East Africa
Rwanda
Mountain gorillas, rainforest and savannah in a country you can cross in a day
01The country
Rwanda is small enough that the drive between its extremes takes a single day, and varied enough that the day passes through montane rainforest, terraced highland, open savannah and the shore of one of the African Great Lakes. Nowhere else in the region packs that range into so short a road.
The headline is the mountain gorillas of the Virunga Massif, and it deserves to be. But the country underneath the headline is the reason people stay longer than they planned: chimpanzees and a canopy walkway in Nyungwe, a restored Big Five park on the Tanzanian border, and a capital that is genuinely pleasant to spend a day in rather than a place to get through.
Horizon Trek Africa is based in Kigali. Rwanda is the country we know street by street and park gate by park gate, and it is where every itinerary we build across the region tends to start or finish.
- Region
- East Africa
- Capital
- Kigali
- Gateway
- Kigali International (KGL)
- Known for
- Mountain gorillas, chimpanzees, Big Five
- Recommended stay
- 5 to 10 days
02Why Rwanda
- 01
The shortest route to a gorilla
Kigali to the briefing point at Kinigi is around two hours on sealed road. A gorilla trek is realistic on a trip of three or four days, which is not true anywhere else the animals live.
- 02
Three ecosystems, one drive
Rainforest, savannah and lake sit within a few hours of each other. A week here covers ground that would take a fortnight of internal flights in a larger country.
- 03
A conservation story you can watch happening
Akagera lost its lions and rhinos entirely and now has both again. It is one of the clearest examples anywhere of a park being brought back, and the park will tell you the whole story.
- 04
Easy, unhurried logistics
Good roads, short transfers, one international airport and no internal flights required. More of the trip is spent in the places and less of it in transit.
03Rwanda in pictures
04What it is for
- Mountain gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park
- Chimpanzee trekking and the canopy walkway in Nyungwe
- Big Five game drives and boat safaris in Akagera
- Golden monkey trekking in the bamboo zone
- Volcano climbs — Bisoke in a day, Karisimbi over two
- Lake Kivu: boats, islands and the Congo Nile Trail
- Kigali — memorial, markets, art studios and coffee
05Parks & regions
Volcanoes National Park
The Rwandan slopes of the Virunga Massif, and the country's gorilla country. Also golden monkeys, Dian Fossey's grave, and the climbs up Bisoke and Karisimbi.
Read the guide→Nyungwe National Park
One of Africa's oldest montane rainforests, straddling the Congo-Nile divide. Chimpanzees, thirteen primate species, a canopy walkway and a great deal of endemic birdlife.
Read the guide→Akagera National Park
Rwanda's savannah, on the Tanzanian border. Lakes, papyrus swamp and open plains, with lion and rhino both returned after decades of absence.
Read the guide→Lake Kivu
The inland sea along the western border, ringed by forested headlands and islands. Where a Rwandan itinerary slows down between treks.
Read the guide→Kigali
The capital, and the arrival point. The Genocide Memorial, Nyamirambo, Kimironko market and a serious coffee scene, all within a compact and walkable city.
Read the guide→
06When to go
Trekking runs all year. The two drier spells firm up the trails and open up the long views across the volcanoes.
- JanJan: best time to visit
- FebFeb: best time to visit
- MarMar: shoulder season
- AprApr: shoulder season
- MayMay: shoulder season
- JunJun: best time to visit
- JulJul: best time to visit
- AugAug: best time to visit
- SepSep: best time to visit
- OctOct: shoulder season
- NovNov: shoulder season
- DecDec: best time to visit
- The long rains fall roughly March to May, the short rains around October and November.
- Rain is possible in any month in the mountains — waterproofs matter more here than the calendar does.
- Permits for the driest months go first. If your dates are fixed, secure the permit before anything else.
07Getting there
- From Europe and the Middle East · Air
- Direct and one-stop routings to KigaliKigali International (KGL) is the single international gateway.
- From Nairobi · Air
- Roughly 1.5 hours
- From Entebbe · Air
- Roughly 1.5 hours
- From Kigali to the parks · Road
- 2 to 5 hours depending on the parkSealed road to every gate. No internal flights needed.
08Where to stay
- Volcanoes has the widest range in the country, from simple guesthouses in Musanze to some of the most expensive lodges on the continent at the park edge.
