RWANDA GORILLA TREK & KENYA SAFARI
June 2025
Overview:
Brief Itinerary:
Day 01: Arrive to Kigali, Rwanda. Transfer to Kigali Serena Hotel, check in for 2 nights.
Day 02: AM Genocide Museum & Memorial. Lunch at Mille Collines. Evening at your leisure.
Day 03: Road Transfer to Volcanoes National Park with a visit to Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. Evening at your leisure. Check in to Five Volcanoes for 4 nights.
Day 04: AM Dian Fossey Trek. PM at leisure.
Day 05: AM Gorilla Treking. Evening at your leisure.
Day 06: AM Golden Monkey Trek. That evening visit Iby’lwachu Cultural Village.
Day 07: AM at your leisure. Transfer to Kigali Airport. Fly to Nairobi, Kenya. Transfer to Spurwing Guest House, outskirts Nairobi. Check in 2 nights.
Day 08: AM visit to Daphne Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage & Giraffe Center. Lunch at Karen Blixen. Time permitting visit Kazuri Beads. 2nd overnight at Spurwing Guest House.
Day 09: Transfer Wilson Airport fly to Masai Mara. Transfer to Karen Blixen Camp for 3 nts.
Days 10 & 11: Full days on safari in Masai Mara with twice daily game drives in open sided 4×4 vehicles. All meals included. Total of 3nts at Karen Blixen Camp.
Day 12: Transfer to Airstrip for flight to Nairobi. Transfer to Four Points Airport Hotel for day room use before transferring to international terminal and depart for home.
Interested in more information? Please contact Africa Easy by calling 1-800-617-2319 or (206) 284-2319. Click here to e-mail the Africa Easy Team.
RWANDA GORILLA TREK & KENYA SAFARI
June 2025
Day-by-day Itinerary:
Day 1 – Kigali, Rwanda
Arrive Kigali, Rwanda. You will be met on arrival outside of Immigration and Customs and after picking up your checked luggage by a local tour agent, holding a sign with your name on it. You will be transferred to the Kigali Serena Hotel. Upon arrival, check in 2 nights, on a bed & breakfast basis.
Day 2 – Kigali, Rwanda
Morning touring to the Kigali Genocide Memorial. This is an indoor and outdoor Museum and Memorial and takes about 90-120 minutes to tour fully. Continue for a city drive/tour and end with lunch at Hotel des Mille Collines (Rwanda Movie Hotel). Return to Kigali Serena Hotel for the afternoon at your leisure and dinner (on own account) and second overnight, on a bed & breakfast basis.
Day 3 – Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda
Check out after breakfast and guided/road transfer from Kigali, approx. total drive time 2.5 – 3 hours up to Volcanoes National Park area. En route, visit the new Ellen DFGFI self-guided tour. Continue to Five Volcanoes and check in for 4 nights, on a fully inclusive basis.
Day 4 – Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda
After breakfast, meet your guide who will transfer you for your morning Diann Fossey/Karisoke Trek.
About Diann Fossey/Karisoke Trekking:
For those who love mountain gorillas, visiting the Dian Fossey tomb and gorilla cemetery located near her former Karisoke Research Camp/center between mount Karisimbi and Mount Bisoke is a must. It is a great way to pay homage to one of the greatest mountain gorilla researchers. You will learn about her work with the mountain gorillas in the remote mountains or Rwanda and also contribute towards the very work that she started in 1967. The hike will give you time to reflect on many things and challenge you at a physical, emotional and intellectual level. You might even get inspired to fight for something you truly believe in like she did – hopefully relating to wildlife conservation. Besides learning about Dian Fossey’s work and research centre, the activity will give you an opportunity to witness the beauty of Rwanda’s volcanoes national park. While hiking to the tomb of Dian Fossey, you will/might also get a chance to spot rare plants, birds, golden monkeys, forest elephants, buffaloes, antelope and above all a gorilla family along the way.
