Things To Do In Akagera National Park : Akagera National park is located in the Eastern region in Rwanda and it is considered as the largest national park in the country covering a total surface area of about 1,200 square kilometers. This national park was established in 1934 and it derives its name from River Akagera, which lies within the park. more so, Akagera National park is a seen as a perfect destination where one can ever choose to travel to while they are planning to visit Rwanda on a safari because it is a calm place with a good atmosphere and it is all surrounded with a good green grass vegetation, savannah grasslands, rolling hills, stunning waterbodies such as; Lake Rwanyakizinga, Lake Mihindi, Lake Gishanju, Lake Ihema among others, savannah woodlands and many others that provide tourists to capture scenic views.
Akagera National park is also the best destination to travel to while on an adventurous safari in Rwanda because it is known to be a home to the big five animals which tend to attract large numbers of people to travel from all over different parts of the world with an aim of checking out these species and they include; African elephants, lions, buffalos, leopards, and Rhinos. More so, tourists exploring within Akagera national park can also get chances to not only see the big five but also other wildlife species like; topi, elephants, hyenas, waterbucks, crocodiles, duikers, impala, elands, zebras, bush pigs, giraffes, roan antelopes, sitatunga antelopes, reedbucks, warthogs, black masked civet, klipspringer, duikers, side-stripped jackal, mongoose, several cats, giraffes, and other primate species like; blue monkeys, olive baboons, vervet monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys and many others. this national park is also the best place where bird lovers because it harbours around 500 bird species due to the fact that it is also surrounded by papyrus swamps, dense forests and savannah plains which act as good natural habitats for the birds.
Activities done in Akagera National park.
Tourists exploring within Akagera National park while on their safari are always granted with chances to engage in different exciting and interesting activities where they get to learn about new experiences and create remarkable memories and some of these activities include;
Game drives.
Embarking on game drives is one way to help the tourists explore well through Akagera national park because they get to drive through the green savannah plains and in the past wide leaved woodlands, which act as good natural habitats to many mammal species. Therefore, during these game drives, tourists get to see very many animals like; buffalos, giraffes, toips, oribis, waterbucks, bohor reedbucks, the defessa, lions, elands, semi-aquatic sitatunga and many others. However, these game drives in this park are conducted in two sessions for example in the morning, evening and in the night. More so, during the night game drives, tourists get to have a good experience as they sight see nocturnal animals such as; civets, leopards, wide-eyed bush babies, serval cats among others. In addition, they always accompanied with park guides who lead them through because they are well familiar with many parts of the park.
Birding.
Akagera National park is considered a birders paradise whereby it is a home to over 480 bird species that are always available within the park fir bird lovers to see. In addition, the best areas where to spot different kind of beautiful species is best within the savannah plains, forests, in the hills, around the river and the lakes. Therefore, some of these bird species include; swamp fly catchers, the red faced barbets, the great snipe, the armot chat , swamp fly catcher, the rare shoebill stork, the papyrus gonolex, the lesser kesterel among others.
Sport fishing.
Visiting in Akagera national park will bless you with great opportunities and engage into fishing activities, which are best done on both Lake Shakani and Lake Ihema. Fishing is a thrilling and exciting activity whereby they are always able to catch many kinds of fish species. More so, they are also free to roast, fry and grill the fish after catching them as you enjoy the good taste of the fish.
Boat Cruise.
Boat cruises is one of the best activities that provides tourists with a chance to relax and rewards you with opportunities to overlook at many wildlife species. This activity in Akagera national park is best done on Lake Ihema, which is known to be the second largest lake in Rwanda, and it is famously known because it has abundant hippos in a large population and crocodiles. More so, the boat cruise on Lake Ihema also offers you chances to take beautiful and clear photos of the animal species and view many other animals as they drink water to quetch their thirst or bath along the lakeshores.
Apart from the mentioned above activities, there are many other interesting activities that tourists can participate during their safari and these include; guided nature walks where they always accompanied with park guides, cultural encounters, community visits, visiting the Kigali city markets, the museum, the presidential palace, the Rusomo falls, the genocide war memorial centers and many others.
Contact our trusted tour operators in case of any more inquiries and information about things to do in Akagera national park and Book with our tours and travel companies such as; Explore Tours Rwanda who offer the best tour packages while on a safari in Rwanda.
