2 Days Nyungwe Chimps Tracking Trip
DESTINATION
Rwanda: Nyungwe National Park
DURATION
2 Days | 1 Night
COST
From $550 Per Person
DESCRIPTION
Most visitors to Rwanda come for the mountain gorillas in Volcanoes National Park, and understandably so. But tucked into the far southwest corner of the country, draped across a chain of mist-covered hills near the Burundi border, lies a forest that is older, wilder, and in many ways just as extraordinary: Nyungwe Forest National Park, Rwanda’s premier chimpanzee trekking destination and one of the oldest surviving rainforests in Africa.
Nyungwe is the only place in Rwanda where you can track chimpanzees. Covering more than 1,000 square kilometres of dense montane rainforest, bamboo, swamp, and grassland, it protects 13 species of primates, over 322 bird species, more than 1,000 plant species, and the largest population of Angolan colobus monkeys in Africa — all within a single forest that has stood, essentially undisturbed, since before the last ice age. The headline act is chimpanzee tracking, but the park is also famous for its iconic canopy walkway, a suspension bridge strung 70 metres above the forest floor with sweeping views over the endless green canopy of southwestern Rwanda.
This 2-day trip from Kigali is built for travelers who want to experience Rwanda beyond the volcanoes: a long, scenic drive south through Rwanda’s thousand hills on day one, chimpanzee trekking and the canopy walk on day two, and a return to Kigali in the late afternoon. It is a compact, well-paced itinerary that covers the park’s two signature activities in a single overnight stay, without rushing either of them.
At Pick and Transfer Safaris, we handle the permits, transport, and accommodation, so your two days in Nyungwe are focused entirely on the forest. For travelers who want to combine this trip with gorilla trekking, take a look at our 3 Days Rwanda Gorilla Tracking and Cultural Tour or our 2 Days Volcanoes Gorilla Trek from Kigali — both can be combined with a Nyungwe extension into a longer Rwanda primate circuit. Browse our full Rwanda primate safaris or contact our travel experts to build the right itinerary for your dates.
TOUR HIGHLIGHTS
- Chimpanzee tracking in Nyungwe Forest National Park, Rwanda’s only chimpanzee trekking destination
- The famous Nyungwe canopy walkway, a suspension bridge stretching 160 metres at 70 metres above the forest floor, the highest in East Africa
- A full hour in the company of a habituated chimpanzee community, watching them feed, groom, and move through the canopy
- Encounters with colobus monkeys, L’Hoest’s monkeys, and other primates along the forest trails
- Outstanding birdwatching in one of Africa’s most biodiverse rainforests, home to 30 Albertine Rift endemic bird species
- A scenic five-hour drive south from Kigali through Rwanda’s rolling tea plantations and terraced hillsides
- One night’s accommodation in a lodge at the forest edge, near Gisakura or Uwinka
- Round-trip private 4×4 transport from Kigali, with an experienced English-speaking driver-guide
TRAVEL PLAN
Day 1: Kigali to Nyungwe Forest National Park
Your tour begins with pickup from your hotel or Kigali International Airport, followed by a guided tour of Kigali City. The morning is centred on the Kigali Genocide Memorial, where exhibitions and memorial gardens offer a sobering and important introduction to Rwanda’s history, and to the country’s remarkable journey of reconciliation since 1994. From there, the tour continues to one or two of Kigali’s other cultural highlights, such as Kimironko Market for local crafts and produce, or the Inema Arts Centre, a cooperative gallery showcasing contemporary Rwandan art.
After lunch in Kigali, your driver-guide will take you on the scenic two-to-three-hour drive northwest toward Musanze (formerly Ruhengeri), the gateway town to Volcanoes National Park, with the volcanic peaks of Karisimbi, Bisoke, Sabyinyo, Gahinga, and Muhabura coming into view as you approach. Check in to your lodge near Kinigi in the late afternoon, with time to rest ahead of the next day’s trek. Dinner and overnight near the park.
