Dates

5th June - 9th June 2025

Overview & Photographic Opportunity

This safari is purely focused on the Mountain Gorillas and gives the guests a once in a lifetime opportunity to witness and photograph this amazing endangered species. 

The safari will begin in Kigali (5th June 2025), where upon arrival, the guests will spend 1 night at the Kigali Serena Hotel. The following day (6th June 2025), they will be picked up and transferred to Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge. The next two days, (7th-8th June 2025), we will have exceptional opportunities and interactions to photograph the Mountain gorillas in close proximity. After being transferred from the lodge to the park, the guests will have to hike a couple of hours up the mountains, accompanied by armed escorts and rangers to reach the gorilla family the have been assigned. 

Over the course of the safari, guests will have close encounters with the gorillas. Certain gorilla families are now fully habituated to humans and can now be approached by humans without any conflicts. The guests will have one hour to spend with these incredibly intelligent creatures. Photography can be very rewarding but at the same time, challenging due to the thick foliage. The advantage of spending 3 days is that the guests will be issued 2 permits for 2 different days. This increases your chances of getting better sightings and also a possibility of visiting a different gorilla family.   

The main highlight of this trip is to witness the dominant male silverback gorilla, which can be intimidating due to his sheer size and presence. 

Guides

Aatish or Aashit will be your personal guides and photographic instructors throughout the entire duration of your safari. They will share their extensive knowledge of the wildlife, flora and fauna of the surrounding areas. To get the perfect photograph it is important to be able to study the animal and understand it's overall behaviour. Over the years, having spent numerous hours closely interacting with the wildlife, they will assure you the perfect position to guarantee you that picture perfect shot.

All guides/trackers while on safari in Rwanda are highly qualified and full english speaking guides with an extensive knowledge of their surroundings and the gorilla families living within the park. They have a vast knowledge in a variety of fields, which include, ornithology, botany, geography, entomology and of course a extensive knowledge of the different animals encountered whilst on safari.

Camps, Hotels and Lodges

While in Kigali, guests will spend the night at The luxurious Kigali Serena Hotel. The hotel is located in one of Kigali's most charming boulevards. The hotel is famed for its exceptional standards of efficiency, service and five star hospitality. The hotel is only a 10 kilometre drive from Kigali International Airport.

On safari, the guests will be staying at the Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge, which is located close to the headquarters of the Parc National Du Volcans. All rooms include full indoor plumbing with flush toilets and hot showers, sheltered veranda, sitting room with fire place, bedroom dressing room and bathroom. The lodge is located only 3 kilometres from the park entrance gate. The camp boasts excellent cuisines from all around the world and they cater for both vegetarians and non-vegetarians.

Vehicles

All vehicles used while on safari are entirely safari modified land rovers 4x4s that are custom built to deal with the harshest of terrains and also to ensure your comfort and safety. They are capable of carrying up to a maximum of 5-7 PAX. Vehicles on this safari will only be used for internal transfers. The majority of the safari entails the guests to hike in order to reach the mountain gorilla families.

Guests/Participants

This safari will be for a minimum of 4 guests and a maximum of 8 guests. 

Cost Per Person:

As this is a custom tailor made safari designed to the guest(s) specification, kindly contact us for full itineraries, availability and pricing.

Gorilla Trekking Permits

Please note that the park authorities in Rwanda have increased the gorilla trekking permits from $750 per person per trek to $1500 per person per trek.