** Pre night at The Retreat by Heaven**
1st COVID test at Airport at USD 60.00 per person (paid directly) - Quarantine in room for 24 hours until results received.
00:40am On arrival at Kigali International Airport off your scheduled international flight and after clearing customs and immigration formalities, you will be met by our representative and escorted to the vehicle for your private transfer to The Retreat by Heaven. Transfer time is approximately 30 min.
Spend 1 night at The Retreat by Heaven in 1 Double Deluxe room on a bed and breakfast basis.
07:00am Private road transfer from The Retreat by Heaven to Akagera National Park entrance. Transfer time is approximately 3 hours.
Spend 3 nights at Magashi Camp in 1 Double room on a full board basis including accommodation, all local drinks (excluding premium imported brands and champagne, transfer from the entrance gate of Akagera National Park to the lodge, all lodge activities (guided game drives, boat cruises, walking safaris), park fees, laundry, local Government taxes. In the event of a change in local taxes or the introduction of additional taxes, these rates will be adjusted accordingly.
Magashi Camp is situated in the productive and phenomenally diverse north-eastern corner of Akagera National Park, overlooking beautiful Lake Rwanyakazinga. Akagera comprises some of the most scenic savannah in East Africa - open plains, woodlands, lakes, swamp, and grassy low mountains - and is home to one of Africa’s highest hippo densities, some very large crocodiles, as well as the rare sitatunga and almost 500 species of birds
2nd COVID test TBA
2 Adults x 3 Park Fee
2 Adults x 3 Concession Fee
2 Adults x 3 Tourism Levy
Activities as offered by Magashi Camp.
Activities as offered by Magashi Camp.
Private activity from Magashi Camp to Kigali. Transfer time is approximately 3 hours.
Enjoy a quick lunch at a local restaurant in Kigali.
Private road transfer from Kigali to Singita Kwitonda. Transfer time is approximately 2 and a half hours.
Spend 2 nights at Singita Kwitonda Lodge in 1 Double Suite on a full board basis including all drinks including premium wines, spirits, and liqueurs (but excludes French Champagne), laundry and complimentary Wi-Fi. Each suite has a private heated pool outside, a gear room, an iPad and media suite and photographic equipment, including iMacs and photographic software.
Boasting breath-taking views of the Sabyinyo, Gahinga and Muhabura volcanoes and surrounded by high-altitude forests, Singita Kwitonda Lodge offers an experience unlike any of Singita’s other destinations.
Fitness Level for Gorilla Tracking
A standard Gorilla trek is a strenuous hike of between 1 – 4 hours each way. You will be tracking through thick forest at heights of up to 3,000 metres, crossing steep sided mountains and if the gorillas are high up it can be difficult and wet. Visitors need to be fit, in good health and properly equipped for the humid and muddy conditions of a rainforest hike. Expect to encounter tangled vegetation. The altitude can pose a problem for some visitors. You are advised to pace yourself, drink plenty of water and eat well the night before and at breakfast on the day of your gorilla trek.
Gorilla Permits
Please note we are not able to hold Gorilla Permits provisionally and confirmation of accommodation does not automatically mean confirmation of Gorilla Permits. We are only able to book Gorilla Permits on receipt of full payment for them. Once this has been received, we will then request for the Gorilla Permits. Once booked, Gorilla Permits are non-refundable and non-transferable. Only 80 permits are issued for each day and they are sold on a first come first serve basis. Please book early to avoid disappointment.
2 Adults x 2 Park Fee
2 Adults x 2 Concession Fee
2 Adults x 2 Tourism Levy
Scheduled Gorilla Trek
Today you will be tracking Mountain Gorillas. These critically endangered primates live in family groups of between 8 and 25 individuals. A number of these families have been habituated over a period of 5 years each to tolerate human presence for a brief period every day. Only 8 visitors per day are allowed to track each gorilla family. You will have an early start (at 07h00) at Kinigi Park HQ, where you receive a briefing and select your porters for the day.
Initially, you will walk along established paths, your ranger coordinating with the advance trackers by radio to guide us into the gorillas last know location. As you get to where the gorillas are, you will leave the paths and begin hacking your way through the slippery underbrush. Your porters will stay back as only your privileged party of 8 and your ranger approach the gorillas to spend your magical hour with them. The hour passes all too quickly, and then it’s time to reluctantly make your way back to your waiting vehicles.
In the afternoon, time, weather, and energy permitting, your guide will accompany you through the rural countryside and villages of Kinigi and Musanze, where one can experience spontaneous street level culture.