- Nyungwe and Akagera each have a small number of lodges and camps inside or beside the park, which is worth paying for given how early the good hours start.
- Kigali covers everything from guesthouses to international hotels, and is the easiest place to absorb an arrival or departure day.
09In depth
Where to go in Rwanda
Northern Province
Volcanoes National Park
Rwanda's gorilla country: bamboo and hagenia forest climbing the flanks of five volcanoes, home to habituated mountain gorilla families and golden monkeys.
2 to 3 nights
Western Province
Nyungwe National Park
A vast montane rainforest in Rwanda's southwest, holding thirteen primate species, a canopy walkway suspended above the trees, and waterfalls at the end of long forest trails.
2 to 3 nights
Eastern Province
Akagera National Park
Rolling acacia savannah, papyrus swamp and a chain of lakes along the Tanzanian border — the only place in Rwanda to see lion, elephant, rhino, buffalo and leopard.
2 to 3 nights
Western Province
Lake Kivu
One of the African Great Lakes, held between steep green hills on the Congolese border — islands, fishing boats, lakeside towns and the country's best place to stop moving.
2 nights
Kigali City
Kigali
Rwanda's capital, spread across a series of ridges and valleys — the arrival point for almost every trip, and a city worth more than the night most itineraries give it.
1 to 2 nights
10What to do here
Experiences in Rwanda
Gorilla Trekking
One hour with a habituated mountain gorilla family
The reason most people come to Rwanda: a guided climb into the Virunga forest to spend an hour with a wild mountain gorilla family.
Half to full dayChallenging
Chimpanzee Trekking
Following the calls through Nyungwe at dawn
An early start into one of Africa's oldest rainforests to track habituated chimpanzees, guided by their calls and by trackers who set out before you.
Half day, from a very early startChallenging
Wildlife Safari
Big Five game drives on Rwanda's eastern savannah
Open savannah, acacia woodland and a chain of lakes in Akagera — game drives for lion, elephant, rhino, buffalo, giraffe and zebra.
Half day to multiple daysEasy
Canopy Walk
A suspension bridge level with the crowns of the trees
A walkway strung high above a forested ravine in Nyungwe, reached on the Igishigishigi trail — the clearest way to grasp the scale of the forest.
About 2 to 3 hoursModerate
Hiking & Volcano Climbs
Crater lakes, summits and the Congo Nile Trail
Bisoke's crater lake in a long day, Karisimbi over two, the hike to Dian Fossey's grave, and the long trail along Lake Kivu.
Half day to several daysStrenuous
Cultural Experiences
Time with people, not a performance staged for you
Community cooperatives, Intore dance, craft workshops and village visits arranged so the money stays where the visit happens.
2 hours to a full dayEasy
11Journeys that go here
Tours in Rwanda
3 days · 2 nights
3-Day Rwanda Gorilla Experience
The shortest trip that does the gorillas justice
Kigali, then straight to the Virungas for a mountain gorilla trek, with a golden monkey trek or a community visit on the second morning.
ClassicChallengingPrice on request
5 days · 4 nights
5-Day Rwanda Wildlife Adventure
Big Five savannah and mountain gorillas in one week
Akagera's plains and lakes for the Big Five, then north to the Virungas for a gorilla trek — the two headline experiences, without rushing either.
ClassicModeratePrice on request
7 days · 6 nights
7-Day Rwanda Discovery
Gorillas, rainforest and the lake in between
Kigali, the Virungas for gorillas, down the shore of Lake Kivu, and into Nyungwe for chimpanzees and the canopy walk.
ClassicModeratePrice on request
10 days · 9 nights
10-Day Rwanda Complete Experience
The whole country, at a pace that lets you enjoy it
Kigali, Akagera's savannah, the Virunga gorillas, Lake Kivu and Nyungwe's rainforest — every landscape Rwanda has, without a forced march.
ClassicModeratePrice on request
Three days is enough for Kigali and a gorilla trek. Five to seven adds Nyungwe or Akagera without rushing. Ten covers the whole country properly, with time beside Lake Kivu in the middle rather than a transfer every morning.
Plan Rwanda
Build a trip through Rwanda
Tell us roughly when you want to travel and what you want to see. We will come back with an itinerary built around it, not a package pulled off a shelf.