Suggested Itinerary
Day 1: Welcome to Rwanda!
Kigali Serena Hotel
When you land at Kigali International Airport, you will be met and transferred to your hotel to freshen up after your long journey. Time permitting, go on a guided tour of the city to visit its landmarks and fascinating markets.
Day 2: Introduction to the Village
Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village
Upon arrival in the village, you will be greeted by your host and students from the hospitality program, who will then show you to your rooms in the Guest House. After you’re settled in your host will take you on a walking tour of the village including a background of the history and philosophy of Agahozo-Shalom.
You are sure to have worked up an appetite for dinner and will join in the communal meals. Guests sit with the kids and staff and meals are served family style. This is a great time to meet and converse with the students. After dinner, there is optional family time, which is an opportunity to share updates and feelings from the day, make announcements, play games or do activities, or just relax and enjoy time together.
Days 3 – 5: Service Days
Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village
Service work is an essential part of the Village philosophy. Engaging in a service project during your stay at Agahozo-Shalom is an opportunity to help out in certain areas of the Village. Possible volunteer projects include: farming, construction or digging, or working in the kitchen. Your project will be decided prior to your arrival based on your preferences and current needs.
After lunch, volunteers have the opportunity to visit various activities and participate alongside the kids in “Enrichment Programs,” or EP’s for short. The EP options are: volleyball, soccer, karate, traditional art, sewing, modern art, guitar, music, carpentry, photography, video, and more! There is also a science center that offers experiential classes in mechanics, optics, electronics, and biology. The village also has a library and student resource center where students can drop in for help with homework, tutoring, or preparing CV’s and cover letters.
There are also special activities that happen regularly throughout the week that volunteers are encouraged to join in on, such as visits to the national park and a village-wide exercise program.
Day 6: Transfer to Volcanoes National Park
Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge
After breakfast this morning, say farewell to the Village and start your drive to Volcanoes National Park to start you gorilla tracking adventure. On the way, enjoy a scenic view of the Virungas, a chain of five impossibly steep and lofty volcanoes straddling the western branch of the Rift Valley from east to west. Each mountain possesses its own unique character and silhouette, but together they form one of the most isolated and visually dramatic ecosystems in the world.
When you arrive you will be met by the staff of the Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge, one of the most breathtaking accommodations in Rwanda. The lodge, situated in the foothills of the Virungas, affords incredible views of the volcanoes and the surrounding countryside. It is owned by a community trust, which uses rentals and community fees from the lodge to drive socio-economic and conservation initiatives in the communities adjacent to the National Park.
Days 7-8: Gorilla Tracking
Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge
Bright and early you will drive to your tracking starting point to track gorillas in Volcanoes National Park. The Mountain Gorillas in Rwanda are part of a worldwide population of just 790 individuals. The gorillas you are allowed to track belong to either one of 10 habituated family groups. For up to five years each, these groups have undergone an extremely delicate process that has gradually brought them to tolerate the presence of humans for a brief period every day and allowed a few privileged visitors to interact with them in the wild. The gorillas are by no means tame, and are completely wild animals.
Experienced guides will accompany you on your gorilla tracking, many of who have been involved with the habituation process themselves. Using their knowledge of the gorillas’ habits and information from the previous day, the guides will locate the group’s whereabouts. The time taken to locate the gorillas varies enormously from half an hour to nine hours before one returns to camp. Once the gorillas are located, your group will be allowed a maximum of one hour with them. This is one of the world’s truly memorable experiences.
Day 9: Tracking and Departure
This morning, track golden monkeys in Volcanoes National Park. After tracking, drive three hours to Kigali in time to check in for your international departure flight.
