Rwanda active adventure: kayak, bike & hike

Kigali

Day 1: Arrival into Kigali

Welcome to Rwanda! On arrival into Kigali International Airport, make your way through passport control and collect your luggage. Once you have reached the arrivals hall, you will be met by a representative who will help you with your luggage and transfer you to your hotel in Kigali.

Kigali - Nyamirambo - Kigali

Day 2: A local lunch & walking tour

A tour from Nyamirambo Women's Center offers you a personal, unique insight into the culture, history, and daily life of the local community. Take a walk with a local guide (who either grew up in Nyamirambo or lives there).

Start with a traditional snack, a brief Kinyarwanda lesson, and an introduction to the Center's activities. It then weaves through Nyamirambo, one of Kigali's oldest neighborhoods. Guides lead participants to a women's hairdressing salon for a free braid, a family compound to pound cassava leaves, two mosques, a lookout over Kigali, and a tailor shop to feel local fabrics. The tour concludes with a traditional lunch prepared by Aminatha, the center's best cook!

After, visit the Kigali Genocide Memorial, a place of remembrance & learning where you will have time to reflect on a tragic time in Rwandaʼs past.

Kigali - Kimironko - Kigali

Day 3: Bike, BBQ & shop

Start the day cycling through Umusambi, the village's 22km nature trail will have you experiencing beautiful scenery and exploring local villages around Kabuga Hill. After you'll enjoy a local BBQ. 

Next, visit a nearby restored wetland area, operated by the Rwanda Wildlife Conservation Association that provides a sanctuary for over 50 endangered grey crowned cranes that have been saved from the illegal pet trade. 

In the late afternoon, journey to a local market in Kimironko. Here you'll find fresh fruit and vegetables plus locally made art and decorations (which make a great souvenir).

Kigali

Day 4: Spend the day with a local artisan

Journey south to spend the day with a local artisan. Azizi Life Studio was begun to honor the initiatives and work of the artisans nearby. A day here starts with a drive to a nearby village, where you and your Azizi Life interpreter will be welcomed by the ladies of the weaving cooperative.

After introductions, your chores will begin! Help out in the kitchen, collect water from the valley spring, or cut grass for the farm animals. At lunch sit together and share a meal, before spending the afternoon weaving! 

Kigali - Nyungwe National Park

Day 5: Tracking colobus monkeys & a tea tasting

Today, you'll journey to Nyungwe Forest National Park. Once you arrive, have the opportunity to head into the national park to track the black-and-white colobus monkey! Sit and watch them in their natural habitat, a truly unforgettable experience.

After, stop at a tea plantation. Learn the art of picking tea leaves and wander through the lush tea estate before enjoying a tasting.

Nyungwe National Park - Cyamudongo - Nyungwe National Park

Day 6: Trekking for chimpanzees

Starting early at 5 am, you’ll head to Cyamudongo, home to Rwanda’s habituated chimpanzees. After meeting your ranger, you’ll trek to find a troop of about 40 chimpanzees, listening for their calls and watching them swing from trees or run around you.

Return in the afternoon, and take a moment for lunch before a forest ranger takes you for a stroll through Nyungwe Forest. The walk includes a 200 m-long canopy walkway that takes you high above the forest floor providing a unique platform for observing the forest.

Nyungwe National Park - Kamiranzovu Waterfall - Lake Kivu

Day 7: Waterfall hike & journey to Lake Kivu

Beginning at your lodge, spend the morning hiking to Kamiranzovu Waterfall. The first half of this hike winds through brilliant green tea fields. As you start to climb higher into the forest, enjoy the gorgeous views northwest of Lake Kivu and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Enjoy lunch at your accommodation before starting the journey to Lake Kivu; check in to your lodge for the night and enjoy dinner surrounded by the deep blue waters of the lake.

Lake Kivu

Day 8: Kayak adventure with a night of camping

The next two days will be spent discovering the islands of Lake Kivu via kayak. Tonight you'll spend the night camping on a beautiful, uninhabited island. 

Today, kayak to Napoleon Island where there is a remarkable (and noisy) colony of thousands of fruit bats Here you'll hike to a viewpoint for a spectacular 360° panorama of Lake Kivu. After, it's a short paddle to your campsite for the night! Sit around the campsite enjoying an evening meal caught by a local fisherman.

Lake Kivu

Day 9: A morning of kayaking & a coffee tour

After breakfast around the campfire, the morning will be spent finishing your kayaking adventure on the lake before returning to shore. 

When you return to Kibuye, you'll be whisked off for a fascinating tour of a thriving coffee-washing station. Here locals are harvesting, washing, roasting, grinding, and preparing some of the best coffee in Rwanda - and the world.

Hop on a boat to make your way to your new accommodation located on the edge of Lake Kivu.

Lake Kivu - Muhungwe Mountain - Volcanoes National Park

Day 10: Summit Muhungwe Mountain

Today, you'll set out on a hike to the summit of Muhungwe Mountain. Muhungwe Mountain borders Gishwati National Park on the edge of an escarpment that forms part of the Congo Nile watershed, the ridge that separates the mighty Congo and Nile river basins.

This 10km hike takes approximately 4-5 hours and takes you through a variety of landscapes and habitats! 

After, make your way to your new eco-lodge located near Volcanoes National Park. 

Volcanoes National Park

Day 11: Bike & canoe through rural Rwanda

In the morning, explore the Rwandan countryside on a mountain bike or e-bike, exploring the small tracks and trails that crisscross the landscape.

Return to your eco-lodge for a moment to relax and refuel before venturing on a canoe experience on the Mukingwa River, surrounded by the sights and sounds of rural Rwanda.

Volcanoes National Park - Ellen Degeneres Campus - Volcanoes National Park

Day 12: Another mountain hike

After meeting your park rangers bright and early (around 7am), take a short drive to the trailhead before starting your hike to Mount Bisoke in the lush, native rainforest. This hike will take approximately 7 hours and can be challenging at times. 

Reward yourself in the afternoon with a visit to the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund to see gorilla conservation in action. Visitors can explore state-of-the-art exhibits that tell the story of our 55+ years of gorilla conservation, visit our gift shop featuring locally made crafts, grab a coffee or meal at the Gorilla Café, enjoy lush nature trails and meet with Fossey Fund staff who have dedicated their careers to saving gorillas.

Volcanoes National Park - Lake Ruhondo - Volcanoes National Park

Day 13: Searching for golden monkeys

Today, head out into the forest to track an endangered species of monkey known as the golden monkey. This is a wonderful wildlife encounter as the proceeds from visiting go towards the research into the protection of this species and how to preserve their environment so that they do not become extinct!

In the afternoon, take a walk along the shores of Lake Ruhondo before jumping aboard a boat to explore the different islands of the lake.

Volcanoes National Park - Kigali

Day 14: Mountain gorilla experience & farewell

You've saved the best until last! Get up early as today you'll be trekking into the forest in search of mountain gorillas. To see – and walk amongst – a family of mountain gorillas is a wildlife encounter unlike any other on Earth.

After an unforgettable morning, it's time to say farewell to Rwanda. Your driver will collect you and transfer you to Kigali International Airport for your safe flight home.