Meals: Lunch, Dinner
Day 2: Chimpanzee Tracking, Canopy Walk & Return to Kigali
After an early breakfast, head to the park reception centre for 7`:00 am departure with your Rwanda Development Board ranger guide. Chimpanzee tracking begins earlier than gorilla trekking in many parks, because the trackers follow the chimps from their overnight nesting sites in the treetops as they descend at first light to begin foraging for fruit. Groups are limited to a maximum of eight visitors, and the tracker team follows radio updates from scouts who have been in the forest since before dawn.
The trek through Nyungwe’s dense, multilayered rainforest is an experience in itself. Unlike the open montane terrain of Bwindi or the Virungas, Nyungwe is a deep, ancient lowland-to-highland forest of enormous trees, tangled vines, ferns the height of a person, and trails that drop suddenly into stream-cut ravines before climbing again on the other side. The chimpanzee community in the main Nyungwe Forest is a large group of around 60 individuals, partially habituated to human presence, and tracking time can vary from a short walk to several hours depending on how far the group has ranged since the night before. Once found, you’ll have a full hour with the chimpanzees, watching them feed in the canopy, play, groom, and move through the forest at a pace that is both surprisingly fast and endlessly watchable. Colobus monkeys, L’Hoest’s monkeys, and a wide variety of forest birds are commonly encountered along the way.
After the trek, return to the lodge for a well-earned late breakfast or packed lunch, before heading to the Uwinka Reception Centre in the afternoon for the park’s signature canopy walk. The walkway stretches 160 metres across a deep forest valley, suspended 70 metres above the forest floor between giant trees, making it the highest canopy walk in East Africa. The guided walk along the Igishigishigi trail to reach the walkway takes approximately one hour each way and passes through pristine forest with excellent birdwatching and the chance of further primate sightings. The canopy itself, seen from above at eye level for the first time, is a revelation, a dense, layered world of its own, full of movement, birdsong, and the architecture of trees that have been growing undisturbed for centuries.
After the canopy walk, begin the drive back toward Kigali in the late afternoon. The five-hour return journey reaches the capital in the evening, with a final drop-off at your hotel or Kigali International Airport.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
COST INCLUSIONS AND EXCLUSIONS
What Is Included
- 1 chimpanzee trekking permit for Nyungwe Forest National Park, issued by the Rwanda Development Board
- Nyungwe Forest National Park entrance fee
- Guided canopy walk along the Igishigishigi trail (permit and guide fee included)
- 1 night’s accommodation on a mid-range basis near Gisakura or Uwinka
- Round-trip private 4×4 transport from Kigali to Nyungwe and back, with English-speaking driver-guide
- Fuel and all ground transport costs
- Meals as indicated in the itinerary (Day 1: Lunch, Dinner; Day 2: Breakfast, Lunch)
- Bottled drinking water during the journey
- All applicable government taxes
What Is Not Included
- International flights to and from Kigali
- Rwanda entry visa (see notes below)
- Travel insurance
- Tips and gratuities for your driver-guide, lodge staff, and park rangers
- Personal expenses, souvenirs, and drinks not specified above
- Porter fees at the park (optional, paid locally — highly recommended, especially for the chimpanzee trek, which can involve steep and slippery terrain)
- Optional activities not listed above, such as colobus monkey trekking, night walks, waterfall hikes, or the Tea Factory tour near Gisakura, unless arranged in advance
GOOD TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
Minimum age: Chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe is open to travelers aged 15 and above. The canopy walk requires participants to be at least six years old, and children must be accompanied by an adult.
Fitness: The chimpanzee trek in Nyungwe can be more physically demanding than gorilla trekking, with dense, steep, and often very muddy forest terrain, and no defined endpoint since the chimps move unpredictably. A good level of physical fitness is recommended, and hiring a porter is strongly advised, both for carrying your bag on steep descents and for the peace of mind it gives on slippery trails.
