Day 1: Arrival at Kigali International Airport.
Upon arrival at Kigali International Airport (KGL). A VIP meet-and-greet service greets and welcomes you right once you arrive. Later you will be transferred to your lodge. Spend the afternoon visiting the poignant Kigali Genocide Memorial and enjoying a private contemporary art tour. Dinner and overnight stay.
Day 2: Fly or optional drive to Volcanoes National Park.
After breakfast, board a private 30-minute charter flight from Kigali, that offers you aerial view of Rwanda’s iconic “thousand hills” directly to the helipad at Volcanoes National Park. Upon arrival check into your luxury lodge then spend the afternoon walking through the lodge’s private conservation acreage or indulging in your arranged spa treatment. Dinner and overnight stay.
Day 3: Mountain Gorilla Trekking in Volcanoes National Park.
Wake up early in the morning after breakfast. Your private guide and vehicle transfer you to the park headquarters, where you are assigned to a gorilla family. Accompanied by expert trackers and your dedicated porter, hike into the bamboo forests of Volcanoes National Park. Spend an amazing, silent hour observing a wild mountain gorilla family. Return to the lodge for a celebratory multi-course dinner paired with vintage wines. Later dinner and overnight stay.
Day 4: Golden Monkey Tracking and Conservation Science in Volcanoes National Park.
After your trek, you will trek into the forest a second time, this time tracking the striking, fast-moving golden monkeys, which leap effortlessly through the bamboo canopy. In the afternoon, take an exclusive insider tour of the state-of-the-art Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund to see how your travel directly funds mountain gorilla preservation. Dinner and overnight stay.
Day 5: Departure.
Enjoy a leisurely morning breakfast while watching the mist clear off the volcanic peaks. Take your private charter back to Kigali. Upon arrival, enjoy en-route lunch and spend a couple of hours shopping for high-end local tailoring or premium coffee beans before your private transfer back to the airport for your international flight home.
Day 1: Arrival at Kigali International Airport.
Day 2: Fly or optional drive to Volcanoes National Park.
Day 3: Mountain Gorilla Trekking in Volcanoes National Park.
Day 4: Golden Monkey Tracking and Conservation Science in Volcanoes National Park.
Day 5: Departure.
Rwanda’s mountain gorilla trekking permits are the most exclusive in the world, priced at $1,500 USD per person, per trek. Golden monkey permits are $100 USD. Because the number of daily visitors is strictly capped to minimize human impact, these must be secured by your luxury operator 6 to 12 months in advance.
Private helicopter charters (operated via Akagera Aviation) are strictly bound by weight and space limitations. Hard-sided suitcases with wheels are strictly banned as they cannot physically fit into the aircraft baggage compartments.
You must pack your gear into soft-sided duffel bags, typically limited to 15kg (33lbs) per person. Fortunately, Rwanda’s ultra-luxury lodges all provide complimentary, highly efficient same-day laundry services, meaning you only need to pack three sets of functional field clothing.
Rwanda is exceptionally clean due to a strict nationwide ban on single-use plastic bags. Customs officials at Kigali International Airport will thoroughly check your luggage and confiscate any plastic bags, including Ziploc bags used for toiletries. Pack reusable, eco-friendly cloth pouches instead.