3rd COVID test at USD 50.00 per person in Musanze (paid directly).
Private road transfer from Singita Kwitonda Lodge to Bisate Lodge. Transfer time is approximately 25 minutes.
Site inspection of Bisate Lodge.
Private road transfer from Bisate Lodge to One&Only Gorilla's Nest. Transfer time is approximately 25 minutes.
Spend 2 nights at One&Only Gorilla's Nest in 1 Double Room with en-suite bathroom on a full board basis including accommodation, local brand drinks with meals and two lodge activities per day (activities will only be defined once lodge operational).
2 Adults x 2 Park Fee
2 Adults x 2 Concession Fee
2 Adults x 2 Tourism Levy
Scheduled Gorilla Trek
Today you will be tracking Mountain Gorillas. These critically endangered primates live in family groups of between 8 and 25 individuals. A number of these families have been habituated over a period of 5 years each to tolerate human presence for a brief period every day. Only 8 visitors per day are allowed to track each gorilla family. You will have an early start (at 07h00) at Kinigi Park HQ, where you receive a briefing and select your porters for the day.
Initially, you will walk along established paths, your ranger coordinating with the advance trackers by radio to guide us into the gorillas last know location. As you get to where the gorillas are, you will leave the paths and begin hacking your way through the slippery underbrush. Your porters will stay back as only your privileged party of 8 and your ranger approach the gorillas to spend your magical hour with them. The hour passes all too quickly, and then it’s time to reluctantly make your way back to your waiting vehicles.
In the afternoon, time, weather, and energy permitting, your guide will accompany you through the rural countryside and villages of Kinigi and Musanze, where one can experience spontaneous street level culture.
4th COVID test at USD 50.00 per person in Musanze (paid directly)
Private road transfer from One&Only Gorilla's Nest to One & Only Nyungwe House. Transfer time is approximately 7 hours.
En-route stopover for lunch in Kibuye on the shores of Lake Kivu.
Spend 3 nights at One & Only Nyungwe House in 1 Double Nyungwe Rooms on a full board basis including non-alcoholic beverages with meals and two on site activities per person per day. On site activities include Natures Boot Camp, Chefs Garden, spear throwing, Umuganda community participation, conservation walk, The Secrets of African Tea, hilltop archery, exploring by bicycle and nocturnal spotlighting.
In Southwest Rwanda, just south of Lake Kivu on the Burundi border, One&Only Nyungwe House is set amongst the rich tea-plantations of Gisakura, on the edge of the iconic Nyungwe National Park. The park itself covers approximately 1020 km² of rainforest, bamboo, grassland, swamps, and bogs, and is one of the last mountain rainforest habitats on the planet.
2 Adults x 3 Park Fee
2 Adults x 3 Concession Fee
2 Adults x 3 Tourism Levy
Scheduled Chimpanzee Tracking (morning activity only)
Depart the lodge early to go chimp trekking in nearby Cyamudongo Forest (1 hour drive). This small forest was historically connected to Nyungwe and is rich in bird species typical of the Albertine Rift Valley system. It also has a resident habituated chimpanzee group, and with the compact size of this forest, sightings are usually better here than for those trekking chimps in Nyungwe Forest itself. Nyungwe is the home of roughly 400 species of chimpanzees, Nyungwe is home to one of East Africa's last intact populations and boasts two wild chimp communities that welcome guests (one in Cyamdungo and other around Uwinka). Thus, it's not surprising that chimpanzee tracking is a popular activity in Nyungwe (especially when the park's trees are in full bloom during the summer) as well-trained guides often lead visitors through the park's forests. And while actually viewing chimpanzees is not guaranteed, you'll enjoy learning about these creatures and their natural habitats from your guides. But you'll probably have to get up around four a.m. to succeed in this very challenging activity as chimps are mostly likely to be seen early in the morning.
Scheduled Canopy walk (morning or afternoon activity)
The canopy walkway soars 50 metres above the forest floor. Experience the rainforest from a new perspective: The Canopy Walkway. Hanging 60 meters above the forest floor between giant trees and towers, East Africa's only Canopy Walkway provides a stunning view of the park's amazing wildlife and nature.
5th COVID test at USD 50.00 per person in Kamembe (paid directly)
After breakfast, drive approximately 6 hours to Kigali Serena Hotel.
En-route visit to the National Museum in Huye and the Kings Palace in Nyanza including lunch.
Check into The Retreat by Heaven for dinner and relaxation.
Private road transfer from The Retreat by Heaven to Kigali International Airport. Transfer time is approximately 30 min.
Fly back home.
