RESPONSIBLE TOURISM & ECO-TOURISM IN RWANDA, UGANDA, & THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

Let’s Meet the Locals! (7 days / 6 nights)

Come face-to-face with the friendly people of Rwanda, visit a local school, and learn about their traditional crafts and rituals. Seeped in history, Rwanda has much to tell. Join us on this tour of the country’s most remarkable genocide memorial sites, and see how the horrors of the past have shaped its efforts to strive for unwavering peace. Then let’s explore Rwanda’s natural treasures as we trek for Mountain Gorillas and the endemic Golden Monkeys!

Highlights

  • Admire the world-famous Mountain Gorillas
  • Enjoy an endemic Golden Monkey encounter
  • Ntarama/Nyamata Genocide Memorial visit
  • Meet the lovely people of Rwanda
  • Lake Kivu and the Gisenyi port
  • Travel in a private 4WD vehicle
  • Enjoy the beautiful hilly Rwanda countryside
  • Marvel at the magnificent view of the volcanic chain
  • Ideal choice for business travellers and leisure guests
  • Excellent value

Itinerary Outline

  • Day 1: Arrive at Kigali, transfer to your hotel
  • Day 2: Visit Nyamata/Ntarama genocide memorial sites and art gallery
  • Day 4: Walk to Musanze with afternoon community activities
  • Day 5: Gorilla trekking and Kagano community visit
  • Day 6: Drive to Gisenyi, visit to local school
  • Day 7: Spend the day at leisure, walk to Kigali
  • Day 8: Transfer to the airport

Day 1: Arrive Kigali International Airport

Upon arrival at Kigali International Airport, you will be met by your Amahoro driver/guide. You will then arrive at your hotel in Kigali, where you’ll spend the night and enjoy a nourishing breakfast.

Day 2: Visit Ntarama & Nyamata Memorial Visit + Inema Art Studio

After breakfast, depart for a visit to the Ntarama Church, where mass killings with over 5,000 victims occurred during the 1994 genocide. The Ntarama Genocide Memorial is located about 30 km (19 miles or so) south of the capital city of Kigali. Learn about the unity and reconciliation commission. Proceed to Nyamata memorial site, a church where around 2,500 people were killed, now testament of the barbaric treatment of women during the genocide. Return to the city for lunch, and then depart for a visit the Inema art studio.

Day 3: Depart for Ruhengeri and Intercultural Exchange

After breakfast, you will depart for a 2-hour drive to Ruhengeri, the second largest town in Rwanda. It boasts a stunning backdrop with five volcanic mountains, The Virungas, towering above the town. You will then arrive at the Red Rocks Intercultural Exchange Centre for a lunch that you will help prepare. Enjoy the meal outside, in the sun, or at the dining area, as you chat with the locals and are introduced to traditional Rwandese evening stories about our the past and present. This tour will offer you an inside look at Rwandan cultural and history, giving you a better picture of how Rwanda’s past has shaped its present. Ask as many questions as you like, and feel free to join in on the discussions. Later in the afternoon, take part in banana beer production to understand the chemistry involved in brewing a local beer from bananas fruits. “Red Rocks” is a cultural exchange project, which aims to raise awareness of all the aspects of Rwandese Culture, life style, traditions and history.

Day 4: Golden Monkey Tracking and Twin Lakes Visit

This day is set out for Golden Monkey tracking in the Volcanoes National Park. Entering dense stands of bamboo interspersed with open glades; you will make your way deep into golden monkey territory. Though viewing is kept to a maximum of one hour, travellers can get an up-close look at the golden monkey in its natural habitat. Return to your hotel to freshen up and have lunch then depart for the twin lakes of Bulera & Ruhondo. Their deep blue waters ringed by steep hills and tall waterfalls with the outlines of the nearby Virunga Volcanoes provide a spectacular backdrop. Later drive back to your hotel for dinner and overnight.

Day 5: Gorilla Tracking and Kagano Community Visit

Enjoy an early breakfast, and then proceed to the National Park headquarters in Kinigi to meet your guides for the day. After completing the necessary formalities at the park, we will embark on an unforgettable mountain gorilla tracking expedition. Once you spot them, you will be able to spend an hour watching your long-lost cousin in his natural habitat. The enjoy an evening visit to the Kagano village, where the once forest-dwelling locals will tell you all about when and why they left the park. Return to your hotel for lunch, dinner and overnight.

Day 6: Local School Visit and Departure for Gisenyi

After breakfast, take a closer look at education in Rwanda by visiting local schools, and participate in either teaching or playing games with the children. Later, depart for Gisenyi with a stop at the Imbabazi Orphanage founded by Rosamond Halsey Carr (1912-2006) in 1994. Take a walk around the homestead and admire the colourful flowers planted by this green-fingered lady in her lifetime. Continue to Gisenyi, arrive for lunch and check in at your hotel. Time permitting, take an afternoon swim at Lake Kivu, one of the African Great Lakes.

Day 7: Depart for Kigali

After breakfast, the early part of the day is spent in Gisenyi, the largest port on the Rwandan shore of Lake Kivu. Enjoy a boat ride to one of the islands in Lake Kivu. Explore the town, enjoying the hustle and bustle of the local market or wander through the leafy streets, admiring the old colonial buildings. Enjoy a nourishing lunch, and set off on a 3-hour drive back to Kigali later in the afternoon, arriving for an overnight stay at your hotel.

Day 8: Final Departure

After breakfast, we will transfer you to the Kigali International Airport in time for your outbound flight.