Active Africa - gorilla trek, canoeing & hiking (8 nights)

Day notes

On arrival at Kigali International Airport, clear Rwanda immigration. Most countries require a visa, which can be obtained on arrival.

You will be met in the arrival hall by a Far Horizons driver, who will transfer you to the Kigali Serena Hotel.

Overnight in Kigali.

Day notes

After breakfast you will be collected from the hotel for a morning tour of Kigali, including a visit to Genocide Memorial Museum.

After lunch in the city at a popular restaurant, you will depart with your private vehicle and driver for Volcanoes National Park (Parc National Dec Volcans). Arrive at Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge in the late afternoon , after traveling through the picturesque Rwandan countryside. There are plenty of opportunities to stop and experience local towns enroute.

Two nights Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge or similar.

Day notes

After an early breakfast, you will be collected from the hotel by your driver for the transfer to the Park headquarters. Here you meet up with your gorilla tracking guide, who will brief you on the trek rules and expectations. You will also be allocated a gorilla family to track. Gorilla treks are not on a private basis, and you will meet up with the other members of the trek group (max 8 people).

The treks can take between two and 6 hours, depending on the location of the gorilla family you are tracking. There are porters on hand, who for a small fee, will carry your day pack and provide walking sticks (very useful). Once you encounter the gorilla family, you are allowed one hour with them.

You then trek back to your vehicle and return to the lodge for lunch.

The afternoon is free to relax, or you can explore the region with your driver, visiting the local town and viewing the lakes.

Day notes

This morning you have your second gorilla trek. After the early breakfast, drive to the park headquarters for allocation of a gorilla family to track. It will be a different family today, offering a very different experience. Each encounter with gorillas is unique.

Alternative activities to the second gorilla trek,  include guided mountain bike rides through the forest and local villages, hike to Diane Fossey's Research Camp, birding hikes and hike through local villages with a guide.

Return to the lodge for lunch and freshen up. Then in the afternoon, road transfer back to Kigali and your hotel.

Arrive in Kigali in the late afternoon. 

Overnight in Kigali.

Day notes

You are up early this morning for a transfer to the airport. Connect with Rwandair flight to Harare that departs at 7:55am. Arrive Harare, Zimbabwe at 10:40am. On arrival in Harare, clear Zimbabwe customs - visa required, and obtainable on arrival. You will be met in the arrival hall and be assisted to the domestic terminal. Connect with a scheduled light air flight to Mana Pools National Park, and Ruckomechi Camp. Flight time is just over one hour. On arrival at the Ruckomechi Airstrip, you will be met by your guide for a game drive transfer to Ruckomechi Camp.

Enjoy two days of safari activities on land and water from Ruckomechi. Including game drives, walking safaris canoeing on the Zambezi, boating and fishing.

Two nights Ruckomechi Camp.

Day notes

Later this afternoon, you will be transferred by boat along the Zambezi River to Chikwenya Camp on the eastern edge of Mana Pools

Two days of activities from this spectacular location on the Zambezi River. Wildlife abounds, and often visible from your luxury room. Spend you days exploring the Zambezi floodplain on foot, or in canoes on the river. Perhaps try your hand at catching a tiger fish, a fierce predator fish that gives a challenging fight!

Two nights Chikwenya or similar.

Day notes

After breakfast this morning, depart for the airstrip. Connect with a scheduled light air flight to Harare (or Victoria Falls). On arrival in Harare connect with your onward flights. 

Add on options for this safari include Victoria Falls, Cape Town, or extend the safari in Hwange National Park, or South Africa.