Akagera National Park

A true conservation success story, Akagera National Park in Rwanda is now home to a plethora of wildlife including the critically endangered Black Rhinos.

Akagera National Park Highlights

Situated in the eastern part of Rwanda, bordering Tanzania, Akagera National Park is one of Africa’s oldest National Parks, and is a thriving African Parks success. This remarkable story of revival saw Akagera National Park rise into a protected wetland and savannah biome area home to many different species of animals and birds. The park also provides employment to locals uplifting the surrounding communities. African Parks assumed control of Akagera National Park in 2010 and helped turn the park into what it is today.

Eastern Black Rhino’s were reintroduced in 2017 and are thriving, joined in 2019 by another group of rescued rhinos. Lions are also making a remarkable comeback and 2 male lions were re-homed in Akagera National Park to further diversify the gene pool. This savannah and wetland haven is home to the other big five as well as hippos, hyenas and much more.

After peace was restored in Rwanda in 1990, refugees came back to the country and used Akagera for timber, displacing whatever animals were left for grazing their cattle, numbering in the tens of thousands, all in an effort to survive in a post genocide Rwanda. Through funding; this park is well on its way to become a leading safari destination in Africa and is a great combination to Gorilla Trekking in the Volcanoes National Park.

Mystery Gorilla Safaris Says

In a remote corner of Rwanda is the Akagera National Park. A few hours from capital city, Kigali, Akagera is home to the critically endangered Eastern Black Rhinos and a thriving lion population, herds of elephants and buffalo as well as leopard. Akagera National Park is a true Big 5 safari destination!

Akagera offers spectacular scenery, savannah plains alongside a wetland with papyrus swamps, all fed from the Akagera River and surrounded by the green hills found all over Rwanda. Activities range from game drives including night drives, guide bush walks and boat trips which including viewing large pod’s of hippos. Birding enthusiasts will love Akagera and could be lucky to see the elusive Shoe Bill Stork.

Top Attractions

On any safari trip, exotic, interesting and outstanding sights are a general expectation. Everyone wants to see something spectacular and out of their everyday scenery. National parks such as Akagera are full such sights and a good place for such experiences.

Animals, birds, beautifully displayed scenery, new cultures, are some of the attractions that make Africa safaris so popular and memorable. Akagera has its fair share of attractions that will make you want to keep visiting the park..

Wildlife; Akagera national park boasts of quite the variety of wildlife including some of the big 5. Lions, elephants, buffaloes, and leopards. There are hyenas, zebras, hippos, crocodiles, antelopes, cape elands, impalas, wide eyed bush-bays, warthogs, oribi, bush buck, Tsessebe ,sittatungas. There are over 100 elephants in the park today.

While Akagera is a major primate habitat, there are some primate species in the park such as the vervet monkey, the olive baboon , the silver monkey, and some blue monkeys.

Game drives in the park are quite exciting. Our skilled and very knowledgeable guides will lead you on the game drive and give you information about the various animals you might see.

Birding; Over 750 bird species are found in the park and this makes Akagera national park a birdwatchers dream destination. There is no way you can see all those birds in a single trip, pretty much a new bird to discover each day.

The shoe bill stock that many birdwatchers search for can be seen here, and so can several other water birds.

Other birds in Akagera national park include: raptors, papyrus gonolek, migrant birds such as the lesser kestrel and the great sniper, the Zambian Carnot chat, suaza shrike and the long tailed cistola, and many other colorful birds.

Nature walks; Akagera park has so many beautiful sights that can be best admired up close. Nature walks give you the opportunity to see things up close. The exotic plants, colorful butterfly species, the still water in some of the lakes, the water birds, the smaller animals that you couldn’t see quite well on the game drive. Nature walks are peaceful and a very good opportunity to appreciate nature at a much slower and easier pace.

Nocturnal game drives; Game drives in the park are fun, game drives in the park at night are even more exciting. There is always a sense of mystery about the night and nocturnal game drives capture that quite effusively.

There are animals in the park that you might fail to see in the day, but that will be quite up and active in the night and so much easier to see. Animals such as leopards, civets, hyenas, and bush babies might be much easier to see during the night. Some birds are nocturnal too.

Boat rides; With so many natural water sources;swamps, Lakes and a river it is only right that you go on a boat ride on your visit to Akagera national park. Be sure to go on a boat ride on Lake Ihema. You will see one of the biggest concentration of Hippos in East Africa, and so many water birds.

Elephants too are quite common along the shores of the lake. And of course you get to take the view of the park from the water, and it is quite breath taking.

Fishing; For those who might want to go fishing, whether as a sport or for food, you can do some fishing in L.Shakani, one of the many lakes in the area. Most common fish in the lake are tilapia and cat fish. As you do your fishing, you might catch sight of or hear hippos further nearby. There are also some fishing tournaments that take place in the park every now and then, you could participate if there is one going on at the time of your visit.

This park is all about nature, every activity and attractions is so naturally exciting beautiful and unspoilt. If you are looking to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life and just enjoy the serenity that nature offers, this is a safari destination for you. It is only a 2 ½ hours drive from Kigali so you go back into the city quite easily.

How to Get There

Most tourists travel by road with a driver in a 4x4 from Kigali. This 110km journey will take 3 hours along good roads till the park gates. There is a newly introduced helicopter trip to the park as well.

Akagera National Park Game Viewing and Activities

Game drives are conducted with experienced guides who know the local fauna and flora. Herds of buffalo, eland, topis, zebra and impala are found on the plains, alongside journeys of giraffe and dazzles of zebra! Monkeys and baboons are also found her. Other unique species are the Defassa Waterbuck, and Roan antelope. Reintroduced lions are thriving, and leopards are becoming more numerous and more regularly seen on drives. Other predators include hyenas, civits and serval cats. Night drives will pick up the gleaming eyes of the little bush babies as they dart between the trees.

Bird watching is particularly good in Akagera, the wetland system home to many diverse species. Lake Ihema is one of the bigger lakes and is where the boating safaris happen. From here large pods of hippos dominate the lakes and twitchers are delighted with sightings of Shoe Bill Storks, Verreaux’s eagle owls, the splendid starling, the marico sunbird, birds of prey and many more.

Akagera National Park is a wonderful place for photography enthusiasts. The surrounding scenery is particularly beautiful as are the many iridescent birds and the teaming plains game and other wildlife.

Akagera National Park Seasons and Climate

The temperatures are fairly similar all year round and Akagera experiences a moderate climate. Consistently warm during the day, the nights are cool. Temperatures range from 15 C / 65 F at night up to 28C / 83 F during the day, all year round. Warm clothing is advised for night drives and early morning excursions.

The dry season runs from June through to September. The surrounding bush dries out a bit and animals tend to congregate near waterholes and lakes.

There are short rains from October to December and long rates from March through to May.