Chimpanzee tracking and canopy walk in Nyungwe Forest National Park Safari

We will meet you after the breakfast, the Guide will take you for a brief tour of the city of Kigali (the genocide memorial center, the central city market, former presidential palace and artisan shops). After the city tour, the journey continues to the south province with amazing views of the countless hills of Rwanda. There will be stops at the Kamegeri’s rock, the National Ethnographic Museum in Huye, Murambi Genocide Memorial and the former King’s palace. The Museum houses a collection of artifacts and ethnographic objects from Belgium, Rwanda and other parts of the world. Much of the museum showcases all the cultural aspects of the country.
Lunch will be taken from a restaurant in one of the sites. The final part of the six-hour journey ends in a hotel or lodge close to the park. You will check-in and proceed to register for the canopy walk.

The amazing canopy walk takes you across a hanging platform which crosses over the tall and majestic trees of Nyungwe. The hanging platform is built 50 meters above the ground and is 200 meters long. You will have an aerial view of the forest enabling you to spot birds and more of the primates feeding on top of the trees or jumping from one tree to another.

Dinner and overnight at One & Only Nyungwe House (Ultra Luxury),
Nyungwe Forest Lodge (Luxury)
Nyungwe Top Hills Hotel (Mid-range) and
Gisakura Guest House (Budget), Gorilla Nest (budget).

This day starts early in the morning. Take the breakfast get ready for a big day of lots of activities. The driver will take you to Uwinka reception for the briefings. There are two trails for chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe Forest – The Uwinka and Cyamudongo trail. After the briefing, park officials will assign you one of the trails depending on the number of participants. Each group will be driven to the starting point of the trek.

Chimpanzees and bonobos are the closest relatives to humans. They share 98% of our DNA. They are highly intelligent, can be taught sign language and how to use specific tools. During your time with them expect to observe individuals grooming, breast feeding, mating and playing. Unlike mountain gorillas, chimpanzees spend a lot of time on top of trees which can be very inconveniencing if you want to take good photos. They are also very mobile and rarely stay in one place for a long time like gorillas. The good thing is that they are very noisy and easy to detect even in very thick forest.

During chimpanzee tracking, expect to spot 12 smaller species of primate including Hamlyn’s Monkeys, owl-faced monkeys, golden monkeys, Dent’s Mona Monkeys, Angola Colobus, Silver monkeys, Olive Baboons, Red-tailed Monkeys, grey-cheeked Mangabeys, vervet monkeys and l’hoest’s monkeys. Nyungwe forest is one of the top places for birding in Rwanda. Apart from small primates, expect to spot birds like the Rwenzori Turaco, great blue Turaco, paradise flycatcher and forest hornbills among others. Throughout the activity, the park guides will share information about each of the species encountered – their behavior, feeding and reproductive habits. It is important to note that there is no guarantee that you will see chimps in Nyungwe forest because the chances are only 89 percent.

After spotting the chimps, you will go for lunch at the hotel. After refreshment from the hotel, you will be taken for a nature walk to spot more birds, smaller primates and waterfalls. Nyungwe National Park has over 14 trials for nature walks. The trails are designed to allow visitors experience the flora and fauna in the park. The waterfall trail is popular and takes 3 hours to complete. If time permits, you could be taken to track Angola Colobus in Gisakura. Tracking Colobus monkeys takes a far shorter time than following any of the trails or chimpanzee trekking because they live at the edge of the forest.

Dinner and overnight at One & Only Nyungwe House (Ultra Luxury), Nyungwe Forest Lodge (Luxury) Nyungwe Top Hills Hotel (Mid-range) and Gisakura Guest House (Budget)

After a restful night, The guide will take you to Gisakura Tea Estate in the morning for a tour of the farm and factory. While at the tea estate, you will learn how tea is grown, processed and packed at the factory. You will then continue the long journey to Kigali. The driver will make stops to any of the places you didn’t check out on the first day. The final destination is either the airport, your hotel or accommodation in Kigali. We hope that by the end of this three days tour, you go back with great memories of your 3 Days Nyungwe Forest Chimpanzee Tour.