Elephant herd walking through savanna woodland with observer
Guest observing gorilla in dense rainforest vegetation
Modern hotel building lit at dusk with palm trees, Kigali Serena Hotel, Kigali, Rwanda
Terracotta-roofed lodge nestled in misty mountain valley, Virunga Lodge, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda
Safari camp with canvas tent beneath acacia trees, Serengeti Green Camp, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
Illuminated safari tent at dusk with tall trees nearby, Kicheche Mara North, Maasai Mara, Kenya
Candlelit deck overlooking savanna at twilight with pool, Ol Donyo Lodge, Amboseli and Chyulu Hills, Kenya
Canopy bed with cream drapes in spacious bedroom, Sheba’s Secret Garden, Nairobi, Kenya
Resort pool area at dusk with surrounding buildings and trees, Kigali Serena Hotel, Kigali, Rwanda
Volcanic mountains rise above forested hillsides and settlement, Virunga Lodge, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda
Staff member arranging bedding in safari tent interior, Serengeti Green Camp, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
Luxury safari tent with guests dining at dusk overlooking savanna, Kicheche Mara North, Maasai Mara, Kenya
Outdoor dining table set with savanna wildlife visible beyond, Ol Donyo Lodge, Amboseli and Chyulu Hills, Kenya
Bartender smiling behind wooden counter with ornate window, Sheba’s Secret Garden, Nairobi, Kenya

inspiration

rwanda, tanzania & kenya: gorillas, herds and the chyulus

Private Safari
From $24,290 pp
2 guests
14 nights

trip highlights

  • Trekking to a habituated mountain gorilla family in Volcanoes National Park, where a permit grants one hour and eight visitors per gorilla family each day.
  • Guided walking safaris on the northern Serengeti plains, led by armed guides with a national park ranger at a pace no vehicle allows.
  • Off-road game drives and dawn balloon flights in Mara North Conservancy, where no more than five vehicles may gather at a sighting.
  • Horseback safaris across Maasai-owned land in the Chyulu Hills, with a waterhole in front of camp that draws elephant, giraffe, zebra and antelope.
Scroll for the full itinerary
Cyclists riding past elephants on African savanna, Ol Donyo Lodge, Amboseli and Chyulu Hills, Kenya

Rwanda, Tanzania and Kenya Overland

Three countries over 14 nights, beginning in Kigali, Rwanda’s clean and orderly capital. The route climbs into Volcanoes National Park for the mountain gorillas, crosses to the northern Serengeti where the plains run toward the Mara River, then reaches the Maasai Mara’s Mara North Conservancy and its predators. It ends in the Chyulu Hills, where safaris are ridden below Kilimanjaro, with a final night in Nairobi.

You travel by a mix of road and air transfers, with private driver-guides and 4x4s. Days hold gorilla trekking, guided walks, game drives and horseback riding, at a pace set by the season. The accommodation runs from an established city hotel to a ridge-top lodge, a mobile walking camp, a small conservancy camp and a hosted farmhouse, each chosen for its place.

plan your safari

Daily Itinerary Breakdown

Kigali, Arrival in the Capital

Kigali spreads across ridges and valleys at the centre of Rwanda, a clean, orderly capital of memorials, markets and arts. A single night settles you after the flight, with the Kigali Genocide Memorial at Gisozi and the textile stalls of Kimironko Market within an easy drive by private driver-guide. Set on Boulevard de la Révolution, the Kigali Serena Hotel is the city's established five-star address, built around a polished granite atrium of Rwandese art and roughly twenty minutes from Kigali International Airport.

Volcanoes National Park and the Gorillas

From Kigali you travel northwest into the Musanze District and the rainforest of Volcanoes National Park, home to Rwanda's mountain gorillas. Trekking begins at Kinigi Park Headquarters, where groups assemble by 7am before climbing through farmed foothills and forest; a permit grants one hour with a habituated family, and a trek can run from two to seven hours depending on where the gorillas have moved. Golden monkeys, endemic to the Virunga region, also live here. High on a ridge between Lakes Bulera and Ruhondo, reached by a drive of around an hour from the park headquarters, Virunga Lodge looks west to the volcanoes, its ten hand-built bandas each with a private terrace.

