Rwanda: Kigali, Akagera National Park, Volcanoes National Park
Small groups of no more than 13 travelers, guaranteed
Welcome to Rwanda, land of a thousand hills. Go for jungle treks into the mist-shrouded slopes of Rwanda’s Virunga Volcanoes to witness the antics of golden monkeys and to stare down the world’s last habituated populations of mountain gorillas. Seek out the “Big Five” during game-viewing drives at Akagera National Park, spend 6 nights in safari lodges, and discover one of the most beautiful destinations in all of Africa.
11 days starting from $8,495
including international airfare from New York
Single Supplement: FREE
Departure Dates: May-Dec
Activity Level: Moderately Strenuous
2025 & 2026 DEPARTURES AVAILABLE
See all departure dates at www.oattravel.com/rwn2025pricing
IT'S INCLUDED
- 9 nights accommodation
- International airfare, airport transfers, government taxes, fees, and airline fuel surcharges unless you choose to make your own air arrangements
- 25 meals—9 breakfasts, 9 lunches, and 7 dinners
- 16 small group activities, including 2 jungle treks and up to 4 game-viewing drives
- All National Park, Gorilla Trek, and Golden Monkey Trek permit fees
- Services of a local O.A.T. Trip Experience Leader and driver-guides
- Gratuities for local guides, drivers, lodge and camp staff, driver-guides, and luggage porters
- Complimentary O.A.T. safari duffel bag and water bottle
- 5% Frequent Traveler Credit toward your next adventure
ITINERARY
DAY 1 • Depart U.S.
Depart the U.S. today for your overnight flight to Kigali, Rwanda.
DAY 2 • Kigali, Rwanda
Arrive at your hotel in Kigali, where you’ll meet your fellow travelers, including those who took our optional Uganda : The Pearl of Africa Revealed pre-trip extension.
Lemigo Hotel or similar
DAY 3 • Kigali • Genocide Memorial • Conversation about the Rwandan genocide
Visit the Kigali Genocide Memorial, including exhibits that trace the events of the genocide, reveal the colonial history of Rwanda, and highlight instances of 20th-century genocides around the world. We’ll also learn more about the genocide when we speak to two survivors. Then, explore Kigali by bus.
Meals: B,L,D | Lemigo Hotel or similar
DAY 4 • Conversation about the Nyamata massacre • A Day in the Life of a Rwandan Reconciliation Village • Home-Hosted Lunch • Controversial Topic: Life after the genocide
Visit Nyamata church, where nearly 10,000 people were killed while seeking refuge in 1994, and engage in a conversation about whether the Catholic Church stood by as the massacre unfolded. Then, spend A Day in the Life of a Reconciliation Village, where perpetrators and victims of the 1994 genocide live side by side. After a Home-Hosted Lunch, learn about the Controversial Topic of how some Rwandans cannot forgive the murder of their loved ones.
Meals: B,L | Lemigo Hotel or similar
DAY 5 • Akagera National Park • Women’s Opportunity Center • Night game-viewing drive
Visit Akagera National Park, set along Rwanda’s northeastern border with Tanzania. En route, visit the Women’s Opportunity Center, a gathering place for rural women farmers. After lunch with the women, we’ll continue to Akagera and enjoy a sunset game-viewing drive.
Meals: B,L,D | Akagera Game Lodge or similar
DAY 6 • Akagera • Full-day game-viewing drive
Set off on a full-day game-viewing drive in the northern section of the park, looking for giraffe and zebra in open woodland; or catching the herds of elephant and buffalo emerging from the dense woodland.
Meals: B,L,D | Akagera Game Lodge or similar
DAY 7 • Akagera • Game-viewing drive • Lake Ihema boat cruise
After an early morning game-viewing drive, enjoy a “behind the scenes” presentation at park headquarters to learn about the innovative conservation efforts that restored Akagera’s animal populations after the Rwandan genocide. This afternoon, take a boat cruise on Lake Ihema.