Day 5 – Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda
After breakfast we take a short drive to Park Headquarters and meet with excellent local guides and trackers who will give a talk on the etiquette of gorilla trekking. We then hike into the forest to where the gorillas were seen the night before and track from that point. The trekking can take from 1 to 6 hours and climb to altitudes not in excess of 8,858 feet. The terrain is rough and at times muddy. Although the hike is physically demanding the beauty of the forest and surrounding scenery make the trekking worthwhile. Once the gorillas are located all fatigue is forgotten, as the experience is often described as being the most profound natural history experience in the world. Picnic lunches are provided and it is important to take plenty of water. Cameras and plenty of fast speed film are recommended. It can rain at a few minutes notice, hence waterproof clothing is a good essential including waterproof bags for cameras and film. After the trek road transfer to Volcanoes Lodge for the afternoon at your leisure and overnight, on a fully inclusive basis.
About Gorilla Trekking:
Tracking gorillas through the dense African forests is a magical experience. Nothing can prepare you for the impact of encountering a fully-grown silverback male, up to three times the size of an average man (adult males can weigh up to 200 kilograms!), yet remarkably peaceable, playful and tolerant of human visitors.
It is a privilege to spend an hour sitting with and watching these wild relatives. Only eights visitors are allowed per gorilla group each day, and too minimize possible transmission of human diseases, visitors are asked to maintain a distance of 7 meters (about 22 feet) from the gorillas. Typically, tracking can take from 3 to 8 hours and requires some agility and fitness; however, no one should feel deterred from missing this once in a lifetime experience!
Day 6 – Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda
After breakfast we take a short drive to Park Headquarters again and meet with excellent local guides and trackers who will give a talk on the etiquette of Golden Monkey trekking. The trekking can take from 1 to 4 hours. There is a fully habituated group of the beautiful primates in the park and this is one of the only places in Africa where this activity is offered.
After the trek, enjoy lunch before a visit to the the Iby’Iwachu Cultural Village. The Iby’Iwachu Cultural Village is located near Parc National des Volcans in Kinigi. It’s has been developed to display local and traditional lifestyles, activities and artefacts. Local communities benefit and earn directly from this community based tourism initiative to improve their socio-economic ways of living and as an incentive for conservation of the gorillas and their habitat. Given the cultural value attached to it, the Iby’ Iwachu Cultural Village is a platform to showcase the Rwandan ways of living, traditional lifestyles and dances to tourists and
community members in a way that encourages them all to be a part of it while generating income for poor local people.
The money generated is used to support their household income based activities; encourage sustainability; reducing unemployment and empowering local people politically, economically and socially
to alleviate poverty (which is the underlying cause of poaching) while developing these entities as linkages towards conservation of the endangered mountain gorillas. Iby’ Iwachu Cultural Village gives you the rare chance to meet and interact with local people, in their environment with a taste of Rwandese culture
and traditions. This has been developed by the community for the community.
Day 7 – Nairobi, Kenya
Enjoy the morning at your leisure before being met and transferred to the Kigali Airport. We can book the flight Kigali to the capital of Nairobi in Kenya for you.
On arrival, check in a minimum of 2 hours prior for your international flight to Nairobi, Kenya.
On arrival in Kenya, you will be met and privately transferred to Spurwing Guest House. On arrival to Jomo Kenyatta International airport, you will be met and privately transferred to Spurwing Guest House. Check in for 2 nights in 1 double room, on a bed & breakfast basis. Dinner on own account.
