CORE EXPERIENCES
Standard Permit — $1,500 Exclusive Experience — $15,000 Behind the Scene Package Uganda Habituation Experience Photography & Film PermitsPOPULAR PARKS
Volcanoes National Park Nyungwe National Park Akagera National Park Bwindi Impenetrable National Park Mgahinga Gorilla National ParkThe complete country circuit, built around the Exclusive Mountain Gorilla Experience rather than the standard permit — your gorilla family entirely to yourselves, plus Akagera’s Big Five, Nyungwe’s chimpanzees and canopy walkway, and a full day at leisure in Kigali.
KIGALI
Arrive and settle in, with a welcome dinner and trip briefing.
KIGALI
A full day at leisure — the Kigali Genocide Memorial, Kimironko Market, and the city’s café and gallery scene.
AKAGERA NATIONAL PARK
Three nights of morning and afternoon game drives across Akagera’s savanna, lakes, and wetland ecosystems.
MUSANZE / KINIGI
Drive west to the Musanze/Kinigi area ahead of your Exclusive Experience.
VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK
A personalised RDB briefing at your lodge, flexible 08h00–11h00 start, and a full private hour with your assigned gorilla family — no other visitors present.
VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK
A morning golden monkey trek followed by the afternoon hike to the Karisoke Research Centre site.
NYUNGWE NATIONAL PARK
Fly or drive south to Nyungwe National Park.
NYUNGWE NATIONAL PARK
Depart 07h00 from Uwinka Visitor Centre for a trek to a habituated chimpanzee community.
NYUNGWE NATIONAL PARK
Cross the canopy walkway in the morning, then return to Kigali for a farewell dinner.
KIGALI
Private transfer to Kigali International Airport for your departing flight.
From approximately $24,000 per person (based on a group of 4 sharing the Exclusive Experience cost), double occupancy, excluding international flights.
START PLANNING ↗A non-refundable deposit confirms your dates and secures the Exclusive Mountain Gorilla Experience directly with a licensed Rwanda-based operator, alongside your Akagera and Nyungwe permit arrangements. Because the Exclusive Experience is arranged outside RDB’s standard IREMBO booking portal and depends on broader scheduling capacity rather than a fixed daily allocation, we recommend booking this itinerary at least six to nine months ahead, especially for peak season (June–September, December–February) or a specific milestone date.
The balance is due ahead of arrival on a schedule confirmed in your written proposal. Because the Exclusive Experience is priced per group rather than per person, we’ll confirm your group size early so pricing reflects exactly how the cost splits across your party.
WHO THIS SUITS
This itinerary suits groups of four or more who want the full Rwanda circuit — Akagera, Volcanoes National Park, and Nyungwe — built around a genuinely private gorilla encounter rather than sharing the hour with strangers. Because the Exclusive Experience is priced per group rather than per person, it works best financially for larger private parties; couples or smaller groups wanting the same country-wide coverage without the Exclusive Experience premium should consider our 10-Day Itinerary instead, built around the standard permit.
Day two’s unscheduled Kigali day is a deliberate addition to this longer itinerary — the Kigali Genocide Memorial offers genuinely important historical context for understanding modern Rwanda, and most guests find a full day, rather than a rushed few hours, necessary to process it properly alongside lighter activities like Kimironko Market or the city’s growing café and gallery scene. Placing it early in the trip, before the more physically demanding trekking days, also gives your group a settled adjustment period after international travel.
Why is the Exclusive Experience priced per group rather than
per person?
RDB structures the product this way regardless of how many people trek, up to eight — a couple pays
the same $15,000 as a full group of eight, which is why this itinerary’s per-person cost assumes a
group of four sharing that fee.
What if our group is smaller than four
people?
The Exclusive Experience remains available at the same $15,000 group rate, simply divided across fewer
people — we’ll show the exact per-person cost for your specific group size in your written
proposal.
What exactly is included in the $24,000
per-person estimate?
The Exclusive Mountain Gorilla Experience, golden monkey trekking, and chimpanzee trekking permits, eleven
nights across all four locations on an all-inclusive basis, your private guide and vehicle throughout, and
all transfers. International flights and the Dian Fossey Tomb Hike fee are priced separately.
Can we downgrade to the standard permit to
reduce cost?
Yes — we can rebuild this exact itinerary around the standard Mountain Gorilla Trekking Permit instead,
which significantly reduces the overall price while keeping the rest of the circuit identical.
How quickly will we hear back after
enquiring?
We respond to every enquiry within 48 hours with a bespoke written proposal covering the exact lodges,
pricing, and day-by-day details for your specific dates and group size.
This twelve-day structure is a flexible starting template — common adjustments include upgrading further to the Behind the Scene Gorilla Package, extending the Akagera or Nyungwe legs by an extra night, or swapping the standard chimpanzee trek for additional Nyungwe primate trekking. Tell us what matters most to your group and we’ll build a final proposal around it.
WHY BOOK WITH US
Because the Exclusive Mountain Gorilla Experience sits outside RDB’s standard permit system, arranging it correctly depends heavily on the operator handling it — confirming genuine RDB allocation, structuring group payment terms fairly, and building the accommodation and transport around it so the whole trip, not just the gorilla morning, reflects the same standard. We work directly with licensed Rwanda-based operators rather than reselling third-party allocations, which matters even more on a twelve-day, multi-region itinerary like this one where a single coordination mistake early on can affect everything that follows.
This longer circuit moves through Akagera’s hot savanna, Volcanoes National Park’s cool high-altitude forest, and Nyungwe’s humid rainforest, so packing needs to cover all three comfortably. Lighter, breathable clothing and strong sun protection for Akagera; warm layers and waterproof boots for the volcano region; and a genuine rain jacket for Nyungwe, which sees rain in every season. We provide a detailed, itinerary-specific packing list as part of your final booking confirmation.
EXPLORE MORE
