RWANDA GORILLA SAFARI PACKAGE

DAY 1 – ARRIVAL KIGALI, RWANDA

Met on arrival at the Kigali International Airport, by our representative and transfer to Kigali Serena Hotel where you have been booked on a bed and breakfast basis for the night.

Kigali Serena Hotel

Ideally located on one of Kigali's most charming boulevards, the five-star Kigali Serena Hotel is built around a polished granite atrium, which showcases the very best of Rwandese cultural art. 

Overnight at Kigali Serena Hotel.

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DAY 2 – CITY TOUR OF KIGALI & DRIVE TO LAKE KIVU

Breakfast in the Hotel.

Pick up from the hotel at 09:00hours for a City Tour of Kigali including visit to the Gisozi Genocide Memorial sites, the Richard Kandt Museum and local markets.  Return to the hotel for lunch and thereafter drive to Gisenyi arriving late afternoon to scenic African sunset over the lake.

Lake Kivu Serena Hotel

Serenely sited on the white sandy shores of Lake Kivu, the sixth largest lake in Africa, and surrounded by extensive tropical gardens, the tastefully open-plan Lake Kivu Serena Hotel offers the ideal holiday escape destination!

Within three hours’ drive from the Rwandan capital, Kigali and an hour’s drive from the glorious Volcanoes National Park, home of the world famous mountain gorillas, the hotel overlooks its own private beach and offers a variety of accommodation and hotel facilities.

Dinner and overnight at Lake Kivu Serena Hotel

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DAY 3 – LAKE KIVU TO VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK – MOUNTAIN GORILLAS ENCOUNTER!

05:00hrs transfer to Kinigi at the foot hills of the Virungas for your Gorilla Tracking expedition! Carry with you our carefully sorted and packed breakfast box complete with sufficient energy giving food to sustain you throughout the tracking trip.

07:00hrs briefing and allocation to a Gorilla Tracking Group. Then drive to the base of the trekking together with other guests allocated in the same gorilla family.  Once you have spotted the gorillas you are allowed only one hour and there after the return to the base, where you drive guide will be waiting. Depending on the time you come back you may opt to have lunch at either Mountain Gorilla View Lodge OR drive back  to your hotel for a hot lunch.

IMPORTANT - Hikers must be prepared to walk for up to 6 hours a day.  • Hikers must bring along their own personal hiking gear.

Volcanoes National Park

The park was first gazetted in 1925, as a small area bounded by Karisimbi, Visoke and Mikeno, intended to protect the gorillas from poachers. It was the very first National Park to be created in Africa.  The park later became the base for the American naturalist Dian Fossey to carry out her research into the gorillas. She arrived in 1967 and set up the Karisoke Research Centre between Karisimbi and Visoke. 

Fossey's life was later portrayed on the big screen in the film “Gorillas in the Mist”, named after her autobiography.  The park is best known for the Mountain Gorilla. Other mammals include: Golden monkey, Black-fronted Duiker, Buffalo, Spotted Hyena and Bushbuck. There are also reported to be some elephants in the park, though these are now very rare.  There are 178 recorded bird species, with at least 13 species and 16 subspecies endemic to the Virunga and Ruwenzori Mountains.

All meals and overnight at Lake Kivu Serena Hotel.

DAY 4 – VISIT IBY IWACU CULTURAL CENTRE & DEPARTURE

Depart the hotel at 09:00 hrs, en-route you will have a stopover at the Iby Iwacu Cultural Center for first hand encounter of Rwandan culture and heritage. 

Iby' Iwacu Cultural Center

Offering an adventurous stay in a traditional rural, Rwandan village that has existed for centuries living with and next to mountain gorillas in Parc National des Volcans.  Iby’Iwacu Cultural Village gives you a rare chance to meet local people, in their environment, with a taste of our culture and traditions. The community you visit will genuinely welcome you as a special guest while they proudly present aspects of their traditions and beliefs. This will truly be an experience of a lifetime as you home stay with the community and become part of their family. 

After the visit drive on to Kigali arriving in the afternoon.  Later transfer to the airport for your homebound flight.

A Once in a Life Time Experience!

SPECIAL PACKAGE COST OFFER

USD 2,680.00 Per person sharing in a double/twin room  

USD 2,880.00 Per person in single room 

USD 3,450.00 Per Solo Traveler (1 person travelling alone) 

*Validity: 1st January to 31st December 2021

*Terms & Conditions apply

TERMS & CONDITIONS

Rates: All rates are quoted on a per person basis unless otherwise stated and are inclusive of all relevant taxes, levies, surcharges and service charges. Tour costs are based on all known costs and current rates of exchange. Should these be subject to change in the interim (due to reasons beyond the control of Serena Hotels), they will be passed on to the client. Serena Hotels retains the right to alter any arrangements (as outlined above), which may become necessary due to prevailing local conditions/and/or events beyond our control.

Confirmations and deposits: Upon confirmation of your safari details, we will require a 25% non-refundable deposit on the total cost of the tour, the balance of which must be paid 30 days prior to your arrival. We regret that in the absence of the above, we will be unable to confirm your safari; and in the absence of our receipt of full payment as indicated, your reservation will be cancelled (with the forfeit of the 25% deposit indicated).

Cancellations: All cancellations must be made in writing to Serena Hotels at the address indicated below. Cancellations will be incurred as indicated below:

Between 30-45 days prior to date of commencement of tour: no refund of deposit.

Below 30 days prior to the date of the commencement of the tour no refund of the remaining tour costs.

Refunds/cancellation levies: We regret that in the event that any portion of your safari is unused (after the safari has commenced) no refunds regarding the unused portion will be possible. Note: these cancellation terms do not include the cancellation penalties levied on airfares (locally or internationally).

Payment: We accept payment via the following credit cards: Visa, Access/Master Card, American Express, JCB, Senator, Diners Club International. We also accept proprietary traveler’s cheques. We regret that we are unable to accept personal cheques in the absence of prior clearance.

Child policy: Children under the age of two sharing a room with one or two adults are accommodated on a complimentary basis. Children between the ages of two and twelve sharing a room with one or two adults will be charged 50% of the adult rate or 75% of this rate if they are accommodated in a separate room. Young adults between the age of 13 and 17 years of age will be charged 75% of the adult rate regardless of whether they are sharing a room with their accompanying adults, or occupying a room of their own.

Tour completion preclusion: Serena Hotels retains the right to deny completion of the stated tour (as outlined above) to any person who, for whatsoever reason, is deemed to have caused undue hazard or inconvenience to his/her fellow travelers.

The package quotes are net and Non commissionable