6 Days Rwanda Gorillas & Serengeti Safari

6 Days Rwanda Gorillas & Serengeti Safari | Wildlife & Gorilla Tour

This 6 Days Rwanda Gorillas & Serengeti Safari links three of East Africa’s most recognizable wildlife destinations into a single trip: the Serengeti’s endless plains, the Ngorongoro Crater — often described as the Eighth Natural Wonder of the World — and Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park, home to the mountain gorilla. Few itineraries pack this much geographic range into six days without feeling rushed, largely thanks to a direct flight linking Arusha to Kigali partway through the trip.

In Tanzania, you spend three days moving through the Serengeti’s Seronera Valley and descending into the Ngorongoro Crater, watching for the Big Five and the predators that dominate the crater floor. In Rwanda, the trip shifts entirely: gorilla trekking through misty forest, a cultural visit to the Iby’iwacu Cultural Village, and a golden monkey trek through the bamboo of Volcanoes National Park.

This itinerary suits travelers who want gorilla trekking and Serengeti game viewing in one trip rather than two separate journeys, and who are comfortable with a same-day flight connection between Tanzania and Rwanda.

Quick Facts

Highlights

• Day 1: Arusha to Serengeti National Park
• Day 2: Full day game drive in the Serengeti, transfer toward Ngorongoro
• Day 3: Ngorongoro Crater tour
• Day 4: Fly to Kigali, transfer to Volcanoes National Park
• Day 5: Gorilla trekking and Iby’iwacu Cultural Village
• Day 6: Golden monkey trekking, transfer to Kigali for departure

Detailed Itinerary

Day 1: Arusha to Serengeti National Park

Your guide will collect you from your hotel in Arusha after breakfast, or from Kilimanjaro International Airport on arrival, and brief you before the four-hour drive to Serengeti National Park. Along the way you will stop at the Ngorongoro View Point for a look down into the crater, and pass Olduvai Gorge, where the Leakey family discovered some of the earliest known human remains.

On arrival in the Serengeti, you will head to your lodge with a game drive en route. After lunch and refreshments, continue to the park for an afternoon game drive through the Seronera Valley, watching for elephants, cheetahs, giraffes, zebras, wildebeests, and several antelope species. Return to your lodge for dinner and an overnight stay.

Accommodation: Shuhudia Adventure Camp

Meal Plan: Full Board

Day 2: Full Day Game Drive in the Serengeti, Transfer Toward Ngorongoro

Wake early for breakfast before heading out for a full day game drive through the Seronera River Valley, known for its concentration of hyenas and big cats such as lions and leopards. Other species to watch for include bushbucks, dik-diks, wildebeest, elands, and gazelles, along with birdlife such as secretary birds, ostriches, guinea fowl, and hornbills.

Enjoy lunch at the Hippo Pool, home to an estimated 200 individuals, before continuing your exploration of the Serengeti plains. In the afternoon, drive to Ngorongoro Crater, checking in at your lodge for dinner and an overnight stay.

Accommodation: Ngorongoro Lodge

Meal Plan: Full Board

Day 3: Ngorongoro Crater Tour

After breakfast, descend into the Ngorongoro Crater, often called the “Eden of Africa” — the world’s largest unbroken caldera, and a wildlife destination with an unmatched concentration of animals.

During the game drive, explore different areas of the crater floor for sightings of the Big Five — lions, leopards, cape buffaloes, elephants, and rhinos — alongside giraffes, wildebeest, gazelles, elands, and hartebeests. Lunch is served at a picnic site before you return to the crater rim in the afternoon and head to your lodge for dinner and an overnight stay.

Accommodation: Ngorongoro Lodge

Meal Plan: Full Board

Ngorongoro Lodge

Day 4: Fly to Kigali, Transfer to Volcanoes National Park

After breakfast, check out and drive to Arusha for your flight from Kilimanjaro International Airport to Kigali International Airport. On arrival, you will be met by your guide for the roughly three-hour transfer to Volcanoes National Park, arriving in the late afternoon. Check in at your lodge for dinner and an overnight stay.

Accommodation: Five Volcanoes Hotel

Meal Plan: Full Board

Day 5: Gorilla Trekking and Iby’iwacu Cultural Village

This is one of the most memorable days of your safari. Wake early for breakfast before meeting your driver for the trip to the park headquarters in Kinigi for a 7:30 a.m. briefing. Rangers will explain the etiquette of trekking in the presence of mountain gorillas; if you would like to hire a porter to carry equipment or bags, you can arrange this after the briefing.

In groups of eight, you will be assigned a gorilla family and led into the forest by park rangers. The trek takes one to six hours depending on the family’s location, and once you find them, you are permitted one hour in their presence to observe and photograph them grooming, feeding, playing, and climbing.

After the trek, your ranger will guide you back to the starting point to meet your guide and head to the lodge for lunch. In the afternoon, visit the Iby’iwacu Cultural Village, which showcases the traditions of Rwanda’s local communities — a look at how people lived generations ago, a meeting with a traditional medicine man, local souvenirs, and a cultural performance. Return to your lodge for dinner and an overnight stay.

Accommodation: Five Volcanoes Hotel

Meal Plan: Full Board

Day 6: Golden Monkey Trekking, Transfer to Kigali for Departure

After an early breakfast, head to the park headquarters in Kinigi for a briefing before setting off into the forest in search of golden monkeys. The trek takes approximately four hours and rewards you with views of the volcanoes along the way, plus sightings of other forest wildlife.

After spotting the primates, return to the lodge for lunch, check out, and begin the drive back to Kigali, where you will be dropped at your hotel or at Kigali International Airport for your flight home.

End of Safari

What’s Included

• Park entry fees
• Gorilla permits
• Golden monkey permits
• Game drives in the Serengeti plains and Ngorongoro Crater
• Kigali city tour
• Visit to the twin lakes of Burera and Ruhondo
• Visit to the Iby’iwacu Cultural Centre
• Transport in a standard tour van
• Full-board accommodation for 5 nights
• All meals and drinks during the tour
• Flights during the tour
• All airport transfers

What’s Not Included

• International flights before and after the trip
• Visas
• Gratuities and tips for guides, rangers, hotel staff, and porters
• Personal expenses such as alcohol and souvenirs
• Medical and travel insurance