15 Days Best of Rwanda – Primate, Culture & Wildlife Tour

15 Days Best of Rwanda – Primate, Culture & Wildlife

Overview
Itinerary
Inclusions

Overview of 15 Days Best of Rwanda – Primate, Culture & Wildlife Tour

Discover the very best of Rwanda on this comprehensive 15 Days Best of Rwanda – Primate, Culture & Wildlife Tour combining wildlife safari, primate encounters, cultural heritage, and spectacular landscapes. Beginning in Kigali, explore the capital’s historical landmarks, colourful markets, creative art scene, and developing neighbourhoods before travelling to Akagera National Park. Here, experience Rwanda’s classic savannah wildlife on private game drives and a boat safari on Lake Ihema. Search for lions, elephants, rhinos, buffaloes, leopards, giraffes, zebras, antelopes, hippos, crocodiles, and numerous bird species while travelling through the park’s lakes, wetlands, woodlands, and open plains.

Continue to Volcanoes National Park for unforgettable encounters with mountain gorillas and golden monkeys, complemented by visits to the Ellen DeGeneres Campus, local communities, and the beautiful Twin Lakes. The journey then travels to Lake Kivu for boat excursions, coffee experiences, and relaxation before continuing south to Nyungwe National Park. Trek through the ancient rainforest in search of chimpanzees and colobus monkeys, experience the canopy walkway, and visit a tea plantation. The tour concludes with visits to the Ethnographic Museum in Huye and the King’s Palace Museum in Nyanza, creating a complete exploration of Rwanda’s wildlife, primates, culture, conservation achievements, and natural beauty.

15 Days Best of Rwanda – Primate, Culture & Wildlife Tour

Day 1: Arrival in Kigali

Upon arrival at Kigali International Airport, meet your professional driver-guide and receive a warm welcome to Rwanda. Transfer to your hotel for check-in and relaxation.

Depending on your arrival time, enjoy a short orientation drive around Kigali or spend the remainder of the day relaxing after your international journey.

Accommodation: Kigali Marriott Hotel, Four Points by Sheraton or similar
Meal plan: Bed and breakfast

Day 2: Kigali City and Cultural Tour

After breakfast, begin a comprehensive tour of Kigali. Visit the Kigali Genocide Memorial to learn about Rwanda’s history and remarkable journey of reconciliation and development.

Continue to a local market, visit an art gallery, and explore some of the city’s historical and modern neighbourhoods. You may also visit the Nyamirambo Women’s Centre for a community walking tour and a traditional Rwandan lunch.

Return to your hotel in the late afternoon.

Accommodation: Kigali Marriott Hotel, Four Points by Sheraton or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast and lunch

Day 3: Kigali to Akagera National Park

After breakfast, leave Kigali and travel through Rwanda’s scenic eastern countryside to Akagera National Park. The journey offers views of rural communities, farms, rolling hills, and traditional villages.

After lunch, enjoy a boat safari on Lake Ihema. Look for hippos, Nile crocodiles, elephants, buffaloes, monitor lizards, and numerous waterbirds along the shoreline.

After the boat excursion, transfer to your lodge for dinner.

Accommodation: Akagera Mantis Game Lodge, Ruzizi Tented Lodge or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 4: Full-Day Wildlife Safari in Akagera

Begin the day with an early breakfast before setting out on a full-day game drive through Akagera National Park. Explore the park’s open savannah, woodland, lakes, wetlands, and rolling hills.

Search for the Big Five—lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo, and rhino—along with giraffes, zebras, topis, elands, impalas, warthogs, baboons, and numerous bird species.

Enjoy a picnic lunch inside the park before continuing the game drive through the northern plains. Return to the lodge in the evening.

Accommodation: Akagera Mantis Game Lodge, Ruzizi Tented Lodge or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast, picnic lunch and dinner

Day 5: Akagera Community Experience and Transfer to Volcanoes

After breakfast, participate in a community experience near Akagera National Park. Depending on availability, activities may include traditional cattle keeping, milk production, banana beer preparation, farming, beekeeping, or a visit to a local family.

After the cultural experience, travel through Kigali and continue northwest toward Volcanoes National Park. Enjoy views of Rwanda’s terraced hills and the Virunga volcanoes as you approach Musanze.

Accommodation: Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel, Ingagi Park View Lodge or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 6: Ellen DeGeneres Campus and Cultural Village

Enjoy a relaxed breakfast before visiting the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. Discover the history of mountain gorilla conservation, scientific research, and the legacy of Dian Fossey.

After lunch, visit the Gorilla Guardians Village for an interactive introduction to Rwanda’s cultural traditions. Experience traditional music, dancing, storytelling, royal customs, and demonstrations of daily community life.

Return to the lodge for dinner and preparation for the gorilla trek.

