Top Safari Activities in Rwanda (Best of Rwanda 2024-2027)

Rwanda Gorilla Safaris, Wildlife Safaris, Kigali City Day Safaris, Cultural Safaris and Luxury Bird Watching Safaris in Rwanda are among the top activities in Rwanda. Rwanda is home to critically endangered mountain gorillas, animals, bird species, and lovely people. Rwanda Gorillas can be found in the Volcanoes National Park, where travellers from all over the world can embark on a gorilla trekking excursion at any time of year. The top safari activities in Rwanda include gorilla trekking, animal viewing, chimp trekking, birding, and cultural trips. If you are planning a safari to Rwanda, you may go gorilla trekking, but Rwanda has numerous tourist attractions such as mountains, national parks, and heritage sites, among others.
Rwanda is a landlocked country in East Africa, with numerous tourist attractions located around the country. Rwanda is well known for being home to the endangered mountain gorillas and the genocide that occurred in 1994, which resulted in the deaths of many people and the displacement of others. When the new government took control, its goal was to build togetherness, which can still be seen in the country many years later. The Rwandan government has also made significant investments in tourism, including marketing and ensuring that there are enough attractions and activities for tourists to enjoy while there. In this article, we will learn about some of the activities that you should not miss out on when visiting Rwanda, which are listed below.

Gorilla Trekking

Rwanda safaris to the Volcanoes National Park are located near Musanze town in the country’s northwestern corner. It is located between the Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda. The Volcanoes National Park is home to a huge number of gorillas, and gorilla trekking is the most popular activity among visitors. The Volcanoes National Park is an excellent destination for individuals interested in gorilla trekking, with approximately 18 habituated gorilla families available for trekking. Tourists will be divided into groups and assigned a family to trek with for approximately an hour.
Gorilla trekking in Rwanda is only possible with trekking permission, and because permits are constantly in high demand, you should acquire your permit 3 to 6 months before your trip date. In Rwanda, a gorilla permit costs USD 1500 per person. Remember to follow all of the guidelines given to you before the walk, such as not getting lost. Remember to observe all of the directions given to you before the journey, such as avoiding getting too close to the gorillas, turning off your camera flashlight while shooting images, and not feeding the primates, among other things.

Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park.

Gorilla trekking is possible all year, but the best time to visit is during the dry season, which lasts from June to September. Many gorilla route paths are available during the dry season, making trekking easier than during the wet season when the roads are slick. Because of the severe rains during the rainy season, gorilla permits are easy to obtain, and you may also enjoy the park with fewer tourists. With the rain falling heavily during the wet season, navigating the wet trails is exceedingly difficult.

Chimpanzees Tracking 

Nyungwe National Park, located in southeastern Rwanda, is one of the country’s most popular tourist sites. It is well known for being home to a vast number of primates, including colobus monkeys, blue monkeys, golden monkeys, and chimpanzees, which are the main attractions. Nyungwe National Park features around 500 habituated chimps and 90 habituated gorilla communities, all of which are exposed to the public all year. 30 of the aforementioned habituated chimp populations are found in the Cyamudongo forest, with the remaining 60 in the Nyungwe forest.
Tourists are separated into groups of no more than eight people, and each group spends around one hour with the family to which they have been allocated. Chimpanzees are difficult to hike since they move from one location to another, but habituated chimps make it simpler because they are accustomed to having people near them. Chimpanzee trekking is typically done in the morning, as early as 5:00 a.m., following a briefing from the authorities on what to expect. Nyungwe has three sections from which to begin your trek: the Uwinka portion, the Kitabi section, and the Gisakura section.

All tourists require a chimp trekking permit, which costs USD 90 per person per day for foreign non-residents and USD 60 for foreign residents. The chimp permit can be obtained through your preferred tour operator and should be reserved in advance. The greatest period for chimp trekking in Nyungwe is from June to approximately October, when the trek trails are passable, as opposed to the wet season when they are all muddy. However, because Nyungwe National Park is densely forested, it receives rain throughout the year, and you should bring a raincoat with you to avoid getting wet.

Golden Monkey Trekking

Top Safari Activities in Rwanda: Golden monkeys are one of Rwanda’s most popular tourist attractions, and they can only be found at the Volcanoes National Park, which is located within the Virunga Mountains. Golden monkey trekking is one of the most popular activities in Volcanoes National Park, with gorilla trekking topping the list. The golden monkeys are a unique species that can be distinguished by the golden spots on their fur, which makes them both beautiful and thrilling to look at. They typically eat bamboo shoots. They generally feed on bamboo stalks and branches, but they will occasionally eat raw potatoes.

The golden monkeys are easier to trek than gorillas, and it will take you much less time to trek them down. The best technique to track these monkeys, who move from place to place, is to follow the bamboo shoots left behind by the monkeys. There are a few regulations you should try to observe while trekking, including shutting off your shutter while taking shots, which generally chases away the monkeys, and keeping a safe distance. You will need a trekking permit, which costs about $100 per person per day, and you will not be able to enter the National Park without one. It’s better to do it during the dry season, if at all possible. The majority of guests on Rwanda safari excursions participate in golden monkey trekking and gorilla tracking at Volcanoes National Park.

