AVAILABILITY: Yearround

ACCOMMODATIONS: Hotel/Lodging or Camping​

 

Highlights: Gorilla Trekking, Kinigi Volcanoes, Big Five Safari, Lake Manyara, Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Great Rift Valley

 

Rwanda’s “Land of a Thousand Hills” is a region of volcanoes, rain forests, lakes, tea plantations, and one-third of the remaining mountain gorillas in the world. Trekking up the volcanic slopes may be demanding, especially after rainfall, when the vegetation is thick and wet, and the ground is muddy. The Virunga mountains are steep and some of the groups of gorillas are hard to reach, which is why prior acclimatization is important. The trek will take place at an altitude of 1.5 to 1.9 miles, as to avoid altitude sickness.

 

Tanzania holds much of the beauty, adventure and diversity that Africa has to offer. With well-known attractions like Kilimanjaro, the Serengeti, Maasai bomas and the oldest hominid fossil sites, The New York Times has rated Tanzania as a top 10 travel destination.

 

ITINERARY

• DAY 1: You’ll be met on arrival at Kigali Airport by your driver/guide. We will proceed to Ruhengeri area, the fourth largest town in Rwanda, with three volcanic mountains (the Virungas) as the backdrop. We’ll drive on the twin lakes of Bulera and Ruhondo located at the base of the Muhabura volcano, close to the Uganda border. Take a boat ride to Ruhondo beach for lunch, then later drive back to town to your hotel.

• DAY 2: You’ll wake early for your drive to Kinigi, the home to volcanoes. Once you’ve met your guides and completed park formalities, you’ll be off for the once-in-a-lifetime experience of tracking mountain gorillas. Once you spot them, spend an hour watching these creatures, with fewer than 700 living today, in their daily activities. Hiking this day will be somewhat strenuous, up to six hours or more at a relatively high altitude, so bring good hiking boots, long trousers, gloves, snacks and water. Take your late dinner and overnight in your hotel.

• DAY 3: After breakfast you’ll be transferred back to Kigali for a city tour of one of the friendliest African capitals. Visit the Kigali museum, and on a more somber note, the Gisozi genocide memorial site. Finally you’ll be transported back to the airport for your flight to Kilimanjaro Airport in Tanzania where you’ll be met on arrival and driven to Arusha to your hotel.

• DAY 4: Depart from Arusha at 9 am. We’ll start a two-hour drive to the entrance of Lake Manyara, passing through the town of Mto Wa Mbu, excellent if you need souvenirs. Next, we’ll start our first game drive–look for lions resting in acacia trees and thousands of flamingos resting on the saltwater lake. This park also teems with elephants, hippos, giraffes, buffaloes, antelopes and the largest baboon troops in Africa. Dinner and overnight in your hotel, lodge or campsite on the top of the Great Rift Valley, offering an eagle-eye view on the whole of Lake Manyara. Dinner and overnight at your hotel, lodge or campsite.

• DAY 5: This morning we will head out for an early morning game drive in the Serengeti, then back to camp for a late breakfast around 9 am. We will continue our game drive at 10:30 and stay in the Serengeti for the rest of the day. Dinner and overnight at your hotel, lodge or campsite.

• DAY 6: After breakfast we will descend into the Ngorongoro crater floor for another game drive. From the comfort of your open-top vehicle, you’ll see most, if not all, of the Big Five, as well as pools of hippos, the endangered East African black rhinos, hyenas, jackals, cheetahs and bird life. Picnic in the park before driving back to your Arusha hotel.

 

 

Program includes: Hotel/lodge/camp accommodations for the duration of the safari, private 4-wheel drive vehicle with a roof hatch. Professional English-speaking safari and tour guide/driver, all park entrance fees, all meals on the safari, water and hot drinks during the safari, camping equipment if applicable (tents, mattresses, sleeping bags, pillows, table and chairs), all game-viewing activities.

 

Program excludes: International flights, airport taxes, entry visas, travel insurance, tips and gratuities, personal costs, medical and personal insurance.