Day 8 – Nairobi, Kenya
This morning you will be met at the hotel lobby and driven to Daphne Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage where baby elephants and occasionally rhinos can be seen at feeding time (1100 – 1200 hrs ). After viewing proceed to the Giraffe Centre where a specially designed observation platform offers you the opportunity to feed the full grown giraffe from your hands. Continue to Tamambo Brassarie Restaurant for lunch After a hearty lunch ,visit the Karen Blixen Museum: a chance to go back in time and discover the famous Karen Blixen’s house exactly as it was when she lived in Kenya. Located in an area which was once part of Karen Blixen’s vast coffee estate, ‘bogani’, the museum was Karen’s home from 1917 until 1931. The house and grounds were made famous by the film ‘Out of Africa’ and have been restored by the Danish community of Kenya. Visitors have a glimpse of typical colonial life in Kenya at the turn of the twentieth century.
Time permitting visit Kazuri beads Factory, which is really an artisan workshop where the beads for necklaces and bracelets as well as other pottery are created.
Later in the evening you shall return to your guest house for dinner
Day 9 – Masai Mara, Kenya
After breakfast ,transfer to Wilson Airport for your scheduled flight to Masai Mara. Upon arrival you are met by the camps driver guide who immediately takes you on your first safari on the way to the camp. Check in, briefing by the staff, followed by a good lunch while watching the hippos in the Mara River.
After lunch have siesta or you can sit out and watch the resident hippo pod belching in the water or grazing along the banks, view birds through your binoculars or watch zebra coming to drink.
Later in the afternoon head out for a game viewing drive in the conservancy. In the evening, a campfire is lit and you can gather with fellow guests to discuss the sightings you’ve had that day.
About Mara North Conservancy:
Situated in southwest Kenya, the Mara North Conservancy is a beautiful private wilderness area spanning more than 30 000 hectares. It is home to a spectacular array of plants, reptiles, birds and mammals; including elephant, rhino, buffalo, lion, leopard, cheetah and large concentrations of wildebeest, zebra,
gazelle and other migratory wildlife. Leopard Gorge, in the heart of the conservancy, is famous as the setting of countless BBC Big Cat Diaries and National Geographic documentaries. Neighbouring the well-known Maasai Mara National Reserve, this conservancy is vital for sustaining the famous Serengeti wildebeest migrations as well as the endangered African wild dog and black rhino.
Day 10 & 11 – Masai Mara, Kenya
Awake to the sounds of the African bush and have an early breakfast. Depart on a full day safari to look for the Big Five in the Masai Mara National Reserve (with picnic lunch). Return to camp in the late afternoon. Dinner and overnight at Karen Blixen Camp, on a full board basis.
Day 12 – Travel Day
Breakfast and transfer to the Airstrip for your scheduled flight to Nairobi . On arrival you are met and transferred to Four Points Airport Hotel for day use of room ( Max 6 hours ). Transfer to your departure terminal for your outbound flight will be provided by the hotel.
*Please note: This itinerary is subject to change. In the spirit of expedition travel, plans may change slightly to take full advantage of encounters with the destination and its people, culture, and wildlife.
RWANDA GORILLA TREK & KENYA SAFARI
June 2025
Rates:
Trip Package Rate: Approx. $4,690.00 per person sharing
– Rates are per person and are based on shared accommodations
– Rates are approximate until the time of booking
– Rates are quoted in USD and subject to change without prior notice
– Rates are based on availability at the time of booking
Other Expenses: Approx. $6,315.00- $6,340.00 per person
Plus Gorilla Permit: Approx. $1,500.00 per person per trek
Plus Golden Monkey Permit: Approx. $100.00 per person
Plus Porters on Treks: Approx. $25.00 per person (optional)
– Permits are 100% non-refundable & non-transferrable at the time of booking
PLUS Flight within Africa Airfare: Approx. $455.00 per person
(Day 07: Kigali, Rwanda – Nairobi, Kenya)
– Airfares are quoted in USD and are subject to change without prior notice
– Flights are non-refundable once paid for and issued
KENYA Safari Package Rate (5nts): Approx. $3,780.00 per person sharing
PLUS – Balloon Safari flight in the Masai Mara – Approx. $480.00 per person
International Airfare:
Africa Easy does not make international air reservations and international air is not included in your quote. However, please do let us know if you would like assistance with booking your international air. We would be happy to put you in touch with our airline partner, Exito Travel to assist you with your international air reservation.
