When is the best time to visit Rwanda?

Rwanda, the country of a thousand hills as it is known of is ranked among the top ranked tourist destinations. A lot of people visit this country of East Africa every year. The number of tourists visiting Rwanda has increased over years. Statistics by the Rwanda Development Board, shows that in 2016 Rwanda received 1,38 million tourists the number increased to 1,57 million and 1,71 million in 2017 and 2018 respectively shortly before Covid 19. Most of the tourists visit Rwanda to see the majestic gorillas in Volcanoes National Park. However Rwandan tourism is not all about gorilla trekking, it also has the Akagera National Park for game drive and viewing the big five animals, Nyungwe National Park for chimpanzee trekking and canopy, historical museums, cultural centre among other attractions. As the world is recovering from the effects of Covid19 and tourism is resuming, one can ask him/herself when is the best time to visit Rwanda?

The timing of a trip is crucial in planning a trip as some parts of the world have specific time for the visit depending on certain factors including the weather, prices, availability of some services like hotels, attractions and many more. The best time to visit Rwanda will depend on ones’ availability and interests. Unlike some other parts, Rwanda can be visited any time of the year as Rwanda is in the tropical region and the climate is balanced through the year with rain and dry season. The rainy season starts from September to December and March to June whereas the dry season goes from January to Mid-March and June to August 2022. For tourism, Rwanda knows 2 high seasons whereby more tourists are visiting the country. This is June to September and December to January. If you are travelling during this period, you better book as early as possible for your trip in Rwanda, since some of the activities are limited in numbers like gorilla permits that are only 96 individual permits per day, 36 golden monkeys permit per day and sixteen chimpanzees per day.

Also considering the best time to visit Rwanda, you may think of travelling in the law season as some hotels and parks are offering discounts. Being in law season doesn’t mean that you are not going to see the animals or the activities are not available. This is because the law season is mostly in the rainy season and many people do not like travelling during this period. Like we have said above, the climate in Rwanda is moderate and during this period, the forest is green and animals are seen very close since they are not travelling long distances in search of food. Also those that are looking for adventure, will prefer this period of the rain.

To respond better to this question of the best time to visit Rwanda, you need to contact a tour operator who will advise depending on your interest, availability and affordability. For Unique Rwanda Vacation Experts, we take interests of the client and we transform it into a customized itinerary for the client. Please don’t hesitate to contact us for more information and inquiry.