Northern Serengeti and Walking Safaris

In the northern Serengeti the plains run on toward the Mara River, and from around July to October the camp stands in the Kogatende area within range of the crossings. Walking is the point here: armed guides, accompanied by a national park ranger, lead outings from a couple of hours to a full day, reading tracks, grasses and insect activity at a pace no vehicle allows, with morning and afternoon game drives as standard. Serengeti Green Camp is a mobile tented camp that moves with the wildebeest, its ten canvas tents opening onto the grass and its interiors drawn from Tanzanian craft.

Maasai Mara, Conservancy Predators

Mara North Conservancy borders the national reserve on Kenya's northern Mara plains, worked to a low-density model where no more than five vehicles may gather at a sighting and off-road driving is permitted to reach one. Days hold game drives in customised 4x4s morning and afternoon, guided bush walks with an armed ranger, and dawn hot-air balloon flights, on ground that carries strong predator numbers the year round. In Acacia Valley, tucked into a grove of wild olive and croton above the seasonal Olare Orok stream, Kicheche Mara Camp is a small tented camp where zebra and antelope graze within sight of the tents.

Chyulu Hills, Horseback Below Kilimanjaro

On Maasai-owned land in the Chyulu Hills, between Amboseli and Tsavo, you explore as often on horseback as by vehicle, with Kilimanjaro filling the horizon on clear mornings. Night drives, guided walks and mountain biking all belong here, none of them permitted in neighbouring Amboseli, and a waterhole in front of camp draws elephant, giraffe, zebra and antelope. The ranch is known for its large-tusked bulls. On the Mbirikani Group Ranch, Ol Donyo Lodge sits on the south-western flank of the hills, with a sunken hide that brings guests to eye level with elephant.

Nairobi, A Final Slow Day

Karen sits on the leafy south-western edge of Nairobi, some fifteen kilometres from the centre, with the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust nursery, the AFEW Giraffe Centre and the Karen Blixen Museum nearby and arranged with a vehicle on hand. A final night here lets you slow down after the bush, the day yours to shape. Sheba's Secret Garden is a hosted Cape Dutch farmhouse taken as an exclusive-use home, with its own Shagalabagala distillery where an African Dry Gin is made, a tour and tasting part of every stay.

  • Accommodation at Sheba's Secret Garden
Ed Charles photographing wildlife

Ed Charles, BBC Producer

Fitzroy are true specialists in accessing the wilderness. They know where to go and importantly, when to go there. Highly recommended.

Ed Charles

Bafta & Emmy award winning film producer of BBC’s Planet Earth 2 and A Perfect Planet

looking for inspiration?

Black and white colobus monkey in lush green foliage, One&Only Nyungwe House, Nyungwe Forest, Rwanda Guest observing gorilla in dense rainforest vegetation Modern white lodge buildings lit at dusk with landscaping, Hemingways Retreat Kigali, Kigali, Rwanda Illuminated lakeside lodge with large swimming pool at dusk, Lake Kivu Serena Hotel, Lake Kivu, Rwanda Aerial view of lodge buildings nestled among forest canopy, Nyungwe House, Nyungwe Forest, Rwanda Terracotta-roofed lodge nestled in misty mountain valley, Virunga Lodge, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda Modern hotel building lit at dusk with palm trees, Kigali Serena Hotel, Kigali, Rwanda Illuminated pool area with lounge chairs and dining table at dusk, Hemingways Retreat Kigali, Kigali, Rwanda Guests relaxing by fire pit on evening terrace, Nyungwe House, Nyungwe Forest, Rwanda Lakeside swimming pool with lounge chairs and palm trees, Lake Kivu Serena Hotel, Lake Kivu, Rwanda Volcanic mountains rise above forested hillsides and settlement, Virunga Lodge, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda Resort pool area at dusk with surrounding buildings and trees, Kigali Serena Hotel, Kigali, Rwanda Courtyard with illuminated colonial-style buildings and tropical plants, Hemingways Retreat Kigali, Kigali, Rwanda Covered deck with seating overlooking forested canopy view, Nyungwe House, Nyungwe Forest, Rwanda

rwanda

a week of gorillas and rainforest

Seven nights across Rwanda, linking Nyungwe rainforest, Lake Kivu and the gorillas of Volcanoes National Park.

