What to do on a one week safari in Rwanda

The one week safari in Rwanda includes activities gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park, Chimpanzee trekking and canopy walk in Nyungwe National Park and Kigali city tour.

Most Popular Safaris

2 Day Bwindi Gorilla Safari through Kigali

4 Day Rwanda gorilla trekking & wildlife viewing safari

5 Day Gorilla Trekking Rwanda

3 Days Rwanda Gorilla Tracking Safari

4 day gorilla trekking & Dian Fossey tomb visit

4 Day Uganda Safari via Kigali

14 Day Uganda Safari via Kigali

3 Day Akagera National Park Safari

3 Day Bwindi Double trek via Kigali

Other alternative Rwanda safari activities you can do include golden monkey trekking, climbing the Virunga Volcanoes, Rwanda cultural tour, birding safari in Rwanda, game safari in Akagera National Park and others. When you hope to visit Rwanda for a safari, you may swap the itinerary with some of these activities but seek help from a professional safari consultant to avoid backtracking.

Summary of a one week safari in Rwanda

Day 1 Drive to Nyungwe National Park

Day 2 Chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe Forest

Day 3 Nature walk and canopy walk in Nyungwe National Park

Day 4 Drive to Volcanoes National Park

Day 5 Gorilla Trekking in Volcanoes National Park

Day 6 Golden Monkey trekking

Day 7 Kigali city tour and Departure

Details Of A One Week Safari In Rwanda

Day 1 Drive to Nyungwe National Park

Early morning our driver guide will pick you from your overnight hotel and drive to Nyungwe National Park close to Lake Kivu. This lush green forest is believed to be one of the survivor of the ice age era because of the huge list of flora and fauna that the park is composed of. Chimpanzees are the main occupants of Nyungwe National Park with other primates species. So far two chimpanzee trekking communities have been confirmed ready for public viewing in Nyungwe forest with one of them in Cyamudondo which is on the periphery of the park.

Even though here still limited options of accommodations of Nyungwe National Park, those available can be booked by tourists.

Accommodation in Nyungwe National Park Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel, Gisaku Guest House, Nyungwe Forest Lodge, Nyungwe House, Gisaku Family Hostel

Day 2 Chimpanzee Trekking in Nyungwe National Park

When booked for the morning session of chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe National Park, wake up early for breakfast and head to the ranger station for briefing. The ranger guide leads the way using some of the tail in the forest includes usamo trail, Igishigishigi trail and others. On the way you may encounter other interesting features including the Usamo falls with its sparkling water.

Other primates may also present them selves including black and white colobus, vervet monkeys, grey cheeked mangabey, blue monkeys, red tailed monkeys, olive baboons, Dent Mona Monkeys, L’hoest and others. Over 363 bird species have been confirmed as residents of Nyungwe National Park and you may spot some of them.

Finally, when you find the chimpanzees behave to the best of your ability because they are very sensitive to intruders in there vicinity. Watch the chimpanzee play, groom, feed, discipline, comb the hairs of each other and many other similarities they share with humans. Take as many photos as you can possibly have to keep as memories of your encounter with these primates. Only one hour is allowed with the chimpanzees.

Get back to your lodge to relax.

Day 3 Drive to Volcanoes National Park

Early morning, our safari guide will drive to Volcanoes National Park in Musaze. The drive to Musaze is winding and quite smooth on the tarmac part but gets bumpy as you drive towards Volcanoes National Park in the countryside.

Volcanoes National Park is a tropical rain forest situated in Northwestern part of Rwanda. The topography of Volcanoes forest is composed of rugged terrain from volcanic action that ended in the formation of several ridges and plateaus with shaded by lush green forest cover. Five Virunga volcanoes are part of Volcanoes National Park that is mountain Gahinga, Muhavura, Sabyinyo, Bisoke and Karisimbi.

Gorilla trekking is the main activity in Volcanoes National Park with so far 12 gorilla families confirmed as open to public viewing including Karisimbi, Umubano, Agashya, Amahoro, Hirwa, Susa and others. Of all the gorilla trekking families in Rwanda, the easiest to trek is hard to determine because they are mobile.

When you arrive Volcanoes National Park check-in to your accommodation

Accommodation Volcanoes National Park Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge, Hotel Mille Collines, Mountain Gorilla View Lodge, Gorilla Nest, Kinigi Guesthouse, Hotel Muhavura

Meal Plan Full Board

Day 4 Nature Walks And Canopy Walk In Nyungwe National Park

 Get up for breakfast and head to Uwinka to start the Nature walk in Nyungwe Forest where you may cross a number of rivers as Nyungwe forest is the water catchment area for the communities around it. Identify a number of other primates that call the forest home. A number of birds including Albertine rift endemics may present themselves.

Enjoy the canopy walk too which is on a suspension bridge of about 160 meters long and 70 meters high. The canopy walk over Nyungwe forest is one of its kind in East Africa with chances of viewing the dense forest canopy from a more elevated point. The stunning features of highlands that make part of the topography of this park are mesmerizing. The canopy walk in Nyungwe National Park is iconic in Rwanda but not for the faint hearted

Get back to the lodge to relax

Day 5 Gorilla Trekking In Volcanoes National Park

After breakfast, drive to the ranger station with your gorilla trekking gear and National Park document verification and briefing. When allocated the gorilla family, follow the ranger guide using the trail heads constructed by regular visitors to the park. The trek in Volcanoes National Park is quite steep but very amazing as you cross a dense network of rivers using the walking boards.

