Gorillas & Culture of Rwanda & the Congo

A Thrilling Safari to Track the Mountain Gorillas in Rwanda Before Joining a Small Group to track Western Lowland Gorillas in the Congo - From £7,650  Per Person, Excluding International Flights

Day 1 (Sunday)
Upon your arrival into Kigali International Airport, KGL (ETA; 09:00) you are met by your private professional English speaking driver/guide and private 4x4 safari vehicle. Today you will have the opportunity to take a cultural city tour of the markets and pottery projects in Kigali, and the Genocide Memorial Centre, which contains a permanent and very moving exhibition of the Rwandan genocide, and others around the world.

After lunch, you travel north for 2 hours over the undulating Rwandan hills to Ruhengeri and the Volcanoes National Park. You might also catch a glimpse of the Virunga Volcanoes, one of the most isolated and dramatic eco-systems in the world.

A 'true island in the sky', the Volcanoes National Park is home to some of the worlds few remaining Mountain Gorillas, which were first studied here in 1959 by George Schaller, and through the 1960's by Dian Fossey and her colleagues.
Overnight: Virunga Lodge – is a comfortable eco-lodge located on a hillside overlooking the Virunga Volcanoes and Lakes Ruhondo and Bulera. 360 degree breathtaking views make this one of the top lodge destinations in Africa. Eight bandas with private verandas offer views over the lakes and volcanoes; open fire places in the lounge and dining room are a warm welcome after a day’s tracking the mountain gorillas. Other activities include visiting Dian Fossey's grave and tracking the golden monkeys. Volcanoes Virunga Lodge is built around eco-friendly concepts with solar lighting and use of local materials. Approximately a 45 minute drive from the gorilla park of Parc National des Volcans (L/D)

Day 2 (Monday)
The activities during the next number of days may be amongst the most exciting and challenging you have undertaken. The Mountain Gorillas in Rwanda are part of a worldwide population of just 790 individuals. The gorillas we are allowed to track belong to either one of 10 habituated family groups. For up to five years each, these groups have undergone an extremely delicate process that has gradually brought them to tolerate the presence of humans for a brief period every day and allowed a few privileged visitors to interact with them in the wild. An early breakfast and you're off to the park headquarters at Kinigi to register and be allocated your gorilla family for today, then set off in a vehicle for your gorilla safari.

The gorillas are wild animals and by no means tame, however, experienced guides will accompany you on your gorilla tracking, many of who have been involved in the habituation process themselves. The guides will use their knowledge of the gorillas' habits and information from the previous day to locate the group's whereabouts. Because of this, the time taken to track the gorillas varies enormously, from as little as half an hour to as much as 9hrs before one returns to camp. Once the gorillas are located, your group will be allowed a maximum of one hour with them. This is one of the world's truly memorable experiences - a look into one of these magnificent creatures' eyes brings home the bond that exists between them and us. It also brings home the poignant fact that they are on the edge of extinction, and that your presence here contributes to ensuring their continued survival. The hour is often over all too quickly, and you slowly make your way back to your lodge to recount the day's adventures. This afternoon, time permitting, you have the opportunity to explore the scenic lakes of Bulera and Ruhondo and the bustling market town of Ruhengeri.
Overnight: Virunga Lodge (B/L/D)

Day 3 (Tuesday)
Today you set off, once again, to the park headquarters to be allocated your gorilla group. Your final day of gorilla tracking is one that you will not forget. Try not to spend too much time behind the camera and just take in your surroundings as you enjoy the company of these amiable primates. Upon returning to your lodge, you leave this stunning landscape behind you and make your way back to Kigali and to the comforts of the nearby Kigali Serena.
Overnight: Kigali Serena, Deluxe Room – is ideally located on one of Kigali's most charming boulevards and is just 10kms from Kigali International Airport. This relaxed, yet elegant hotel, centres on the executive lounge and bar, which opens onto a wide sundeck overlooking the newly refurbished swimming pool

Day 4 (Wednesday)
This morning, you depart early and make your way back to Kigali International Airport, KGL for your intra-Africa flight to Maya Maya International Airport in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo (09:35 – 10:55, WB231). Upon arrival, you are met and transferred to the Mikhael’s Hotel for the night.
Overnight: Mikhael’s Hotel, Premium Standard Room (B/L/D)

Day 5 (Thursday)
In the early afternoon, you meet-up with the small group safari and depart by private charter from Brazzaville Maya Maya Airport to M’boko Airstrip, Odzala-Kokoua National Park, with a packed lunch in hand (an approx. 2hr flight). Upon arrival, you are met by a Lango Camp guide who will transfer you by vehicle to Lango Camp, where you will stay for the next 3 nights. This (approx.) 30min drive will take you through open savannah with views of the forest fringe and interior. Once at camp, you are given an opportunity to freshen up and settle in before embarking on y our short afternoon activity, which may include a walk around Lango Bai and the forest fringe/stream or game drive.
Overnight: Lango Camp (B/L/D)