Accommodation: Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel, Ingagi Park View Lodge or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 7: Mountain Gorilla Trekking

After an early breakfast, transfer to the Volcanoes National Park headquarters for registration and a briefing from the park guides. You will then enter the rainforest with experienced trackers in search of a habituated mountain gorilla family.

The trek may take between two and six hours depending on the gorillas’ location and the terrain. Once the family is found, spend one unforgettable hour observing their behaviour and interactions.

After the trek, return to the lodge for lunch and enjoy the remainder of the day relaxing.

Accommodation: Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel, Ingagi Park View Lodge or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast, packed lunch and dinner

Day 8: Golden Monkey Trekking and Transfer to Lake Kivu

Following breakfast, return to Volcanoes National Park for golden monkey trekking. Walk through the bamboo forest while searching for these colourful, energetic, and highly social primates.

After the trek, enjoy lunch before visiting the scenic Twin Lakes of Burera and Ruhondo. Admire the surrounding hills, local farms, fishing communities, and views of the Virunga volcanoes.

Continue to Lake Kivu and check in at your lakeside hotel.

Accommodation: Lake Kivu Serena Hotel, Cleo Lake Kivu Hotel or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 9: Lake Kivu Boat Excursion and Relaxation

After breakfast, take a private boat excursion on Lake Kivu. Explore the scenic shoreline and nearby islands while enjoying views of the surrounding hills.

Depending on the location and weather conditions, the excursion may include a visit to Napoleon Island, fishing communities, or other scenic islands. Spend the afternoon relaxing at the hotel, swimming, kayaking, or walking along the lakeshore.

Accommodation: Lake Kivu Serena Hotel, Cleo Lake Kivu Hotel or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 10: Coffee Experience and Transfer to Nyungwe

Begin the day with a guided coffee experience near Lake Kivu. Learn how coffee is grown, harvested, processed, roasted, and prepared. The experience concludes with an opportunity to taste locally produced Rwandan coffee.

After lunch, travel south along the shores of Lake Kivu toward Nyungwe National Park. The journey offers beautiful views of the lake, green hills, farms, and local communities.

Arrive at your lodge in the evening.

Accommodation: Mantis Marina Bay Hotel, Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 11: Chimpanzee Trekking in Nyungwe National Park

Wake early and transfer to the chimpanzee trekking starting point. After a briefing, enter the rainforest with an experienced guide in search of a habituated chimpanzee community.

Listen for their distinctive calls and observe them feeding, communicating, resting, and moving through the forest canopy. Nyungwe is also home to several other primate species and hundreds of bird species.

After the trek, return to the lodge for lunch and a relaxing afternoon.

Accommodation: Mantis Marina Bay Hotel, Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast, packed lunch and dinner

Day 12: Colobus Monkey Trek and Canopy Walk

After breakfast, return to Nyungwe National Park for a guided colobus monkey trekking experience. Search for large groups of black-and-white colobus monkeys moving through the forest.

After lunch, take a guided forest walk leading to the Nyungwe canopy walkway. Suspended above the forest floor, the walkway provides panoramic views across the rainforest and opportunities to observe birds and monkeys from a different perspective.

Return to the lodge in the late afternoon.

Accommodation: Mantis Marina Bay Hotel, Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 13: Tea Plantation Experience and Transfer to Huye

After breakfast, visit a tea plantation near Nyungwe. Walk through the green tea fields and learn how tea is grown, harvested, processed, and prepared.

Continue to Huye, Rwanda’s cultural and academic centre. Visit the Ethnographic Museum, which contains an important collection of exhibits relating to Rwanda’s history, traditional lifestyles, craftsmanship, music, clothing, and cultural practices.

Check in at your hotel and enjoy a relaxed evening.

Accommodation: Nena House, Hotel Maisons-Sifa or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 14: Huye, King’s Palace Museum and Return to Kigali

After breakfast, leave Huye and travel to Nyanza to visit the King’s Palace Museum. Explore the reconstructed traditional royal palace and learn about Rwanda’s monarchy, leadership systems, customs, and royal traditions.

Meet the long-horned Inyambo cattle, known for their cultural importance and the traditional songs performed by their keepers.

After lunch, continue to Kigali. Check in at your hotel and enjoy your final evening in Rwanda.

Accommodation: Kigali Marriott Hotel, Four Points by Sheraton or similar
Meal plan: Breakfast and lunch

Day 15: Kigali and Departure

Enjoy breakfast at the hotel. Depending on your flight schedule, spend the morning relaxing or visit local craft shops for souvenirs.

Your driver-guide will transfer you to Kigali International Airport in time for your departing flight, marking the end of your 15-day Rwanda primate, culture, and wildlife tour.

