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Wildlife Safaris in Akagera National Park
Rwanda's only savannah park, spread across 1,122 square kilometres of rolling plains, lakes and papyrus swamp along the eastern border with Tanzania. Managed by African Parks, Akagera is once again a Big Five reserve, with lions and rhinos returned to a landscape of elephant, buffalo, giraffe, zebra and hippo.
Why here
Akagera is one of conservation's great comeback stories. Twenty years ago the park was emptied of its big animals; today, under a partnership between African Parks and the Rwandan government, it is a Big Five reserve again. Lions were brought back in 2015 after a fifteen-year absence, and eastern black rhinos followed in 2017, joining the elephant, buffalo, giraffe, zebra, topi and impala that graze the plains. This is the low, warm counterweight to Rwanda's misty forests: broad savannah, a chain of lakes fringed with papyrus, and boat trips among hippos, crocodiles and some of the park's 500 bird species, including the prehistoric-looking shoebill. It is also one of the few East African parks where you are welcome to self-drive, tracing the lakeshore tracks in your own 4x4.
Best months
Game viewing is good all year, and the dry seasons from June to September and December to February concentrate animals around the lakes and open up the tracks. The southern sector holds the lakes and boat trips, while the drier northern plains are the best area for lions and rhino. Boat safaris run several times a day on Lake Ihema. Days are hot and low compared with the highland parks, so bring sun cover and water.
Getting there & around
Akagera's southern gate is about two and a half hours by road east of Kigali. The park runs game drives, night drives and boat safaris on Lake Ihema and hires out a safari vehicle and guides at reception; self-drive in a private 4x4 is also permitted. Accommodation ranges from the park-run Ruzizi Tented Lodge and campsites to the high-end Magashi Camp in the north. Entry and activity fees are paid to the park.
Skill levels: beginner, intermediate
Schools & guides (1)
African Parks
OrganizerAfrican Parks is a non-profit conservation organisation that manages Akagera National Park in a joint venture with the Rwanda Development Board, a partnership begun in 2010. It reintroduced lions in 2015 and eastern black rhinos in 2017, and now runs the park's game drives, night drives, boat safaris and two lodges. African Parks manages more than twenty protected areas across the continent, including Rwanda's Nyungwe Forest.