Meals: B,L,D | Akagera Game Lodge or similar
ADVENTURE HIGHLIGHT
On Days 5-7, enjoy game-viewing drives in Akagera National Park, an untouched corner of the country that is home to all of Africa’s “Big Five”
DAY 8 • Ruhengeri
Travel to Ruhengeri, gateway to Volcanoes National Park. En route, stop in Kigali for lunch. Then, before reaching our lodge, we’ll pause to take in the panoramic views of the Virungas, five massive volcanoes looming in the distance.
Meals: B,L,D | Mountain Gorilla View Lodge or similar
DAY 9 • Mountain gorilla trek • Conversation about gorilla conservation efforts
Drive to the Kinigi Trekking Station, set within Volcanoes National Park. Then, split into two groups of no more than eight travelers and set off on a rigorous jungle trek to seek out mountain gorillas with an expert guide. Later, we’ll visit Gorilla Doctors, a mountain gorilla veterinary project in Musanze, to learn about the impact of illegal gorilla poaching.
Meals: B,L,D | Mountain Gorilla View Lodge or similar
ADVENTURE HIGHLIGHT
On Day 9, set off on a mountain gorilla trek for an up-close encounter with one of the world’s last habituated populations of these great apes
DAY 10 • Golden monkey trek • GCF visit: Rushubi Primary School
Return to the Kinigi Trekking Station to embark on a primate trek to observe Rwanda’s population of golden monkeys, who make their home in the bamboo forests at the base of the volcanoes and live in two habituated groups of 30 to 100 individuals. Later, visit the Rushubi Primary School (when in session), supported by Grand Circle Foundation.
Meals: B,L,D | Mountain Gorilla View Lodge or similar
DAY 11 • Ellen Degeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund • Kigali • Return to U.S.
Visit the Ellen Degeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund before returning to Kigali. Later, depart to the airport for our return flights home, or to begin your post-trip extension to Tanzania: The Ngorongoro Crater & Serengeti Private Tented Safari.
Meals: B,L | Lemigo Hotel (day room)
For departure dates & prices, visit www.oattravel.com/rwd2025pricing
OPTIONAL EXTENSIONS
Choose to maximize your discoveries and value when you add a pre- or post-trip extension—or both—to your adventure.
Uganda: The Pearl of Africa Revealed
PRE-TRIP: 6 nights from $3,895
Join us and tour the dynamic Ugandan capital of Kampala, take a bush walk among endangered white rhinos, go on a bird-viewing canoe safari, and witness the splendor of Murchison Falls, where the Nile River explodes through a narrow gorge to create the most powerful rush of water in the world.
IT'S INCLUDED
- Roundtrip airfare between Kigali and Entebbe
- 6 nights accommodation
- 18 meals—6 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 6 dinners
- 7 small group activities
- Services of an English-speaking O.A.T. Extension Guide, as well as step-on local guides
- Gratuities for your Extension Guide, local guides, drivers, and luggage porters
-
All transfers
Learn more at www.oattravel.com/rwn-uganda-2025
Tanzania: The Ngorongoro Crater & Serengeti Private Tented Safari
POST-TRIP: 6 nights from $3,795
Experience the greatest safari highlights of Tanzania while searching for the tree-climbing lions of Lake Manyara National Park, descending into the Ngorongoro Crater to seek out the “Big Five,” and camping out under the stars amidst the wildlife herds of the majestic Serengeti plains.
IT'S INCLUDED
- Air transportation from the Serengeti to Arusha; and from Kigali to Arusha
- 6 nights accommodation
- 17 meals—6 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 5 dinners
- 9 small group activities
-
Services of an English-speaking O.A.T. Extension Guide, as well as step-on local guides
- Gratuities for your Extension Guide, local guides, drivers, and luggage porters
Please note: Travelers purchasing their own international flights will be responsible for additional internal flight costs.
Learn more at www.oattravel.com/rwn-tanzania-2025
ARRIVE EARLY
We recommend that you relax after a long flight or explore more in depth before your trip. Prices shown include accommodations and private airport transfer.
- Arrive early in Entebbe before your Uganda pre-trip extension from $210 per room, per night
- Arrive early in Kigali before your main adventure from $200 per room, per night