Along the way, you may encounter other forest inhabitants includes black and white colobus, blue monkeys, olive baboons, grey-cheeked mangabey and others. More than 200 bird species have been confirmed as residents of the park so keen birders may grab this double opportunity to spot out some of them.

As you draw closer to the location of the mountain gorillas, you hear them murmur and in about 200 meters from them, the ranger guide may request those who wish to smoke to do it at this point. Seeing the mountain gorillas brings chills and mixed feelings of fear and excitement at the same time. Many have failed to describe what is it like standing a few meters from the majestic mountain gorillas and this is the magic of gorilla trekking.

One hour is allowed with the mountain gorillas so that they can be given free space to carry on with there day today activities. The presence of humans disrupts the activities for the mountain gorillas so ut is minimized to one hour’s viewer ship.

Return to the lodge to relax after the gorilla trekking adventure

Day 6 Golden monkey trekking in Volcanoes National Park

Wake up for breakfast and head to the ranger station for briefing. The golden monkeys in Rwanda are first habituated before opening the community to the public so be sure of being safe with them. They are very charming primates with a physical body structure that is larger than the normal monkeys structure. Even though the golden monkeys are habituated, they do not loose their nature as they keep you on your toes.

Finally when you find them, one hour is allowed with the golden monkeys then allow them to go on with there day today life.

Get back to the lodge to relax.

Day 7 Departure and Kigali City tour

After the primate safari in Rwanda, head to Kigali to enjoy the great sceneries in this ever clean city. One of the environmentally friendly cities in Africa. Visit the business centers, craft centers, the genocide memorials and drive to Kigali to catch up with your flight back home. Alternatively, you can do the Kigali city tour at the start of this 7 day Rwanda safari.

When is the best time to do the one week Rwanda safari

Rwanda is open for any safaris any time but the dry season is most comfortable especially if you have to drive in the countryside where roads get messy. Having a 4x4 wheel drive vehicle during Rwanda safari is an added advantage no matter the season you travel up country in Rwanda. The dry season in Rwanda is normally June to October or December to January when most safari destinations can easily be explored.

Most wild animals in the jungles of Rwanda spend more time closer to the ground especially the primates so you can easily spot them. During this one week Rwanda safari, expect to find other tourists at the safari destinations to especially during the dry season because it is the high tourism season in the country.

Competition for safari logistics is high too in the dry season so you need to make advance reservation in order to avoid getting disappointed at the last minute when the best options are not available.

The wet season which is March, April, May and November is also a great season to book a one day Rwanda safari because there are normally fewer tourists on ground. This is also the low tourism season in Rwanda. Chances of securing discounts for those with a limited budget but hoping to do a Rwanda safaris may be more open in this period.

How much is the cost of One Week Rwanda safari

The cost of the one week Rwanda Safari varies with the package you select that is luxury, mid-range and basic. The cost of the gorilla, chimpanzee and golden monkey trekking permits in Rwanda cuts across all budgets.

Currently the cost of the gorilla trekking permit in Rwanda is $1500 for international nonresidents, $500 for foreign residents, $ 500 for other African and $200 for East Africans.

Current cost of Chimpanzee trekking permits for Rwanda is $ 150 for International nonresidents, $75 for foreign residents, $25 for East Africans.

The current cost of Rwanda golden monkeys trekking safari is $ 100

The cost of other logistics that support tourism may vary including accommodation cost, transport costs and others.

Our safari team is on ground to tailor the best itinerary to suit your needs and within your budget.

What Are The Chances Of Seeing The Primates Of Rwanda

During gorilla trekking, chimpanzee trekking or golden monkey trekking safari, be sure to see these primates in Rwanda even though they are residents of the untamed jungle. These primates are first habituated before opening them to the public so that they can get accustomed to the presence of humans,

Each day there is a team of trackers that move in the forest before tourists get to view in mountain gorillas, chimpanzees or golden monkeys to find where they may spend the day. Some of these clues are what rangers guides use to find the way about of these primates.

What are the dos and don’ts of Rwanda Safaris 

Rwanda is a pro-environmental country so when traveling for safari, do not violate the environmental laws because you may end up being penalized by the law enforcement in the country. Make sure to observe the rules of the Rwanda safari destinations in order not to be bounced from some of these activities because it is possible

• Never go into the forest without an escorting ranger guide. Although the mountain gorillas or chimpanzees are fully habituated to human presence, some forest dwellers are not and may be dangerous to you alone.
• When you need to defecate, ask the ranger guide to dig a hole for you atleast 30 centimeters deep and cover well beyond recognition.
• Try to stay in a tight group when with the mountain gorillas or chimpanzees because surrounding them may cause them to feel ambushed.
• Don’t attempt to provoke the mountain gorillas or chimpanzees because they are wild animals that even though habituated to human presence. They still possess wild behaviors
• When taking photos, do it with a flash-less camera in order not to scare the mountain gorillas or chimpanzees, they are often scared by unfamiliar occurrences in there presence.
• When tracking the mountain gorillas or chimpanzees, keep your voices low so as not to scare these primates and others forest dwellers that may be interesting to add on your wildlife photo collection.
• Never dump garbage in the wilderness as this alters the nature of the forest where mountain gorillas or chimpanzees live.

Get in touch with us for more information.