This private guided safari is designed for primate lovers – it incorporates 3 nights in Nyungwe Forest National Park where chimpanzee tracking is a huge attraction and which also gives you the chance to see L'Hoest's monkey, Ruwenzori colobus monkey, grey-cheeked mangabey and silver monkey amongst others; follow this by 3 nights in the Volcanoes National Park tracking mountain gorillas and the engaging golden monkeys with a short break on the shores of Lake Kivu in between.

Day 1

Depart London Heathrow on your scheduled overnight flight with Kenya Airways to Nairobi.

Days 2-3 Nyungwe Forest National Park, Rwanda

Connect onto your onward flight to Kigali Airport, near Rwanda's capital. Arriving in Kigali, you are met by your private guide and 4WD before driving to Nyungwe Forest National Park - usually stopping in Butare for lunch and to visit the national museum there. Nyungwe Forest is an enormous tropical forest which harbours about 275 bird species and 13 primates. Forest walks last from one to seven hours (!), depending you your energy, but can be hugely rewarding. Spend 2 nights at the…

ORTPN Resthouse (full board & activities)

This very basic but friendly lodge is on the edge of Nyungwe Forest Park, and often frequented by inquisitive vervet monkeys. Trekking to see chimpanzees can be pretty strenuous but great fun, but more relaxed guided walks are also possible – and the most common primates are grey-cheeked mangabeys, Ruwenzori colobus monkeys, silver monkeys and l'Hoest's monkeys.

Days 4-5 Lake Kivu, Rwanda

After breakfast, leave Nyungwe and drive northwest to the town of Kibuye on the shores of Lake Kivu where you spend 2 nights. The lakeshores are covered by pine and eucalyptus trees, which lend an alpine air to the region. With panoramic vistas of the lake, your accommodation for this night is….

Bethanie Guesthouse (full board)

If time allows, take a boat trip out to nearby Napoleon's Island (so-called as it is shaped like his hat), which is host to a colony of fruit bats!

Day 6 Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda

From Kibuye, a scenic road gently weaves through hills to Volcanoes National Park, which protects the Rwandan side of the Virunga Mountains, and the forest-clad volcanoes which were made famous by Dian Fossey's study of gorillas. Due to the altitude, gradient and, at times, thick foliage, tracking to see the gorillas can be challenging, however your time in Nyungwe Forest will have helped you to acclimatise. Spend a total of 3 nights at…

Gorilla Mountain View Lodge (full board & activities)

In an ideal location fairly close to the park headquarters, Gorilla Mountain View Lodge has en-suite facilities with hot showers and the general amenities are fairly good. There are some lovely views from here across the Volcanoes National Park.

Day 7 Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda

After an early breakfast, spend your first morning tracking the endangered golden monkeys. These enigmatic primates are endemic to the region and live on the lower mountain slopes in bamboo thickets. They can be a bit harder to track down than the gorillas, but it is a good introduction to life in the Volcanoes National Park.

Gorilla Mountain View Lodge (full board & activities)

In the afternoon, use your free time to explore the local villages, or the nearby lakes of Burera or Ruhondo, or just to relax and watch birds around the lodge. Your guide and 4WD are, as always, at your disposal for excursions if you want them.

Day 8 Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda

Another early morning sees you meeting at the park's headquarters for a briefing on the etiquette of visiting mountain gorillas. An experienced park ranger will lead you to one of the habituated groups of gorillas, where you have one amazing hour to observe these delightful, human-like primates. It is a breath-taking experience that you will never forget!

Gorilla Mountain View Lodge (full board & activities)

Again, you can decide what to do during the afternoon, with your guide and 4WD available for your use.

Day 9

After so many early wake-up calls, lie in for your last morning! You will then be driven for about 2 hours through lovely hills, past villages, to Kigali. Here you may have time to visit the moving Genocide Museum, or to have a quick look around town, before being driven to Kigali Airport. Once there, your guide leaves you to continue your return journey home: fly to Nairobi in time to catch your Kenya Airways flight back to London.

Day 10

You will arrive at London Heathrow early in the morning after an amazing and moving experience in Rwanda.

Cost of this trip
From	To	Cost
1-Jan-2012	13-Jul-2012	£3,130
14-Jul-2012	18-Aug-2012	£3,655
19-Aug-2012	14-Dec-2012	£3,130
Notes: The prices shown are based on two people travelling together and sharing double or twin rooms. Because this is based on a private vehicle and guide, the costs for this trip will reduce if more than two people are travelling. Conversely, they would increase substantially if only one person is travelling alone. Ask us if you'd like to include an extra morning's gorilla-trekking instead of golden monkey tracking; it's easily swapped when you book your trip. To upgrade from Gorilla Mountain View Lodge to another lodge in the Volcanoes National Park, apply the following supplements: To Virunga Lodge (all year) £328 To Sabinyo Silverback (Apr–May) £121 To Sabinyo Silverback (Jan-Mar; Jun-15 Jul; Nov-Dec) £270 To Sabinyo Silverback (16 Jul-Oct) £334 All supplements are per person sharing per night.

This itinerary includes:

• Economy flights plus UK airport departure taxes.
• A private guide and 4WD vehicle for the duration of your safari.
• Permits and park fees for one morning to track chimpanzees and one morning to track Ruwenzori colobus monkeys and walk in Nyungwe Forest; plus one mornings tracking gorillas and one morning to follow golden monkeys in Volcanoes National Park.
• A comprehensive pack of information covering the places that you'll be visiting.
• Current park fees for Nyungwe Forest National Park and Volcanoes National Park.
• A complimentary copy of the Bradt Travel Guide to Rwanda

This itinerary excludes:

• Rwandan domestic departure taxes.
• Laundry
• Tips and gratuities, which are optional.
• All drinks, including tea and coffee



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