3-Day Rwanda Primate Safari
Organized by: Carnivores Tours and Travel
🗓️ DAY 1: Arrival, Kigali City Tour & Transfer to Volcanoes National Park
Upon your arrival at Kigali International Airport or after breakfast at your hotel, our professional guide from Carnivores Tours and Travel will warmly welcome you. After a short briefing about your safari, you will begin your journey with a city tour of Kigali, featuring a deeply moving visit to the Kigali Genocide Memorial Museum. This visit offers insight into Rwanda’s history and its inspiring journey of recovery.
Afterwards, enjoy a scenic drive through Rwanda’s beautiful countryside — confirming why it is known as the “Land of a Thousand Hills.” Along the way, you will have an opportunity to stop for lunch at a selected local restaurant (or depending on your preference).
In the afternoon, continue to Volcanoes National Park, home to the endangered mountain gorillas. Upon arrival, check-in at your lodge, enjoy dinner, and relax in preparation for the big adventure tomorrow.
- Accommodation: Mid-range / Luxury Lodge near Volcanoes National Park
- Meal Plan: Lunch & Dinner
🗓️ DAY 2: Gorilla Tracking Adventure
After an early hearty breakfast, you will be driven by our guide to the Park Headquarters for a briefing session. Here, you will be introduced to the rules and etiquette of gorilla tracking. You will be grouped into small groups and assigned a specific gorilla family to track.
Before the trek, you will be equipped with:
- Packed lunch boxes
- Drinking water
- Hiking boots
- Rain jackets
- Hand gloves
- Face masks
- Walking sticks (provided by the park if necessary)
Your tracking experience may take anywhere between 2 to 7 hours, depending on the movement of the gorilla families and the pace of your group. The trek can be challenging but incredibly rewarding once you encounter the magnificent mountain gorillas in their natural habitat. Spend a magical one hour observing them — a once-in-a-lifetime experience!
After the encounter, return to the lodge for relaxation, enjoy a well-deserved dinner, and overnight stay.
- Accommodation: Same Lodge
- Meal Plan: Breakfast, Packed Lunch & Dinner
🗓️ DAY 3: Golden Monkey Tracking & Transfer Back to Kigali
After breakfast, you will again head back to the park headquarters, this time for the Golden Monkey tracking experience. Golden monkeys are playful and lively primates endemic to the Virunga mountain ranges.
The preparation will be similar to the previous day:
- Hiking boots
- Rain jackets
- Packed lunch
- Hand gloves
- Face masks
- Drinking water
Tracking golden monkeys is relatively less strenuous compared to gorilla tracking, and you will be rewarded with beautiful sightings of these colorful and energetic primates.
After your adventure, you will return to the lodge for freshening up (if time allows), and then our guide will drive you back to Kigali International Airport or drop you off at your hotel in Kigali.
Farewell and appreciation from Carnivores Tours and Travel!
- Meal Plan: Breakfast & Lunch
📋 TOUR PACKAGE INCLUSIONS:
✔️ Airport pick-up and drop-off
✔️ Private 4×4 Safari Vehicle & Professional English-speaking Driver/Guide
✔️ 2 Nights’ Accommodation in Volcanoes NP area (based on the selected category: mid-range/luxury)
✔️ All meals as specified in the itinerary (Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner)
✔️ Gorilla trekking permit ($1500 per person – subject to change)
✔️ Golden Monkey tracking permit ($100 per person – subject to change)
✔️ All park entry fees
✔️ Bottled drinking water during the safari
✔️ Emergency medical evacuation services (AMREF Flying Doctors coverage)
🚫 EXCLUSIONS:
❌ International airfare
❌ Rwanda Visa fees
❌ Tips for guides, drivers, and hotel staff
❌ Travel insurance (highly recommended)
❌ Additional meals, snacks, and drinks outside the itinerary
❌ Laundry services
❌ Personal expenses (souvenirs, phone calls, etc.)
🎒 RECOMMENDED PACKING LIST:
- Waterproof hiking boots
- Light rain jacket / poncho
- Garden gloves for gorilla tracking
- Long-sleeved shirts and trousers
- Sunscreen, insect repellent
- Camera (with no flash photography during gorilla viewing)
- Binoculars
- A good backpack
- Face masks and hand sanitizer
- Reusable water bottle
Experience the unforgettable beauty of Rwanda with Carnivores Tours and Travel!
🌍 Book your safari today and create memories that will last a lifetime!