Rwanda primate holiday, 6 days
The pricing includes gorilla, chimp, colobus and golden monkey permits. This itinerary is customisable.
Tour departs anytime.
Extension Tours available.
Description of Rwanda primate holiday, 6 days
Ideal for travellers with little time, but who don’t want to compromise on their wildlife experiences, this Rwanda primate safari offers an unforgettable encounter with man’s closest cousins, the mountain gorillas of Volcanoes National Park.
And, before your six days are up, you’ll also trek into the Nyungwe Forest in search of cheeky, chattering chimpanzees, and see a host of monkey species including colobus, golden and L’Hoest’s monkeys as they play among the trees.
Begin in Kigali, the Rwandan capital, with a moving visit to the Genocide Memorial, marking the genocide of 1994 when up to 800,000 Tutsi people were murdered by armed Hutu militias. You’ll also visit craft markets, and have time to explore the city a little to see how its youthful population has come together in reconciliation – not least through civic pride. Through regular community clean-up events Kigali is reckoned to be one of the cleanest cities in Africa.
From the capital you’ll embark on the 200km (five hour) drive to Nyungwe Forest National Park. On arrival, you’ll get an atmospheric introduction to the forest as you head up on a canopy walk, to learn about life among the treetops. It’s an entirely different experience to walking along trails on the ground, with different species present, and amazing views.
There are some 13 primate species in Nyungwe Forest, along with 300-odd bird species, and many colourful butterflies. The biodiversity on display is spectacular meaning that your nature hikes, led by expert local guides, are bound to reveal some wonderful sights.
A second day in Nyungwe Forest will be spent trekking in search of a habituated chimpanzee group to watch as they eat, play and groom themselves. You’ll have just an hour with the troop to minimise disruption on their lives, which is plenty for them but sadly never enough for visitors!
Another long journey awaits after your chimpanzee trekking as you make for your final stop: the majestic Volcanoes National Park. Here you’ll spend an hour with a family of mountain gorillas. Their calm demeanour belies their immense size and strength, and this will likely prove one of the most unforgettable travel experiences you’ll ever have.
Trekking out to find the gorillas can be challenging due to the terrain and the fact they move around constantly, so it can take an hour to find them, or much longer. But porters are available, and if you’re relatively fit you shouldn’t have too much trouble.
Finally, as you head back to Kigali, you’ll stop off for a visit to a ‘gorilla guardians village’ – a great way to understand the effort that goes into protecting these incredible animals. And how your holiday has also contributed to their ongoing survival, through the purchase of permits, and convincing local people of the value of tourism over poaching.
Price information
The pricing includes gorilla, chimp, colobus and golden monkey permits. This itinerary is customisable.
Tour departs anytime.
Extension Tours available.
Departure information
Travel guides
Reviews
1 Reviews of Rwanda primate holiday, 6 days
Reviewed on 08 Oct 2023 by mike barnes
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Gorilla treks
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Book two gorilla treks!
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Brilliant
Responsible Travel
Planet
Wildlife in Rwanda is protected by the Rwanda development board in close connection with African parks that runs Akagera national park and Nyungwe national park. For clients visit to the parks, conservation fees are paid and these are used to protect and conserve the parks. In addition to this, often include a visit to the communities adjacent to the parks to ensure they benefit directly and therefore join in conservation. There is a tea plantation experience near Nyungwe forest and gorilla guardians village adjacent to Volcanoes national park.Just like all our tours, we minimize trash on our safaris by encouraging travelers to reuse different materials. We provide/ encourage travelers to carry reusable water bottles. This is because we no longer buy the small disposable water cartons but rather the bigger bottles that then ensure minimum plastic and trash on our tours. Whatever rubbish generated while on safari must be retained in the car and safely disposed of by the driver guide.
People
Our guides are locals in the countries we work in. We also encourage them where applicable to get a site guide in the different areas they take our guests. When they visit the gorilla guardians village, our naturalist guide will handover the guiding to a community person. This helps with spreading the tourism dollar to many more people on the value chain.We respect the local cultures of the communities we visit, we are not intrusive in our approach. We ask locals to let us know what is comfortable for them as far as bringing tourists into their villages, homes etc. We together make a trail for an experience they are comfortable with. We call ahead and plan everything based on the locals/hosts preferred times and activities and if for some reason they are not able to host us after prior confirmation, we inform the clients in time and choose a different activity.
Popular similar holidays
Rwanda primates & Mafia Island holiday
From £4900 12 days including domestic flights only
Trek to mountain gorillas, then relax by the Indian Ocean
Rwanda bird watching holiday and gorilla trek
From US $5791 - US $7168 11 days excluding flights
Birding and gorillas in Rwanda's important birding areas
Primate tour in Rwanda and Uganda
From £4595 11 days excluding flights
Track down mountain gorillas and chimps in Uganda & Rwanda