What to pack: Long-sleeved shirts and trousers, waterproof hiking boots with ankle support, a warm layer for early mornings (Nyungwe is at high altitude and can be cold at dawn), a rain jacket, a hat, insect repellent, sunscreen, gardening gloves for gripping vegetation, a reusable water bottle, and binoculars for birdwatching. Camera flash must not be used near the chimpanzees.
Permits: Chimpanzee tracking permits in Nyungwe are issued by the Rwanda Development Board, with only 24 permits available per day across both trekking groups. Demand from independent and group travelers fills these quickly, especially during peak season and school holiday periods. We recommend booking as far in advance as possible, ideally two to three months ahead for dry-season travel. Permits can be booked directly through the official Visit Rwanda bookings portal or through our team as part of this package.
Best time to visit Nyungwe: Chimpanzee tracking is available year-round and is generally most productive during the wet seasons (March to May and October to November), when fruit is abundant in the forest, the chimps tend to range less, and locating them can be easier. The dry seasons (June to September and December to February) are better for the canopy walk and forest trail walks, with firmer underfoot conditions and clearer skies, though chimpanzees may range further in search of food. For most travelers combining both activities on day two, either season works well.
Visas: Entry requirements for Rwanda, including the East Africa Tourist Visa where applicable, can be checked through the official Visit Rwanda website. We always recommend confirming your specific requirements well before travel.
WHY ADD THE CANOPY WALK
The chimpanzee trek puts you inside the forest, at ground level, looking up. The canopy walk reverses the perspective entirely: you step onto a suspension bridge 70 metres above the forest floor and look out across the canopy from above, at eye level with the crowns of trees that have been growing for centuries. The two experiences are genuinely complementary, one immersive and close, the other aerial and panoramic, and combining them in a single day makes Nyungwe feel complete in a way that neither activity alone quite manages. The Visit Rwanda page on the canopy walkway gives a good overview of what to expect on the Igishigishigi trail.
WHY NYUNGWE IS DIFFERENT FROM KIBALE
Travelers who have done chimpanzee tracking in Uganda’s Kibale Forest National Park will find Nyungwe a meaningfully different experience. Kibale’s chimps are more fully habituated, and tracking times are shorter and more predictable. Nyungwe’s chimps are semi-habituated and range more widely, so the trek is less predictable and more physically demanding — but the forest itself is older, denser, and far more diverse, with 13 primate species, exceptional birdlife, and a landscape that feels genuinely ancient. For travelers wanting to compare the two, our 5 Days Uganda Gorilla and Chimpanzee Safari Starting from Rwanda includes Kibale’s chimpanzee tracking as part of a broader Uganda primate circuit starting in Kigali.
For further reading on Nyungwe, the official park website at visitnyungwe.org and Visit Rwanda’s Nyungwe page both provide current information on activities, trails, and accommodation.
WHY TRAVEL WITH PICK AND TRANSFER SAFARIS
At Pick and Transfer Safaris, we handle the permit booking, park entrance fees, lodge reservations, and the full round-trip from Kigali, so your two days in Nyungwe are straightforward from first pickup to final drop-off. Our driver-guides know the five-hour route well and are happy to arrange a lunch stop in Huye on the way down or a final stop in Kigali on the way back. A share of our proceeds also supports community projects through the Kigezi Foundation.
Browse our full range of Rwanda primate safaris, or explore all our East African destinations for ideas on combining Nyungwe with gorilla trekking, a Lake Kivu relaxation day, or a Big Five game drive in Akagera National Park.
READY TO BOOK?
Nyungwe chimpanzee permits are limited to just 24 per day and can sell out weeks in advance in peak season. Contact our travel experts with your preferred dates, group size, and pickup point in Kigali, and we’ll confirm permit and lodge availability and send you a free, no-obligation quote within 24 hours.