Meal plan: Breakfast

Includes in 15 Days Best of Rwanda – Primate, Culture & Wildlife

Airport arrival and departure transfers
Private 4×4 safari vehicle
Professional English-speaking driver-guide
Fourteen nights of accommodation
Meals indicated in the itinerary
Rwanda gorilla trekking permit
Golden monkey trekking permit
Chimpanzee trekking permit
Colobus monkey trekking permit
Akagera National Park entrance fees
Full-day Akagera game drive
Lake Ihema boat safari
Lake Kivu boat excursion
Nyungwe National Park entrance fees
Nyungwe canopy walk
Kigali city tour
Ellen DeGeneres Campus visit
Gorilla Guardians Village experience
Twin Lakes excursion
Coffee and tea experiences
Ethnographic Museum visit
King’s Palace Museum visit
Bottled drinking water during the tour
Applicable government taxes

Excludes in 15 Days Best of Rwanda – Primate, Culture & Wildlife

International flights
Rwanda visa fees, where applicable
Travel and medical insurance
Personal expenses and gratuities
Porter services during primate trekking
Alcoholic and premium beverages
Optional activities
Services not specifically mentioned in the itinerary

Important: Gorilla trekking is restricted to visitors aged 15 years and above. The order of primate activities may change depending on permit availability and park scheduling.

What Our Clients Say

    
 
 
      Verified Aucun regret Nous avons passé une journée incroyable avec Félix, pick-up très tôt pour arriver a l'heure du lever du soleil a Akagera. Et franchement l'excursion a duré bien plus longtemps que ce que j'imaginais par rapport au prix. Je recommande a 200% !
  
  Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
    
   Virginie D 
 
 
 
 
     Verified Experience of a lifetime with fantastic operator The day began at 4:30 AM when Dodos picked us up from our hotel in Kegali, we arrived at the briefing at about 7 AM where we had a nice cup of tea and were assigned our guide and group of 8 people for the day. The hike itself was more strenuous than I expected, and unfortunately, my daughter was sick so they ended up asking the local village to provide a stretcher to carry her with a rotating group of about 9 guys. It was an extra $200 but well worth it given how challenging it was to navigate the trails. A couple of guys lead with machetes, making space for us to travel about 3 miles uphill. Seeing the gorilla was incredible, it was beyond words to experience them in their natural setting for an hour. I know there are several different operators who organize these tours but I would highly recommend Universal Ventures due to their personal attention and going above and beyond when my daughter was sick. We ended up getting back to the hotel at about 8 PM, so a very long day, but one that we will never forget.
  
  Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
    
   erg2222 
 
 
 
 
     Verified Perfect Rwanda tour that worked around our flight issues We had a fantastic experience in Rwanda with Dodos our guide and Emmanuel from the office! We had to deal with 2 cancelled flights and delayed baggage, and Emmanuel helped us reconfigure our itinerary so that we were still able to see the Genocide Memorial and go gorilla trekking. Dodos patiently waited for us at the airport even until 3am and helped us shop for clothes due to our baggage delay. He saved us quite a bit of money by bargaining with the locals. The arranged accommodations were very nice. Gorilla trekking is a lengthy hike but gratifying with the hour we had to hang out beside the family. Overall, Dodos and Emmanuel made Rwanda one of our most favorite countries we visited, even though our 5-day tour became 3 days. We highly recommend doing a tour with Universal Ventures Rwanda.
  
  Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
    
   DK Travels the World 
 
 
 
 
     Verified Magical experience and lovely tour operator I would definitely recommend this experience in general and this operator specifically. They contacted me quickly to discuss arranging for the permit to see the gorillas (and extra fee paid directly to the Rwandan authorities). They also advised on how to prepare and answered my questions. On the day of, a really lovely driver picked me up from my hotel in Kigali on time in a luxurious jeep. He was friendly and encouraging as I was a bit anxious about the hiking which can be intense but my one wasn't that strenuous. It depends what the gorillas are up to and the park guides try to sort people loosely on fitness levels, I think. I hired a porter to carry my bag, and they also helped with uneven ground, which was not needed in this case but could have been very very essential if we had to walk through a steeper part of the park. The park staff then led my small group of tourists to see the gorillas, which was one of the most magical things I have experienced! The family of gorillas were very tolerant of us and we spent the full hour allotted with them (longer can stress them). After the walk back, Dodos, my driver, greeted me with a fancy drink and flip flops so I could get out of my hiking boots. We then had lunch at a restaurant o. The way back to Kigali. Overall, I felt very safe as a single female traveller and there were no unexpected costs.
  
  Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
    
   Rosie H 
 
 
 
 
     Verified An Amazing Holidays in Rwanda and Uganda We took a wonderful 19-day trip through Rwanda and Uganda with the travel agency Universal Ventures—a trip tailored specifically to our family. We started planning the entire trip about three months in advance, and communication with the agency was excellent from the very beginning. It was a trip full of powerful experiences, beautiful nature, encounters with local people, and moments we’ll remember for a long time. The agency’s owner, Emmanuel, was very helpful, communicative, and patient from the very beginning, and he always helped us choose the best options for activities and accommodations based on what was most suitable for our family. The agency arranged a car with a driver and guide for us, as well as some of the activity bookings during the trip. We visited Akagera, Volcanoes, Bwindi, Queen Elizabeth, and Nyungwe National Parks, as well as Lake Kivu. Our driver (guide) was John Bosco, whom we can highly recommend. He was not only a great driver but also an excellent guide, thanks to whom we experienced the trip much more intensely. He has a vast knowledge of the local flora and fauna, and his knowledge of local birds was truly impressive. We were equally fascinated by his excellent knowledge of the local area—he was able to drive to any location or hotel without using a map or a GPS on his phone. We also greatly appreciated his punctuality: the car was always ready even before the agreed-upon time. The car remained tidy and clean throughout the entire trip, even after driving on dusty roads. John also provided us with valuable information about the duration of each leg of the journey, helped us plan our itinerary better, and thanks to him, we felt safe and well taken care of the entire time. The agreement with the agency was clear and easy to understand. We had the option to choose from several pricing options, and the one we selected was the final price—we weren’t charged any additional fees. The deposit we paid to Universal Ventures in advance was properly accounted for. Any minor issues that arose during our long trip were quickly resolved. We definitely recommend booking a car with a driver for a vacation in Rwanda and Uganda: finding your way around isn’t always easy, the quality of the roads is often very poor—especially in Uganda—and it’s also better to cross the Rwanda/Uganda land border with someone who knows the local conditions. In addition, the driver can help you organize visits to local cultural centers, which will allow you to get to know the country much better. This vacation was unforgettable for us, and we feel that it was thanks to Emmanuel, John Bosco, and the entire Universal Ventures agency that we were able to experience Rwanda and Uganda in such a beautiful, safe, and in-depth way. Thank you so much for the excellent organization, care, and all the experiences that will stay with us for a long time to come. We can wholeheartedly and with great pleasure recommend this agency for a trip through Rwanda and Uganda.
  
  Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
    
   Lenka N 
 
 
 
 
     Verified Amazing time seeing Gorillas We had the best time with Mupenzi and Dodos! They made the whole trip unforgettable! There is nothing like seeing Gorillas up close in the wild!
  
  Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
    
   Joel S 
 
 
 
 
     Verified Majestic Experience Today was such an amazing day of adventure! Volcanoes National Park is an amazing and ethical way to see these beautiful creatures. Our trekking guide Mupenzi was so kind, fun, and knowledgeable. And our driver, Dodos was phenomenal. He is such a lovely person and incredibly knowledgeable. Highly recommended!
  
  Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
    
   Sami M 
 
 
 
 
     Verified Absolutely breathtaking experience! My experience was seamless from the coordination of my pick up and drop off, to the actual excursion! Hands down one of the best experiences of my life! Christian was extremely helpful and welcoming throughout our entire trip, it would not have been the same without him. Seeing the gorillas after the trekking through the thick brush, was absolutely breathtaking! I will definitely be recommending this trip to all my friends and family!
  
  Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
    
   Greg V 
 
 
 
 
     Verified 100% recommended I was originally in Tanzania for a safari but decided to add the gorilla trek at the end of my trip because the flight was too long to fly to Africa from California again at my age. I booked through Viator. From the beginning, communication with Universal Adventures was positive. They were prompt to answer any questions. And a few days before the excursion, they sent me my driver's name and WhatsApp number. His name is Christian.We communicated through WhatsApp, and he was very prompt to reply back. He was early to pick me up at 4:30am. I had another person in the car. The car was clean. Its a long drive to the meeting place. We stopped for breakfast pastries at a local shop( they take credit cards and had a clean breakfast. We then drove to the meeting place where we met up with our group. There they had hot drinks like coffees, lattes, teas, etc. We then had to drive to the beginning of the mountain. It was a long drive as the roads are not paved. My group was assigned the Isimbi gorilla family and our guide was Jolie. My porter was Adolf. I was the least active one in the group but the crew never made me feel bad. After what I thought was a 4 hr hike (it was really 1 hr and 26 minutes) we found our gorilla family. We had plenty of time to take pictures with them. After we were done, Christian took us to a rooftop restaurant. The food was delicious! I recommend this excursion 100%. The company is awesome and very professional.
  
  Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
    
   patty e 
 
 
 
 
     Verified Gorilla Experience in Rwanda! Easy ride, the trip was one in a life time experience. The driver (Christian) was very nice and kind and made the trip smooth! Everything was great.
  
  Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
    
   Juliet K