions are more interested in primates, big wildlife and Rwanda’s natural landscapes.
Birdwatching is woven naturally through three very different environments: Nyungwe’s montane rainforest, the volcanic highlands of Volcanoes National Park and Akagera’s savannah, lakes and wetlands.
Trip Highlights
• Rwanda’s remarkable bird diversity, including Albertine Rift endemics
• Nyungwe rainforest birding with expert park guides
• Volcanoes National Park and the Virunga highlands
• Akagera savannah and wetland birdlife
• Mountain gorilla trekking
• Chimpanzee or colobus tracking
• Game drives and a boat outing in Akagera
• A pace that works for birders and non-birding companions
Coffee & Tea:
From Crop to Cup
4 Days / 3 Nights
Discover Rwanda through two crops that are an important part of its landscape and economy. Follow coffee from farm to washing station to cup, meet growers and producers, and learn how Rwanda’s specialty coffee industry has developed.
Travel through coffee-growing country and along Lake Kivu before continuing south into Rwanda’s tea-growing regions. Visit farms and production facilities, learn how coffee and tea are grown and processed, and taste the results along the way.
No special knowledge is needed—just curiosity and an interest in the people and places behind what we drink every day.
Trip Highlights
• Follow Rwandan coffee from crop to cup
• Visit farms and washing stations
• Meet coffee growers, producers and entrepreneurs
• Learn about the role of women in Rwanda’s coffee industry
• Travel through coffee country and along Lake Kivu
• Walk through tea fields and learn how tea is grown, harvested & processed
• Taste coffee and tea along the way
• See how the two crops contribute to rural livelihoods & Rwanda’s economy
Building Peace After Genocide
Explore Rwanda’s path to justice, reconciliation & renewal
9 Days / 8 Nights
Minimum 4 Persons
This journey is designed for those who want to understand Rwanda beyond the headlines: what led to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, what happened during it, and how Rwanda has worked to rebuild and reconcile.
Visits to memorials and reconciliation initiatives are complemented by conversations with people whose experiences and work bring different dimensions of the story to life.
But this is also a hopeful journey. Travelers see and enjoy the Rwanda that has emerged: a beautiful, welcoming, forward-looking country whose vitality and accomplishments are themselves part of the story.
Trip Highlights
• Visit the Kigali Genocide Memorial and other significant memorial sites
• Explore Rwanda’s approaches to justice, reconciliation and national reconstruction
• Meet people involved in peacebuilding, community renewal, governance, education or social development
• Hear personal perspectives on survival, responsibility, forgiveness and rebuilding
• Experience contemporary Rwanda through landscapes, culture, communities and everyday life
• Optional mountain gorilla trek and/or Akagera safari extension
Iconic Rwanda:
All the Highlights
The best of Rwanda, in one journey
Sample Itinerary ~ Fully customizable
Day 1
Arrive in Rwanda
Private airport welcome and transfer to your hotel.
Visit the Kigali Genocide Memorial and explore the city.
Day 2
Discover Kigali
Travel south through Rwanda’s hills with historic stops, then continue to Nyungwe Rainforest.
Day 3
Nyanza & Nyungwe
Day 4
Chimpanzees
Track chimpanzees in the rainforest, walk across the treetops on a suspension bridge, hike to a waterfall, or travel through the forest by zipline.
Day 5
Lake Kivu
Travel to Lake Kivu and slow the pace with lake activities or enjoy the serene lakeshore.
Day 6
Into Gorilla Country
Continue north to Musanze and the Virunga volcanoes. Visit the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund campus.
Day 7
Mountain Gorillas
Trek up into the Virunga mountains to find a mountain gorilla family.
Day 8
Golden Monkeys & Boat Safari
Trek for golden monkeys, then travel to Akagera National Park for an evening boat safari to see hippos, crocodiles, birds.
Day 9
Big Five Safari
Spend the day on safari in Akagera in search of lions, leopards, elephant, zebra, giraffe and more.
Day 10
Return to Kigali
Return to Kigali for your onward flight or additional time in the capital.