  • Private Safari
  • From $8,700 pp
  • 2 guests
  • 7 nights
View Safari
Young gorilla feeding on vegetation in dense forest, Bwindi Lodge, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, Uganda Guest observing gorilla in dense rainforest vegetation Modern white lodge buildings lit at dusk with landscaping, Hemingways Retreat Kigali, Kigali, Rwanda Terracotta-roofed lodge nestled in misty mountain valley, Virunga Lodge, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda Thatched-roof lodge nestled among trees with mountains beyond, Mount Gahinga Lodge, Mgahinga National Park, Uganda Lodge nestled among dense forest canopy with mountain backdrop, Bwindi Lodge, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, Uganda Illuminated pool area with lounge chairs and dining table at dusk, Hemingways Retreat Kigali, Kigali, Rwanda Volcanic mountains rise above forested hillsides and settlement, Virunga Lodge, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda Spacious bedroom with four-poster bed and fireplace, Mount Gahinga Lodge, Mgahinga National Park, Uganda Dense tropical forest canopy viewed from above, Bwindi Lodge, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, Uganda Courtyard with illuminated colonial-style buildings and tropical plants, Hemingways Retreat Kigali, Kigali, Rwanda Spacious bedroom with four-poster canopy bed and fireplace, Virunga Lodge, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda Guest observing gorilla in lush forest vegetation, Mount Gahinga Lodge, Mgahinga National Park, Uganda Covered wooden deck with chairs overlooking forested valley, Bwindi Lodge, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, Uganda

rwanda & uganda

all gorilla parks safari

Ten nights linking Kigali, Volcanoes, Mgahinga and Bwindi, tracking mountain gorillas across Rwanda and Uganda.

  • Private Safari
  • From $12,125 pp
  • 2 guests
  • 10 nights
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Close-up portrait of a mountain gorilla peering through dense forest foliage Modern white lodge buildings lit at dusk with landscaping, Hemingways Retreat Kigali, Kigali, Rwanda Modern lodge building with volcanic mountain backdrop and green fields, Singita Kwitonda Lodge, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda Infinity pool overlooking savanna landscape with trees, Singita Faru Faru Lodge, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania Safari lodge buildings with thatched roofs nestled among trees, Mwiba Lodge, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania Overhead view of curved white building with pool surrounded by vegetation, Xanadu Villas, Zanzibar & Pemba, Tanzania Illuminated pool area with lounge chairs and dining table at dusk, Hemingways Retreat Kigali, Kigali, Rwanda Modern lodge building nestled in lush green valley landscape, Singita Kwitonda Lodge, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda Modern lodge building with pool surrounded by savanna vegetation, Singita Faru Faru Lodge, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania Candlelit outdoor dining deck overlooking savanna at dusk, Mwiba Lodge, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania Luxury villa pool with white picket fence and garden views, Xanadu Villas, Zanzibar & Pemba, Tanzania Courtyard with illuminated colonial-style buildings and tropical plants, Hemingways Retreat Kigali, Kigali, Rwanda Modern brick lodge building with mountain backdrop and vegetation, Singita Kwitonda Lodge, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda Guest observing gorilla in dense rainforest vegetation

rwanda & tanzania

gorillas, grumeti and zanzibar

Rwanda's mountain gorillas, private Serengeti reserves in Tanzania and a finish on the Zanzibar coast.

  • Private Safari
  • From $32,805 pp
  • 2 guests
  • 15 nights
View Safari

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Planning a journey together

our approach

remote, exclusive
& personal

Every journey starts with a conversation. We take the time to understand your vision before we start planning.

Whether by phone or in person, we work with you directly to shape something that is considered, personal, and expertly delivered.

Every journey starts with a conversation. We favour a direct, personal approach: understanding your vision before anything else.

Whether by phone or in person, we work with you directly to shape a journey that is both thoughtfully considered and expertly delivered.

Get in touch to start planning yours.

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