Discover Rwanda, Africa, on a unique safari and birding tailormade tour and vacation!

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Discover Rwanda, Africa, on a unique safari and birding tailormade tour and vacation!

Rwanda has three Important Birding Areas (IBAs) i.e. Volcanoes National Park, Akagera National Park, and Nyungwe National Park with over 700 species of birds including the Red-Faced Barbet, Bennett’s Woodpecker, and Papyrus Gonolek. Rwanda is located in the Albertine Rift valley, which offers an ideal landscape and habitat for birds.

  • Birding Sites: Akagera National Park, Nyungwe Forest, Volcanoes national park
  • Key Species: Doherty’s Bush-Shrike White-headed Wood-hoopoe, Barred Long-tailed Cuckoo, Chestnut Owlet, Olive Woodpeckers, Stripe-breasted Tit, Red-collared Babbler, Rwenzori Batis, White-tailed Blue-flycatcher, Chapin’s Flycatcher, and Purple-breasted and Regal Sunbirds. Augur Buzzard, Long-crested Eagle, Village, Black-headed and striking Vieillot’s Black Weavers, White-headed Black Chat perched up
  • Habitat: Forest, Acacia Savanna, grassland, agricultural lands, moist woodland with grass understory, Papyrus Swamps, and rivers
  • Optional Activity: Chimpanzee Trekking

Trip summary

  • Travel style Tailor-made travel
  • Departure Kigali
  • End Kigali
  • Countries
    • Rwanda
  • City
    • Kigali
    • Akagera National Park
    • Nyungwe National Park
    • Lake Kivu
    • Ruhengeri
  • Theme Safari and Natural Parks
  • Accommodation Standard
  • Flight Excluded
  • Guide Included
  • The tour has met our standards

Detailed itinerary

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  • 1
    Arrival in Rwanda
    Day 1

    On arrival at the airport, your guide will pick you up and transfer you to hotel for overnight in Kigali.

    Visited places:
    • Kigali
    Accommodation offered:
  • 2
    Transfer to Akagera National Park
    Day 2

    After a hearty breakfast, we set off for Akagera National Park in eastern Rwanda, bordering with Tanzania. While on the way, we bird as we look out for species such as Cattle Egret, Hamerkop, Sacred and Hadada Ibis, Augur Buzzard, Long-crested Eagle, and Pied Crow, Village, Black-headed (or Yellow-backed), and striking Vieillot’s Black Weavers who seem to always be busy nest building, or a White-headed Black Chat perched up. Grey-backed Fiscals love lining the fence poles whereas Fan-tailed Widowbirds and Carruther’s Cisticolas are seen in the marshes.

    Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

     

    Visited places:
    • Kigali
    • Akagera National Park
    Accommodation offered:
  • 3
    Explore Akagera National Park
    Day 3-4

    Akagera national park is a varied habitat and home to about 500 bird species and other wildlife. A boat trip on Lake Ihema will provide opportunities to watch the herons, African Fish Eagles, Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters and egrets, and the Rufous-bellied Heron. The Lesser Swamp Warblers, Slender-billed Weavers, and the dainty Swamp Flycatcher are usually in the dense papyrus.

    The wetlands species will include Goliath, Black-headed, Striated, and Squacco Herons, Little Bittern, Grey Crowned Crane, African Open bill, African Darter, Black Crake, African Wattled Plover, Long-toed and Senegal Lapwings, Water Thick-knee, Blue-headed Coucal, and Giant Kingfisher. In the savannah and forests, we search for Black-chested, Brown, and Western Banded Snake Eagles, Black-bellied Bustard, Red-necked Spurfowl, Ross’s Turaco, White-headed Vulture, Black-collared and Red-faced Barbets, Bennett’s Woodpecker, Bare-faced Go-away Bird, and Klaas’s, Red-chested and Black Cuckoos.  

    The whole time we will enjoy sights of African Buffalo, Impala, Zebra, Bushbuck, and African Elephants. The Hippopotamus are usually in the water bodies or surrounding areas when the weather permits. 

    Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

     

    Visited places:
    • Akagera National Park
    Accommodation offered:
  • 4
    Transfer to Nyungwe forest with birding enroute
    Day 5

    This morning we leave for Nyungwe forest and have various stopovers searching for different bird species especially in the papyrus along the roads before reaching our lodge. 

    Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

     

    Visited places:
    • Akagera National Park
    • Nyungwe National Park
    Accommodation offered:
  • 5
    Albertine Endemics in Nyungwe Forest
    Day 6-7

    Nyungwe forest is rich in birds, including most of the Albertine Rift endemics and hosts one of the largest expanse of montane forests on the African continent. Look out for  White-bellied and Archer’s Robin Chat, Mountain Masked, Black-faced, and Collared Apalises, Handsome Francolin, Great Blue and Ruwenzori Turacos, Doherty’s Bush-Shrike White-headed Wood-hoopoe, Barred Long-tailed Cuckoo, Chestnut Owlet, Olive and Elliot’s Woodpeckers, Stripe-breasted Tit, the remarkable Red-collared Babbler, Rwenzori Batis, White-tailed Blue-flycatcher, Chapin’s Flycatcher, and Purple-breasted and Regal Sunbirds, and many more.

    There will be lots of other wildlife to see as well. If you are interested, Chimpanzee tracking can be included on the itinerary. We are more likely to see L’Hoest’s or Blue Monkeys, and several butterfly species. 

    Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

     

    Visited places:
    • Nyungwe National Park
    Accommodation offered:
  • 6
    Drive by the shores of Lake Kivu
    Day 8

    After an early breakfast, we start journey to Lake Kivu through a forest trail and later drive along the shores of Lake Kivu and breaking our journey with a night on the lakeshore. 

    Visited places:
    • Nyungwe National Park
    • Lake Kivu
  • 7
    Transfer to the Virunga Volcanoes - Home to Mountain Gorillas
    Day 9

    The Virunga volcanoes shared between Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Uganda representing one of the richest biological areas of the world. We will have a short stopover birding along the way. 

    Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

     

    Visited places:
    • Lake Kivu
    • Ruhengeri
    Accommodation offered:
  • 8
    Birding Volcanoes & Gorillas trekking
    Day 10-11

    Today we trek the dense jungles of the Virunga ranges, where Diane Fossey began her research into Mountain Gorillas in the late 1960’s. We trek through the habitat of these enormous animals after a briefing at the visitor’s center. The trek can last from an hour to seven hours depending on where the gorillas nested the previous night – you need to be relatively fit to enjoy this experience. Once sited, we spend one hour with them. 

    How we spend the rest of the day depends on what time we get back from our Gorilla trek, but we expect to have a late lunch and then spend the rest of the afternoon resting. We will have an opportunity to visit Bisoke, which requires us to be relatively fit and later visit a cultural village.

    Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

    Visited places:
    • Ruhengeri
    Accommodation offered:
  • 9
    End of Rwanda Birding Tour
    Day 12

    We set out on the return trip to Kigali, arriving in time for the flight back home. 

    Visited places:
    • Ruhengeri
    • Kigali
  • Prices and conditions

    Price includes
    • Gorilla tracking permit
    • Birding Fees
    • Park entrance
    • Game drives
    • Ground transport
    • Bottled water in the safari vehicle
    • Full board accommodation
    • Service of an English-speaking driver guide
    • All mentioned activities except for the optional ones
       
    Price does not include
    • Extras at the accommodation i.e. drinks, telephone, laundry etc.
    • Tips to porters and driver/ guide
    • Insurance
    • Flights

    Availability of accommodation, permits, and activities not guaranteed until confirmation.