Top things to do in Akagera national park; Akagera national park is a savannah national park located in eastern part of Rwanda along the border with Tanzania. The national park was gazetted in 1934 and it was named after Kagera River which flows along its eastern boundary and feeds into seral lakes such as Lake Ihema, Lake Shakani, Lake Mihindi, Lake Gishanju, Lake Rwanyakizinga among others. Akagera national park covers an area of 1,200 Square kilometers and it’s a home of different wildlife species including the big five mammals elephants, buffaloes, rhinos, lions, leopards, other animals like impalas, giraffes, zebras, bushbucks, oribi, warthogs, waterbucks and variety of bird species.

Top things to do in Akagera national park

Game drives in Akagera national park

Game drive is one of the most famous activities in Akagera national park where visitors will be able to explore the park in a comfortable pop up safari vehicle with a professional driver guide. Game drives in Akagera national park are done in the northern part of the park and can either be done very early in the morning or in the afternoon. During the game drive you will follow different game tracks where you will be able to view animals like buffaloes, elephants, giraffes, lions, leopards, roan antelopes, topi, waterbucks, impalas, elands, oribi, bushbucks, zebras, klipspringer among others.

Akagera national park also offers night game drives where visitors will be able to explore the park at night with an armed park ranger and spotlight torches for clear viewing of nocturnal animals. During the night game drive in Akagera national park which takes about 2 to 3 hours, you will be able to view nocturnal animals like lions, leopards, hyenas, serval cats, civet, view hippos feeding among others.

Boat cruise 

Boat cruise in Akagera national park is an interesting activity that is done on Lake Ihema which is the biggest lake located in the southern part of the park. Boat cruise in Akagera national park is done in different schedules that is the morning schedule, the day schedule and the sunset schedule. During the boat cruise, you will be able to view large concentrations of hippos and crocodiles in water, view other animals like buffaloes, waterbucks, elephants, warthogs drinking water along the shores, view aquatic bird species like the elusive shoebill stork, malachite kingfishers, herons, papyrus gonolek among others.

Birding

Akagera national park is a home of over 525 recorded bird species including savannah birds, endemic birds, water birds and migratory birds which makes it one of the best birding destinations in Rwanda. During bird watching in Akagera national park, you will be accompanied by an experienced bird guide and follow different birding trails in the park where you will be able to view different bird species including the Shoebill Stork, Lesser Kestrel, Papyrus Gonolek, Long-tailed Cisticola, Northern Brown-throated Weaver, African Kingfisher, Yellow-bellied Eremomela, Red Faced Barbet, Sooty Falcon, Striped Pipit, Slate-coloured Boubou, Western Reef Heron, Ross’s Turaco, Breasted Roller, Heuglin’s Robin Chat, Eleonoras Falcon, Brown Crested Lapwing, Bunting Crested Barbet, Grasshopper Buzzard, Brown Snake Eagle, Bateleur, Carruther’s Cisicola, Marsh Owl, African Jacana, Rufous-crowned Roller, Greater Honeyguide, Hooded Vulture, Kittlitz’s Plover, Gull-billed Tern, Augur Buzzard, Green Woodhoopoe, Crowned Lapwing, Ring-necked Francolin, African Fish Eagle, Shelley’s Francolin, African Harrier Hawk among others.

Nature walk in Akagera national park

Nature walk is an exciting activity in Akagera national park where you will be able to explore the park on foot with the company of an experienced park guide and an armed ranger to protect you from any danger. During the guided nature walk which takes about 2 to 3 hours, you will follow different hiking trails where you will be able to get up-close and personal with different wildlife species, enjoy the cool breeze, views of the beautiful hills, listen to sweet sounds of bird species, take beautiful photos among others.

Sport fishing in Akagera national park

Sport fishing is one of the top and amazing activities in Akagera national park. Sport fishing in Akagera national park is done on Lake Shakani where you will be able to catch and release different fish types such as tilapia fish, cat fish among others. Tourists who wish to engage in the sport fishing activity are required to carry their own fishing equipment’s.

Cultural tours in Akagera national park

Cultural tour is an exciting activity in Akagera national park where you will be able to interact with the local people in the neighboring communities, learn about their culture, way of living, learn how to milk their long-horned cows, make local beer from bananas, taste their local dishes, enjoy their traditional performances among others.

Best time to visit Akagera national park

Akagera national park can be visited anytime throughout the year though the best time is during the dry season in the months of June, July, August, September, December, January and February because during this period there is less rainfall in the park therefore vegetation will be short which helps you to view different animals clearly. During the dry season hiking trails will be dry and passable and abundant wildlife species will gather around the water bodies to drink water which gives you an opportunity to view different animals and take good pictures.

How to get to Akagera national park

Akagera national park is located in the eastern part of Uganda and can be accessed by road transport means where you will fly to Kigali international airport and then connect to the park headquarters via Rwamagana, Kayonza and Kabarondo towns and then to Akagera national park which takes about 2 o 3 hours drive.

Where to stay in Akagera national park

There are a number of accommodation facilities in and near the park where you can stay during the Rwanda safari. The accommodations range from budget, midrange and luxury including Ruzizi Tented Lodge, Akagera Game Lodge, Magashi Safari Camp, Vintage Cottage, Akagera Resort and Country Club, Nyagasambu Realm Beach Hotel, Dereva Hotel among others.