Best 15 Safari Lodges In Rwanda

The best 5 safari lodges are found in national parks and reserves are; Nyungwe Forest National Park, Akagera National Park , and Gishwati-Mukura National Park. Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is highly elevated, giving it the sobriquet “land of a thousand hills”, with its geography dominated by mountains in the west and savanna to the southeast.

Also with numerous lakes throughout the country. The climate is temperate to subtropical, with two rainy seasons and two dry seasons each year. Rwanda has a population of over 12.6 million living on 26,338 km of land, and is the most densely populated mainland African country; it is the fifth most densely populated country in the world. One million people live in the capital and largest city Kigali.

Hunter-gatherers settled the territory in the Stone and Iron Ages, followed later by Bantu peoples. In the 15th century, a chiefdom, under King Gihanga, managed to incorporate several of its close neighbor territories establishing the Kingdom of Rwanda. The Kingdom of Rwanda dominated from the mid-eighteen century, with the Tutsi kings conquering others militarily, centralizing power, and enacting anti-Hutu policies.

Rwanda has been colonized by a host of countries. Germany colonized Rwanda in 1897 as part of German East Africa, followed by Belgium, which took control in 1916 during World War I. Both European nations ruled through the Rwandan king and perpetuated a pro-Tutsi policy. Rwanda has been governed as a unitary presidential system with a bicameral parliament ruled by the Rwandan Patriotic Front since 1994.

The country has been governed by a centralized authoritarian government, since precolonial times. Although Rwanda has low levels of corruption compared with neighboring countries, it ranks among the lowest in international measurements of government transparency, civil liberties and quality of life. Rwanda has one of the youngest populations in the world.

Rwandans are drawn from just one cultural and linguistic group, the Banyarwanda. However, within this group there are three subgroups: the Hutu, Tutsi and Twa. The Twa are a forest-dwelling pygmy people and are often considered descendants of Rwanda’s earliest inhabitants. Christianity is the largest religion in the country; the principal and national language is Kinyarwanda, spoken by native Rwandans, with English, French and Swahili serving as additional official languages and the the best 15 safari lodges in Rwanda are explained below.

Rwandan cultural dances

The best 15 safari lodges in inn Rwanda are situated both in and out of the different national parks, reserves  found in Rwanda and they are as follows below;

Nyungwe Forest National park

The Nyungwe Forest is located in southwestern Rwanda, on the border with Burundi, where it is contiguous with the Kibira National Park to the south, and Lake Kivu and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. The Nyungwe rainforest is probably the best preserved montane rainforest in Central Africa. It is located in the watershed between the basin of the river Congo to the west and the basin of the river Nile to the east.

Nyungwe National Park was established in 2004 and covers an area of approximately 1,019 km of rainforest, bamboo, grassland, swamps, and bogs. The nearest town is Cyangugu, 54 km to the west. Mount Bigugu (2,921 m) is located within the park borders. In October 2020, the Rwanda Development Board signed an agreement with African Parks to assume management of Nyungwe National Park for an initial 20 years.

Safari Lodges in the Nyungwe national park

1. One&Only Nyungwe House

Set on a tea plantation surrounded by rainforest, this upmarket all-inclusive resort is on the edge of Nyungwe Forest National Park and 3 km from the RN6 road. In a forest rich with flora that has thrived for millions of years, within the lush green expanse of a working tea plantation.

One&Only Nyungwe House is a transformed, Eco retreat offering once-in-a lifetime experiences in the heart of magical Rwanda. Offering suites, non-smoking and family rooms at UGX 6,777,803 with features that accompany them as follows;

2. Nyungwe Nziza Eco lodge