Rwanda doesn’t try to be the biggest safari destination in Africa.
It’s small and green, built around a single encounter: an hour spent within arm’s reach of a mountain gorilla family in the mist of the Virunga volcanoes. That single hour is why luxury safaris in Rwanda have become such a sought-after booking among Australian travellers, and why the country punches so far above its size.
Luxury holidays in Rwanda trips pair that gorilla trek with some of the best-run lodges on the continent, a capital city (Kigali) that’s walkable and safe, and a second rainforest region most visitors haven’t even heard of yet. For travellers who want depth over distance, Rwanda luxury travel delivers more per day than almost anywhere else in Africa.
Rolling hills, volcanic peaks and bamboo forests cover most of the country, so the drive to a park gate is scenery in its own right. Inside those forests lives the endangered mountain gorilla, a species so closely related to us that a first encounter tends to stop conversation entirely.
Watching a silverback move through the undergrowth a few metres away, or a young gorilla tumble over its siblings, is the experience of a lifetime.
Luxury Rwanda vacations built around this encounter also benefit from something practical: Volcanoes National Park sits only two to three hours from Kigali by road, so you’re not losing days to transit the way you would get into Uganda’s Bwindi forest.
Most first-time visitors know Rwanda for gorillas. Nyungwe Forest National Park, in the country’s southwest, is the reason experienced Africa travellers extend their trip.
Nyungwe protects one of the oldest rainforests in Africa, and it’s home to chimpanzee trekking that rivals anything in East Africa, along with troops of Angolan colobus monkeys numbering in the hundreds, a sight that’s rare anywhere else on the continent. A canopy walkway suspended above the forest floor gives a completely different vantage point on the same ecosystem, ideal for travellers who want a gentler, more scenic add-on between treks.
Adding a few days in Nyungwe to Volcanoes National Park turns a single gorilla trek into a properly rounded luxury holiday in Rwanda, with primates, birdlife and forest scenery that most competing itineraries skip.
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Our trip of a lifetime to East Africa and our safaris was absolutely mind blowing .The fact of seeing wild animals close up in their environment was a surreal experience that we will have lifetime memories from . This trip was planned over 18 months, and involved a lot of itinerary changes due to the […]
Everything was perfect, and the whole trip went seamlessly with everything completely organised. I really couldn’t have asked for better, from the wonderful accommodation to the drivers and guides, everyone made us feel so welcome. The Fairmont Norfolk in Nairobi was lovely, as were both the safari lodges. I think my favourite lodge though was […]
Dear John Thank you for arranging a fantastic time in South Africa and the Mashatu area in Botswana. This trip was in the green season, which not only provided great animal viewing but stunning scenery and the beauty of changing weather, which further enhanced our time. The highlight was daily morning sightings of the Brown Hyaena […]
Thank you again for organizing such an amazing experience for us. Totally different to South Africa (we enjoyed the complete holiday in SA with Victoria Falls, Cape Town and Soweto). Kenya was all Safari. We may have scared the House of Waine as we went out to visit the nightlife the second night for cigars […]
What an amazing trip we had. Just wow! It was above and beyond expectations. Felt like we were living in a David Attenborough documentary. Every single person every step of the way was wonderful. The guides, the accommodation, the flights, transfers, everything. Thank you for helping us have the absolute best-ever bucket list adventure in […]
You will be pleased to hear that we had a WOW of a time in South Africa. Firstly Cape Town exceeded our expectations with what was on offer with their wonderful scenery made by so many surrounding mountains. With respect to our time spent on safari, again, it was a wonderful time enjoying nature . […]
Lodge choice counts for more in Rwanda than almost anywhere else in Africa, because your gorilla trek starts before sunrise and ends with a return to camp for the rest of the day. A handful of properties near Volcanoes National Park set the benchmark:
We match you to the lodge that suits your trip rather than defaulting to whichever property pays the best commission, a distinction that matters more in Rwanda’s small, tightly clustered lodge scene than almost anywhere else we operate.
Also excellently located for gorilla safaris, Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge is situated on the foothills of the volcanic Virunga Ranges. With eight luxury cottages, each affording sweeping views of the volcanoes and surrounding countryside, Sabyinyo’s spacious accommodations offer sitting rooms with fireplaces, 24-hour electricity, large bathrooms with bath and shower, and sheltered balconies perfect for relaxing.
Lying in northwestern Rwanda, the Volcanoes National Park is a relatively small but abundant reserve of only 160 square kilometres. Home to five of the eight volcanic Virunga Mountains, the National Park is also home to the endangered mountain gorilla, as well as numerous other forest-dwelling species. As well as visits to the gorillas, the park offers volcano climbs, tours of the lakes and caves, and cultural tours of the local village.
Spend a day trekking deep into the forest of Volcanoes National Park in pursuit of some quality time with these gentle giants. With only two remaining populations in all of Africa, these captivating creatures are a deeply poignant sight to behold when viewed in their natural habitat. Although hiking to find the gorillas may have an element of challenge to it, the trip is well worth the effort, and may just change your life.
Please note: Government permits are required to view the gorillas, costing USD$1500 per person per trek. (Gorilla trekking is an expensive exercise, though this helps to minimise the impact of tourists on the local environment. The funds generated from permit sales go toward aiding conservation efforts in Rwanda’s national parks.)