Included:
Rwanda
– Accommodation in standard twin/double rooms
– Meals as indicated in the daily meal plan
– Drinks included, only as per the policy at each lodge
– All road and air transfers as indicated
– All vehicles & guides on private basis Services of an English speaking driver guide
– Park fees All activities described in the itinerary, unless specified as extras
– Mineral water, tea and coffee in the vehicle
– Medical Evacuation to a hospital in Nairobi
Kenya
– Meet & Greet services on arrival to Nairobi
– Airport & Airstrip transfers
– Safari briefing
– Bed & Breakfast and Day use in Nairobi Hotel
– Full board whilst on Safari
– Soft drinks, local beers ,house wines & selected spirits at Karen Blixen Camp
– Nairobi excursions as detailed in the itinerary
– Shared game activities in Maasai Mara in 4 x 4 open-sided safari vehicle
– Park & Concession Fees
– Internal domestic flights – Wilson (Nairobi)- Mara – Wilson
– Flying doctors medical evacuation cover
– 1 litre of water per person per day while in an Albatros safari vehicle
– Current Government taxes and levies
Not Included:
– International Airfares
– Entry Visas to Rwanda & Kenya
– Laundry services
– Drinks in Nairobi Hotels
– Drinks and meals not listed as included in itinerary above
– Optional excursions and activities not detailed in the itinerary
– Travel and health insurance
– Balloon flight in the Masai Mara
– Gratuities and tips
– Any other items of a personal nature
– Trek Permits (listed separately)
– Porters while Trekking (listed separately)
General Information:
– Medical Evacuation insurance is mandatory for travel with Africa Easy and proof of purchase is required. Africa Easy also strongly recommends purchasing a policy that includes trip cancellation /interruption coverage.
Rwanda:
– Passports must be valid for a minimum of 6 months remaining upon arrival for U.S. citizens traveling to Kenya. 1 blank pages per entry are required.
– Visas are required for U.S. Citizens visiting Rwanda. A single-entry 30-day tourist visa can be purchased at any port of entry. Please do be sure to bring the correct amount of USD cash.
Visa Fees: Visa fees are subject to change
$30.00 for a 30-Day Tourist Visa
Kenya:
– Passports must be valid for a minimum of 6 months remaining upon arrival for U.S. citizens traveling to Kenya. 2 blank pages per entry are required.
– Visas are required for U.S. Citizens visiting Kenya. Visitors are strongly encouraged to obtain visas by using the online system (http://evisa.go.ke/evisa.html) prior to travel in order to save time on arrival. Please use above link to be sure you are directed to the official government website and not a scam website.
Please note: An e-visa once issued is only valid for 3 months prior to travel.If you wish to obtain a visa on arrival, please be sure to bring the correct amount of USD cash with bills that are in good condition and of a newer issue date (must have large presidential picture on bill).
Visa Fees: Visa fees are subject to change
$50.00 for a single entry (90 days maximum)
$100.00 for a multiple entry
$20.00 for a transit visa (travelers who wish to leave the airport but will be remaining in
Kenya for a period not exceeding 72 hours)
Deposit & Payments:
A completed & signed Africa Easy Reservation Form, along with your 25% trip deposit and full regional and/or domestic air payment (if applicable) is required at the time of booking.
Reservations:
This itinerary is subject to the availability of all services at the time of making a reservation. No space is being held at this time. Please contact Africa Easy for the full terms and conditions that apply. We are happy to answer questions and discuss your trip.
To reserve space on a trip on the Africa Easy website, please contact Africa Easy by calling 1-800-617-2319 or (206) 284-2319. Click here to e-mail the Africa Easy Team.
[/templatic_tab]
June 2025
