Day-by-day itinerary

What the operator has planned, day by day, across 4 days.

1. Day 1

   Travel day to Kisoro and Mgahinga

   The day starts after breakfast with the road transfer to Kisoro, the town closest to the volcanoes, which takes around eight hours once stops are counted. Coming up from Kigali the route runs below terraced hillsides. There is also a flight option that reaches the Kisoro airstrip from Entebbe in under two hours and leaves most of the day free. You check into the lodge in the afternoon and settle in before the walking begins.

2. Day 2

   Golden monkey tracking at Ntebeko

   An early breakfast comes first, then the short drive up to the headquarters at Ntebeko. A ranger there sets out the rules for approaching golden monkeys before anyone enters the forest. The group walks in behind the guide and climbs into the bamboo on the volcano slopes, which is where the troop feeds. Other monkey species, birds and reptiles turn up along the trail. Time with the golden monkeys themselves runs to about an hour.

3. Day 3

   Batwa Trail through Garama cave

   The second morning walk also begins at Ntebeko, with Batwa guides meeting the group at the gate after breakfast. They lead the trail through country their families lived in before it was gazetted for wildlife, and finish underground in Garama cave, explaining how it kept people out of reach of dangerous animals. Fees from the walk go towards land and housing for Batwa families who are still without either.

4. Day 4

   Return through Kigali or Entebbe

   After an early breakfast the guide drives back towards Kigali, again roughly eight hours with stops along the way. Lunch can be taken in the city, or skipped in favour of going straight to the airport for an onward flight. Travellers who came in by air make the same short hop back to Entebbe instead.