Day 6 (Friday)
After an early morning breakfast, you embark on your first activity for the day. This could be a walk from camp through Lango Bai and down the clear, shallow waters of the Lango Stream to its confluence with the Lekoli River. A motorised pirogue will then head upstream for 2hrs (stopping en-route for tea/coffee) until reaching the access point to Mbouebe Bai, where a short excursion on foot reaches a concealed hide from which activities at the bai can be observed. The return to camp includes a downstream portion of the river followed by a game drive through the savannah.

After lunch and an early afternoon rest, you head out for your afternoon activity. An example of this would be a return game drive to the boat jetty followed by a pirogue trip downstream along the Lekoli River to its confluence with the larger Mambili River for sundowners. A night drive back to camp offers intriguing opportunities for seeing some of Odzala’s more secretive nocturnal creatures.
Overnight: Lango Camp (B/L/D)

Day 7 (Saturday)
This morning, you may begin with a game drive to the boat jetty at the confluence of the Likeni Stream and Lekoli River and then a pirogue trip down the Lekoli River in search of primates, Forest Buffalo and other species, before returning to camp on foot through Lango Bai. The trip along the river offers great opportunities for birding and mammals, while the walk can provide excellent viewing of buffalo, Red River Hogs, a number of primate species and even Bongo. After lunch and a rest back at the camp you head back to the boat jetty and take a pirogue trip upstream along the Lekoli River enjoying sundowners and perhaps some catch-and-release fishing before returning to camp on a night drive, searching for wildlife species such as Spotted Hyena, Golden Cat and even Water Chevrotain.
Overnight: Lango Camp (B/L/D)

Day 8 (Sunday)
This morning, after an early wake-up and breakfast, the Small Group heads away from the savannah in air-conditioned land cruisers to the south-western corner of the Park to spend time at Dzebe Bai (an approx. 2½hr drive). A 1km walk through the forest will enable you to access the bai, where you spend midday in the hide waiting for secretive forest animals to appear in the clearing; there’s a chance of viewing unhabituated gorillas here, as well as species such as Black-fronted Duiker, Guereza Colobus monkey and perhaps even Chimpanzee. After enjoying a packed lunch in the hide at the bai, you return north towards Ngaga Camp, where you will stay for the next 3 nights. Before dinner, you receive an extensive briefing on Western Lowland Gorillas, including the research project in the area, conservation of the species, their biology and ecology and of course what to expect when tracking the habituated groups of the area.
Overnight: Ngaga Camp (B/L/D)

Day 9 (Monday)
This morning you depart on foot with a professional experienced guide and tracker on your first gorilla tracking excursion. Using the expert skills of the trackers you start at the point where the group chosen to be monitored for that day slept the night before and follow their tracks as they move through the forest until the gorillas are found. While home range sizes are relatively small, the gorillas can move quite quickly through thick forest undergrowth and during a 2-5hr tracking excursion (incl. time spent observing the gorillas) you may cover between 5-8kms.

After this exhilarating experience you return back to camp to freshen up, enjoy lunch and spend the early afternoon at leisure. In the late afternoon, you enjoy a guided forest walk in search of birds and primates as well as forest duiker and, if time allows, visit the Gorilla Tracking Academy run by Dr Magda Bermejo and German Illera. Here you will learn about the comprehensive training of local community trackers from all over west-central Africa and how this plays a role in gorilla conservation.
Overnight: Ngaga Camp (B/L/D)

Day 10 (Tuesday)
This morning you set out again on foot for your second gorilla tracking excursion. The expert trackers will again follow the obscure tracks and sign of the group through the forest until the group are found and enjoy another fascinating experience watching them resting and foraging. Upon returning to camp, you freshen up, enjoy lunch and spend the early afternoon at leisure. Later in the afternoon, you set out on the forest trails in search of the birds and mammals of the area, returning to camp to enjoy a sun-downer on the main deck overlooking the forest canopy and Ngaga Stream.
Overnight: Ngaga Camp (B/L/D)

Day 11 (Wednesday)
After a relaxed morning, the group will leave for M’boko airstrip (an approx. 2½hr drive) where you will catch your flight back to Brazzaville, arriving in the afternoon. Upon arrival, you are met and transferred back to Brazzaville Maya Maya Airport in order to meet your International Flight back home (ETD; 21:55) (B)