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3 Days Walking Safari in Rwanda

Small Group Journey • Rwanda

3 Days Walking Safari in Rwanda

View Itinerary

Overview

About this journey

Experience the breathtaking beauty of Rwanda on this 3-Day Walking Safari, combining scenic landscapes, guided forest walks, and unforgettable chimpanzee trekking in the ancient Nyungwe Forest National Park. Known as the "Land of a Thousand Hills," Rwanda offers spectacular mountain scenery, rich biodiversity, and warm hospitality. This safari is ideal for nature lovers, birdwatchers, photographers, and adventure seekers looking to explore one of Africa's most pristine rainforests on foot.


Safari Highlights

Guided walking safari in Nyungwe Forest National Park

Chimpanzee trekking experience

Scenic drive through Rwanda's beautiful countryside

Opportunities to spot monkeys, birds, butterflies, and unique forest flora

Visit one of Africa's oldest tropical rainforests

Professional English-speaking safari guide

Comfortable accommodation at Nyungwe Nziza Ecolodge

Highlights

What you'll experience

  • You walk in from the park boundary at Kinigi, no shuttle drop-off. Your tracker reads bent stems and knuckle prints in the mud until you find them — a silverback at rest, a juvenile dangling from a vernonia branch. The hour you spend with Susa or Hirwa group passes in complete silence from the human side of the encounter.

  • These bamboo-zone primates move fast and loud, a flash of orange against green. Your guide Celestin calls them the clowns of the Virungas. You follow them through dense bamboo at first light, frost still on the stalks, while the volcanoes catch the early sun above the canopy.

  • The walk between Bisate and the park boundary crosses smallholder pyrethrum and potato fields where the forest presses right to the hedge line. Red-collared widowbirds sit on fence posts and olive sunbirds work the flowering aloes. Community conservation guides explain the crop-protection schemes that keep wildlife and farmers on speaking terms.

  • After the gorilla trek you return to Kigezi Highland Camp as the cloud settles into the valleys below. The fire is already lit. Canvas walls, three-course dinner built around local sweet potato and freshwater tilapia, and the sound of tree hyraxes starting up at dusk.

  • Day two takes you along the ridge above Lake Bulera and Lake Ruhondo — two crater lakes that shimmer blue-grey between the hills. The trail is steady rather than steep, and the views open and close with the cloud in a way that rewards patience more than pace.

Why choose us

Why choose a Small Group Journey?

Walking changes the scale of everything. You notice the way a mountain gorilla breathes, the drag of altitude on your own lungs, the particular silence of bamboo forest before the monkeys arrive. This trip is designed for people who want that register of experience, not the distance-from-a-vehicle version.

Guides Who Know the Ground

Celestin Habimana has walked the Volcanoes buffer zone daily for over a decade. He knows the individual gorillas by face and the trails by feel in fog. His presence changes what you see and what you understand about it.

Six Guests Maximum

Gorilla permits are limited and the walk only works in a small group. Six people means you keep pace together, move quietly, and the guide can talk to everyone at once without raising his voice.

Community-Rooted Itinerary

Every day of this trip crosses land where the success of wildlife conservation depends directly on the livelihoods of neighbouring families. The Bisate cooperative stop, the buffer-zone community guides, the camp's sourcing from local farms — these are not add-ons, they are how the gorillas still have a mountain to live on.

Itinerary

your day-by-day journey

Day 1Day 1: Arrival in Kigali – Transfer to Nyungwe Forest National Park

Upon your arrival at Kigali International Airport, you will be warmly welcomed by your professional guide from Arrive Africa Safaris. After a short briefing about your safari, begin your scenic journey to Nyungwe Forest National Park in southwestern Rwanda.

The drive takes you through Rwanda's breathtaking countryside, where rolling green hills, neatly terraced farms, tea plantations, and vibrant local villages create unforgettable scenery. Along the way, you will experience why Rwanda is famously known as the "Land of a Thousand Hills." If time allows, you may stop to visit some of Kigali's cultural and historical attractions before continuing your journey. Upon arrival at Nyungwe Forest, check in at Nyungwe Nziza Ecolodge, where you can relax while enjoying the peaceful surroundings of the rainforest.

Spend the evening listening to the sounds of nature before enjoying dinner at the lodge.

Accommodation: Nyungwe Nziza Ecolodge

Meal Plan: Dinner

Lunch, Dinner

Day 2Day 2: Guided Walking Safari in Nyungwe Forest National Park

Wake up to the refreshing sounds of the rainforest and enjoy an early breakfast before setting out on an exciting guided walking safari in Nyungwe Forest National Park.

