Eastern Rwanda
Akagera Game Lodge
Situated within the Akagera National Park, the Akagera Game Lodge is a three hour drive from the town of Kilgadi on both tarmacked and dirt roads, and has recently been refurbished to a high standard. The property is more a traditional hotel than a safari lodge but is situated in an ideal location for exploring the national park and affords good views of Lake Ihema as well as the nearby plains.
Facilities include a swimming pool, restaurant, tennis court and well-stocked bar. The large restaurant serves a variety of national and international dishes and extends out to an open deck where meals can be enjoyed al fresco. There are a range of room types including standard double and twins, suites and cottages – all designed in typical African safari style with comfortable beds and artistic furnishings. There is a small waterhole providing an extra game watching opportunity.
Akagera is a beautiful patchwork of rolling grasslands, thick forest, wetlands and acacia thickets. Large game including elephants and buffalo are commonly seen. The prehistoric-looking shoebill stork is a feature bird of the papyrus wetlands of Akagera.
Game drives operate from the lodge and boat safaris through the wetlands are a great way to see some of the park’s more elusive birdlife.
Facilities
Restaurant, swimming pool, tennis court, lounge, bar, lounge, TV and Wi-Fi.
Local Wildlife
Once ravaged by poaching, the wildlife at Akagera is making a valiant comeback. Large game including elephant, buffalo, giraffe, hippo, zebra, impala, oribi, tessebe and Nile crocodile can now be seen. Lions also occur in the park but inhabit the more inaccessible areas, and the beautiful but secretive sitatunga antelope is also occasionally seen in the wetlands. The diverse habitats of the park also make it an excellent birding site with African fish eagle, crowned crane and open-billed stork all common sightings in the wetlands. With luck the menacing looking shoebill stork can be seen stalking the papyrus wetlands.
Optional Activities
Game drives and boat safaris.
Jonathan Morris
Area Specialist
Make sure you take an early morning boat safari through the wetlands for the best chance to see the shoebill stork.
If you have any questions regarding our Rwanda tours, please feel free to contact me on +44 (0)1803 866965
Everyone we ran into in Rwanda was so friendly, kind and proud of their country. The service they provided was excellent. We had a wonderful time getting to know them better.
Our guide was AMAZING. We got to know more about Rwanda and its people because we spent so much time with him. He stopped frequently to point out all the different birds to us or show us a particular view. He helped us get on the gorilla hikes that suited our fitness and interests. He let us know exactly how each day was going to play out so we could be ready with the right clothing and water / snacks.
All the guides for the tours were very knowledgeable and quite entertaining. They were concerned with our enjoyment and our safety. The porters were invaluable – they not only carried your pack (filled w. camera equipment & water) but also helped us up the steep grades and along ledges.
The landscape was as spectacular as the wildlife in Rwanda. Pictures do not do it justice. Seeing three different gorillas families was the highlight but there was so much more to see. The Golden monkeys were gorgeous. Nyungwe was a beautiful park filled with primates and birds. We saw chimps, mona, vervet , blue, mangabeys, mountain and colobus monkeys.
We changed one of the tours (the waterfall one) and went birding for an entire day instead. We saw tonnes of birds including a Great Blue Turaco and many different kinds of sunbirds and hawks.
One day we will get to the UK and actually the meet the wonderful people who plan these incredible vacations for us. Thank you for all the help you give us.