Identifiable by their prominent golden fur, these photogenic primates are also found in Volcanoes National Park. Often treated as something of a side note to the gorilla trek, these intelligent and charming monkeys are nevertheless much easier to find and more accessible in terms of physical fitness required for the hike to observe them. They are also fascinating to watch, and visitors can get quite close – as near as one metre away.
Local Time:
The dry seasons are typically the best periods to take your Rwanda gorilla trek or other safari. There are two dry seasons per year, the long dry season and the short dry season.
The long dry season is from June to mid-September, and the short dry season is December to February.
Rwanda’s relatively high altitude provides it with a remarkably pleasant tropical highland climate, albeit also with plenty of rain.
Temperatures vary considerably between locations depending on their altitude, but very little from month to month in the same place.
Rwanda’s long rainy season lasts from about March to May, when the rain is heavy and persistent. The long dry season is then from June to mid-September. October to November is a shorter rainy season, followed by the short dry season from December to February.
During both of Rwanda’s dry seasons, there is often light cloud cover. This helps to moderate the temperatures, but also occasionally brings light rain showers.
Most Rwanda luxury travel itineraries start with one fixed number: the gorilla permit, set by the Rwanda Development Board at USD $1,500 per person, or roughly AUD $2,300. That figure is the same whichever operator you book through, and it covers one hour with a habituated gorilla family, plus your tracker team and an armed ranger escort.
Travelling in the low season (November to May) and combining your gorilla trek with a stay in Nyungwe or Akagera National Park can secure a 30% discount on the permit, worth checking against your dates before you commit to a booking.
On top of the permit, a full luxury Rwanda safari (lodges, private guiding, transfers and meals) typically runs from AUD $1,400 to $2,800 per person, per day, depending on lodge tier.
As a rough guide:
Rwanda has two dry seasons, and both work well for gorilla trekking:
The wetter months between these windows still allow trekking, just with muddier trails and a lower chance of crowds; some travellers prefer this trade-off for a quieter, more atmospheric experience.
Standard gorilla permits allocate eight visitors per group, per trek.
If a shared trek isn’t what you’re after, we can arrange a more private version in Rwanda: a private vehicle between lodge and park gate, your own guide for the day, and small lodges of just a few rooms, so you rarely share common areas with more than a handful of other guests.
Some travellers also add a second trek on consecutive days to see a different gorilla family, which we can build into your luxury Rwanda vacation if time allows.
Rwanda works well as a stand-alone week, but it also slots naturally into a wider journey.
Popular pairings include a luxury Tanzania safari for plains game and the Great Migration, a luxury Botswana safari for Okavango Delta water safaris, or Kenya safari holidays for the Masai Mara. Travellers chasing dramatic desert scenery often tack on luxury safaris in Namibia, while couples frequently extend into a private safari in South Africa around Cape Town.
Families tend to prefer our luxury family safari holidays, built around shorter days and flexible pacing (children under 15 aren’t permitted on gorilla treks, so Rwanda usually suits older kids and teens best). Couples tend to prefer our safari holidays for couples, with private vehicles, adults-focused lodges and a slower pace throughout.
As African travel specialists Australian clients have trusted for years, we don’t build Rwanda itineraries from a brochure. We know which lodges deliver on their luxury pricing and which don’t, how to structure your trek days so you’re not rushing between parks, and how to fold in Nyungwe or a wider African adventure without losing the pacing that makes Rwanda feel special in the first place.
Answer a few questions, and we’ll put together a personalised itinerary.
Typically, your gorilla permit, private guide and vehicle, luxury lodge accommodation near Volcanoes National Park, most meals, and transfers to and from Kigali. International flights, tips and travel insurance are usually separate.
Beyond the USD $1,500 (around AUD $2,300) gorilla permit, expect to pay AUD $1,400 to $2,800 per person, per day for lodges, guiding and transfers. A 4-day gorilla-only trip generally runs AUD $8,000 to $11,000 per person, while a 7-day gorilla and chimp combination sits closer to AUD $14,000 to $19,000 per person.
By Rwandan law, the trek itself is capped at one hour, but a private guide, private vehicle and small-room lodges can make the surrounding experience feel far more exclusive. Some itineraries also include a second trek on a different day to visit another gorilla family.
Singita Kwitonda Lodge, One&Only Gorilla’s Nest, Wilderness Bisate, Virunga Lodge and Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge are the standout properties, each with a different style but consistently excellent service and proximity to the park gate.
Rwanda’s two dry seasons, June to mid-September and December to February, offer the easiest trekking conditions. The quieter shoulder months still allow trekking, with muddier trails but fewer other visitors.
Book your gorilla permit and lodge at least 3 to 6 months ahead, especially for peak-season dates in June to September and December to February, when only a limited number of permits are issued each day.
Yes. Rwanda pairs naturally with Tanzania, Kenya, Botswana or South Africa for a longer multi-country trip, or with Nyungwe Forest and Akagera National Park within Rwanda itself for a more complete single-country itinerary.
Yes. Rwanda is one of the safest and most orderly countries in Africa, with well-developed tourism infrastructure, clean cities and a strong focus on conservation and hospitality.