Game Drives

Top Safari Activities in Rwanda: Akagera National Park is located in the country’s east and was named after the Kagera River. The park encompasses a significant area of protected territory with marshy lakes and lush vegetation. Rwanda safari trips, which primarily feature game drives, are the most popular activity in Akagera National Park. These can be done throughout the day as well as at night.
Day game drives are conducted in two stages: in the morning and the afternoon. The morning game drive usually starts at 7:00 a.m. or 8:00 a.m. and lasts until mid-afternoon. During this drive, you can see early-rising animals as well as numerous bird species such as the Caruthers’ cisticola, Senegal lapwing, long-crested eagle, Rwenzori batis, red-throated leather, and black-headed weaver. The afternoon trip begins after lunch and lasts until late in the evening. Night game drives: these begin late in the evening after dinner and help you see most of the nocturnal creatures that hide during the day and those that hunt at night. They are conducted in the park’s safari vehicle. Nighttime sightings of leopards, impalas, bushbucks, and lions, among others, are common. You will need a spotlight to see the animals better in the dark, and the benefit of night drives through Akagera is that because most of the animals are resting, you get to see a large number of them, which is not the case during the day when they are on the move.
An expert tour guide will take you around the Akagera night game drive while talking more about the animal species you will observe for about USD 40.

On a game drive through Akagera, you may expect to witness lions (introduced in 2015), leopards, elephants, black rhinos (added in 2019), hippos, zebras, antelopes, bushbucks, elephants, and many other creatures. The dry season, which lasts from June to September, is ideal for wildlife drives through Akagera National Park. Because of the thinned-out undergrowth during the dry season, the animals are easy to identify, and many of them may be seen gathering around the Akagera River.

Bird Viewing

Top Safari Activities in Rwanda: Rwanda birding is one of the numerous activities that tourists who visit the country participate in, and some of the birding places that you should visit are the Nyungwe National Park and the Nyabarongo wetlands. To go birding in these two areas, you will need a permit, and the optimum time to go is between July and late March.
Nyungwe National Park is famed for its deep forests, which can make walking across the park difficult at times; however, there are hiking routes within the park that you can take to enjoy the birding experience. The Kamiranzovu Trail, Karamba Trail, Gisakura Trail, and Bigugu Trail are the most popular birding trek trails in Nyungwe. Doherty Bushrike, Rwenzori Baits, Regal Sunbird, Congo Bay Owl, Kivu Ground Thrush, Red-collared Mountain Babbler, Red-faced Woodland Warbler, Grey-crested Kakamega, Grauer’s Swamp Warbler, Short-Tailed Warbler, Mountain Masked Apalis, Yellow-eyed Black Flycatcher, and many others are common in Nyungwe.
The Nyabarongo wetlands, which are home to approximately 50 bird species, obtain their water from the Nyabarongo River, Rwanda’s longest river. This protected region, located in the country’s southeast, is home to a diverse range of bird species, some of which are globally endangered. Birds can be seen in their native habitat in Nyabarongo, which is dense foliage in the swamp and the marsh itself. The papyrus canary, papyrus yellow warbler, Madagascar Squacco Heron, white-collared olive back, Carruthers’ cisticola, Northern brown-throated weaver, and papyrus gonolek are among the bird species to look out for in Nyabarongo. It also supports three species from the Lake Victoria Biome and three from the Afrotropical Biome.

Discovering Rwanda – Safaris, Gorilla Trekking and Broken Boats

Canopy walk

Top Safari Activities in Rwanda: There are many activities that tourists can do in Rwanda, but one of them is the canopy walk, which is one of the ways that you may explore the National Park while enjoying a clear view of the forest and some primates flying from one tree to the next. The canopy walk is exclusively available in Nyungwe National Park; it was introduced in the park in 2010 and is considered one of the best canopy walks in Africa. The canopy walk is best done during the dry season and is broken into three sections due to its length of 160 m.
The first route is around 25 m long and is regarded as the shortest stroll; the second is about 45 m long; and the last is about 90 m long. Visitors can select which stroll category they like, while some opt for the entire path.
The canopy walks are conducted in two stages: in the morning at roughly 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., each lasting around two hours. Rwandan citizens pay 5,000 Francs for the canopy walk, while foreign non-residents pay $150 and foreign residents pay $60. It is open to children aged 6 and above; however, children under the age of 15 must always be accompanied by an adult.

Gorilla Naming Ceremony at Kwita Izina

The Kwita Izina is a traditional Rwandan naming ceremony in which babies are named immediately after birth. It was designed for the naming of infant mountain gorillas in the country, and since its inception in 2005, over 240 gorillas have been named during the event. The names of the gorillas, which are generally picked by the trackers, always symbolize something noteworthy that happened at the time when they were born, and a list of three names is written up, and each of these is chosen for each gorilla during the ceremony. This day is celebrated by a large number of individuals in Rwanda, neighbouring nations, and foreign countries.

Cultural Safaris in Rwanda

Top Safari Activities in Rwanda: Cultural excursions in Rwanda are an excellent way to learn about the people who live on the slopes of a thousand hills. Cultural safaris allow you to visit the country’s most important cultural attractions, such as the Kigali Genocide Memorial.
The Kigali Genocide Memorial contains three permanent displays that depict the aftermath of the conflict. The largest exhibition records the 1994 Tutsi massacre; the second is a children’s memorial; and the third is a global history of genocidal violence.
This is one of the best places to learn about Rwanda’s history. There are multiple cultural sites in Rwanda, some of which may be found at various museums, as well as much that can be gained from a visit to the Rwandese communities.