Rwanda Post-Gorilla: Kigali City Guide and What to Do After Your Trek

Rwanda post-gorilla safari options are richer than most visitors anticipate — many gorilla trekking visitors arrive in Rwanda with only the Volcanoes NP permit in mind and discover after the trek that Rwanda has an exceptionally interesting capital city in Kigali, a second major primate experience at Nyungwe Forest, a full Big Five savannah circuit at Akagera NP, and the dramatically scenic Lake Kivu shoreline connecting the Nyungwe and Volcanoes areas by a road that is one of Africa’s most beautiful mountain drives. The post-gorilla Rwanda circuit options in this guide are organised by how many additional days you have after completing the Volcanoes NP gorilla and golden monkey treks — from a single Kigali city day to a 5-day full Rwanda extension that adds chimp trekking, the lake, and Akagera before the international departure.

Kigali City: Two Days Well Spent

Kigali is the most immediately striking capital city in East Africa for first-time visitors — clean streets (plastic bags are banned and the city is genuinely litter-free), well-maintained roads, excellent restaurant and cafe culture, a vibrant contemporary art scene, and the specific quality of a city that has rebuilt itself intentionally after trauma with a visible civic pride in the result. A 2-day Kigali visit after the Volcanoes NP trek divides naturally into a genocide memorial and history day (Day 1) and a markets, arts, and cuisine day (Day 2).

Kigali Genocide Memorial (Gisozi): The memorial is the single most important site in Rwanda for understanding the country you are visiting. The Kigali Genocide Memorial opened in 2004 on the site where 250,000 genocide victims are buried — the memorial houses an exhibition on the history leading to the 1994 genocide, the events of the 100 days in which approximately 800,000 Tutsi and moderate Hutu were killed, and the subsequent 30 years of reconstruction and reconciliation. The exhibition is carefully curated, historically rigorous, and deeply affecting. Allow 2 to 3 hours for the visit. The memorial is located in Gisozi, 5 km from Kigali city centre — 15 minutes by taxi. Open daily 8 am to 5 pm. Entry: free (a donation is expected and appropriate). Audio guide available in English.

Kimironko Market: The largest open market in Kigali and the best place to observe the ordinary commercial life of the city — fabric vendors selling the colourful imigongo-patterned kitenge and ankara prints that are Rwanda’s most vibrant textile tradition; fresh produce sections with the full Rwandan vegetable and fruit palette; electronics and household goods sections; and the food court area where Rwandan staple dishes (isombe, matoke, chips and beans) are sold from open stalls at the prices Kigali residents actually pay rather than at restaurant tourist pricing. Allow 90 minutes to explore the market without specific purchasing intent, longer if the fabric or craft sections interest you for genuine shopping.

Inema Arts Centre (Kacyiru): The most important contemporary visual arts venue in Rwanda — a gallery and working studio space where Rwanda’s emerging visual artists exhibit and produce work in styles that explicitly engage with Rwanda’s post-genocide identity, its vibrant contemporary urban culture, and the East African artistic tradition. The Inema (from “ibyinema” — good things) is located in the Kacyiru district, 20 minutes from the city centre. Open Tuesday to Sunday, 9 am to 7 pm. Entry is free. The gallery’s permanent collection and rotating exhibitions provide a dimension of Rwanda’s contemporary culture that the wildlife circuit does not reach — and the work is often genuinely surprising in quality and conceptual ambition.

Kigali restaurants: The post-gorilla city night is an opportunity for the best meal of the Rwanda circuit. Recommended restaurants: Heaven Restaurant and Boutique Hotel (Kiyovu, fine dining with a garden setting, Rwandan and international menu, USD 20 to USD 35 per main course); Repub Lounge (Kiyovu, popular with Kigali professionals and visitors, excellent cocktails, casual dinner setting); Car Wash Nyamirambo (Nyamirambo neighbourhood, local food experience, brochettes and ugali at Kigali price levels, popular local gathering point); and the Sunday Brunch at the Serena Hotel Kigali for visitors with an unlimited buffet preference at a luxury hotel setting.

Golden Monkey Day Trip from Kigali

For visitors who completed the mountain gorilla trek but did not include the golden monkey trek in the Volcanoes NP day, a golden monkey day trip from Kigali is possible and straightforward. The Kinigi briefing centre (golden monkey departures from 7 am) is 90 km from Kigali — 1 hour 30 minutes driving on the A1. Leave Kigali by 5 am for a 7 am briefing arrival. The golden monkey trek visits the habituated troop of 40 to 80 golden monkeys in the Virunga bamboo forest, with a 1-hour observation period. Return to Kigali by 1 pm or continue to Musanze town for lunch. The golden monkey permit (USD 100 per person) must be booked in advance through RDB at rdb.rw — permit availability for golden monkey is more flexible than gorilla permits, but booking at least 2 to 4 weeks in advance for peak season dates is recommended.

Lake Kivu Extension: Gisenyi or Kibuye

Lake Kivu (the lake shared between Rwanda and DRC) is one of Africa’s most beautiful highland lakes — a 2,370 km2 freshwater lake at 1,462 m altitude, surrounded by volcanic hills covered in eucalyptus and banana, dotted with peninsulas and small islands, and edged by the relaxed lakeside towns of Gisenyi (now Rubavu) in the north and Kibuye (now Karongi) in the south-centre. A 2-night Lake Kivu addition after the gorilla trek at Volcanoes NP makes geographic sense: the Volcanoes NP to Gisenyi/Rubavu drive is 45 km (50 minutes south-west from Kinigi), and the Gisenyi to Kigali drive is 160 km (2 hours east on good tarmac). Two nights at a Gisenyi guesthouse or lake-view lodge gives a complete decompression after the physical demands of the gorilla trek — kayaking on the lake, swimming at the sandy lake beaches, an island boat trip, and an evening at the Rubavu waterfront watching the DRC Goma shoreline lights across the water. Budget accommodation at Gisenyi: USD 30 to USD 60 per room. Mid-range: La Palme de Gisenyi or the Paradis Malahide Hotel at USD 80 to USD 150 per room.

Akagera NP Extension Before Departure

Akagera National Park (eastern Rwanda, 1,200 km2 savannah and lake ecosystem) is the ideal final leg of a Rwanda self-drive circuit before the Kigali departure flight. The Akagera Kinyinya gate is 167 km east of Kigali (2 hours on the B9 highway) — a 2-night Akagera extension adds the Big Five (lion, elephant, rhinoceros, leopard, buffalo) and the exceptional hippo, crocodile, and waterbird circuit on Lakes Ihema and Shakani to a Rwanda itinerary that otherwise covers only the primate and forest experience. Akagera’s 30-animal lion pride and 20 black rhinoceros (reintroduced from South Africa and the Czech Republic in 2017) make this one of the most complete conservation recovery stories in East Africa, and the lake circuit at dawn (hippo pods of 200 to 500 animals, the shoebill stork in the papyrus fringe, and the flamingo lake shore) is distinct from any other Rwanda wildlife experience. A 2-night Akagera addition followed by a 1-night Kigali final night before the international flight completes a Rwanda circuit that covers primate, forest, savannah, and urban dimensions of the country in a single efficient route.

See our Rwanda circuit planning resources or book your Rwanda self-drive vehicle.