Covering more than 1,000 square kilometers, Nyungwe is one of Africa's oldest montane rainforests and one of the continent's richest biodiversity hotspots. The park is home to over 13 species of primates, more than 300 bird species, hundreds of butterfly species, orchids, and countless indigenous trees and medicinal plants.

Accompanied by an experienced ranger guide, you'll walk along forest trails while learning about the unique ecosystem and conservation efforts that protect this remarkable habitat. Keep your eyes open for black-and-white colobus monkeys, L'Hoest's monkeys, blue monkeys, vervet monkeys, and colorful birds such as the Great Blue Turaco.

The fresh mountain air, towering trees, crystal-clear streams, and peaceful atmosphere create an unforgettable walking experience that allows you to fully connect with nature.

Return to the lodge in the afternoon to relax and enjoy the beautiful forest surroundings.

Accommodation: Nyungwe Nziza Ecolodge

Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 3Day 3: Chimpanzee Trekking – Return to Kigali – Departure

Today is the highlight of your Rwanda walking safari. Rise early and enjoy breakfast before heading to the Nyungwe Forest National Park headquarters for a briefing by experienced park rangers. You will then enter the rainforest in search of one of the park's habituated chimpanzee families. Chimpanzees are energetic and intelligent primates, making the trek both exciting and rewarding. As you hike through the forest, listen carefully for their loud calls echoing through the trees. Once the chimpanzees are located, you will spend one unforgettable hour observing them as they feed, groom one another, play, and communicate in their natural habitat.

Besides chimpanzees, you may also encounter other primates, colorful birds, and a variety of forest wildlife during your trek. After this incredible wildlife encounter, return to the lodge to freshen up and check out before beginning your scenic drive back to Kigali.

Depending on your departure schedule, your guide will transfer you to Kigali International Airport for your onward flight, bringing your memorable Rwanda Walking Safari to a close.

Meal Plan: Breakfast & Lunch

Safari Includes

Airport transfers

Transportation in a comfortable 4x4 safari vehicle

Professional English-speaking driver/guide

2 nights' accommodation

Meals as indicated

Guided walking safari

Chimpanzee trekking permit

Park entrance fees

Bottled drinking water during the safari

Safari Excludes

International flights

Rwanda visa (where applicable)

Travel insurance

Alcoholic and soft drinks

Tips and gratuities

Personal expenses such as laundry, souvenirs, and telephone calls

Optional activities not mentioned in the itinerary

End of Your 3 Days Walking Safari in Rwanda

Breakfast, Lunch

Extensions

+2 Days

Bwindi Gorilla Trek Cross-Border Extension

Cross into Uganda and spend two days in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest — a second gorilla permit with a completely different forest character and a different habituated family. Road transfer from Musanze through Cyanika border to the Buhoma sector, overnight at a forest-edge lodge.

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+1 Days

Kigali City and Genocide Memorial Day

Spend a day in Kigali before or after the walk — the Genocide Memorial, the Kimironko market, a cooking class with a local chef. The city rewards a full day rather than a transit afternoon.

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+3 Days

Nyungwe Forest Chimpanzee Trek

Drive south to Nyungwe National Park for two nights and a chimpanzee tracking morning in one of Africa's largest remaining montane rainforests. The canopy walkway above the forest is 200 metres of suspended perspective. Return to Kigali on day three.

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Dates & Prices

Prices in USD, including internal air, per person, double occupancy.

  • Jun 14 – Jun 16
    $3,850Available
  • Jul 12 – Jul 14
    $3,850Available
  • Aug 9 – Aug 11
    $3,850Available
  • Sep 6 – Sep 8
    $3,850Waitlist
  • Oct 11 – Oct 13
    $3,850Available

Minimum Age

15 years (gorilla and golden monkey trekking regulations apply)

Safari Duffel

A soft duffel bag of no more than 15 kg is recommended for lodge transfers. Day pack of 20–25 litres for the trail.

First Group Event

Welcome briefing and afternoon buffer zone walk, Day 1, 10:00 AM, Musanze meeting point

Last Group Event

Farewell lunch in Musanze, Day 3, approximately 12:30 PM

Guaranteed Departures

All listed departures are guaranteed with a minimum of 2 guests confirmed. Maximum group size is 6.

Alternate Sightseeing

Gorilla permit allocation is subject to Rwanda Development Board assignment on the day. In the rare event your group is moved to an alternate family, the experience and duration remain equivalent.

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