Annual Events
Rwanda has a variety of events that gather people from the country and outside the country. Attending one of these events is a lifetime experience that makes your stay in Rwanda unforgettable. Ikaze Rwanda Tours and Travel help individuals who are looking forward to gaining extraordinary experiences from those occasions.
Kwita Izina
Kwita Izina is a naming ceremony of the newborn baby Mountain Gorillas held every year and is the leading ceremony amongst Rwanda’s annual biggest events. This significant naming day was derived from Rwandan ancestral human baby naming ceremony and aims at raising awareness and funds for the protection of Mountain Gorillas as well as the expansion of their habitat.
Tour du Rwanda
Tour du Rwanda is an international cycling race that happens once in a year and it gathers the riders from different continents. As the competition goes on, people from the entire world are able to see Rwanda’s beautiful landscape such as forests, lakes, hills, and many others.
Kigali International Peace Marathon
Kigali International Peace Marathon is an annual running race in which both local and international participants take part. It not only keeps them relaxed but also gives them a chance to experience the beauty of the green Kigali.
Ride Rwanda
Ride Rwanda is an annual amateur cycling event where people from all over the world enjoy beautiful natural wonders in the Land of Thousand Hills while riding bicycles across the same roads as the professional riders from the UCI 2.1 Level Tour du Rwanda in breathtaking places across Rwanda such as the Kivu-Belt region. Want to participate? Ikaze Rwanda Tours & Travel Services is ready to help you book your spot.
Packing List
Travel Documents
All visitors travelling to Rwanda are required to have a valid passport as well as other recognized documents such as a visa detailing the reason for his/her travel. For more info, visit: www.migration.gov.rw
Toiletries
Most basic personal care products are available in numerous shops located in Rwanda’s cities. These may include hand soaps, shaving cream, lotion, makeup, cleansing pads, deodorant, facial tissue, hair clippers, pomade, perfumes, razors, sunscreen, and many others. If you have some particular needs and prescription drugs, you should pack them before taking a trip to Rwanda.
What to wear
For travelers to enjoy Rwanda’s natural wonders, it’s better to have different clothing depending on either rainy or dry seasons.
During the hot season, you should wear the types of clothing that make your skin breathe. In the rainy season, consider dressing a raincoat, light clothing, warm clothing for early mornings or late evenings, sturdy hiking shoes, long-sleeved shirts and trousers, and others.
The swimsuit, a wide-brimmed sun hat and sunglasses should be part of your packing list as well. The insect repellent is also recommended for you to discourage insects or mosquitoes from biting your skin.
Rwanda Flights
There are more than 9 airlines flying to and from Kigali. RwandAir, the country’s airline with 21 destinations operates both domestic and international flights to every corner of the world. For more information and guidance, visit: www.rwandair.com.
Apart from RwandAir, there are other airlines with regular flights to and from Kigali. These are Ethiopian Airlines (ET), Kenya Airways, KLM Royal, Brussels Airlines, Qatar Airways and Turkish Airlines.
FAQs
Q1: Which currency is used in Rwanda?
The country’s principal currency is Rwandan Franc (RWF). When travelling or shopping inside Rwanda’s cities, you may need to pay using local currency. In some cases, US dollars can be used when paying a higher amount of money in hotels, tracking gorillas and other excursions.
Q2: When is the best time to visit Rwanda?
Rwanda can be visited throughout different seasons of the year. Gorilla trekking and other forest walks are less demanding during the longer of the dry seasons between June and September while The winter season (between December and February) is the best time for gorilla trekking as travelers feel more comfortable hiking, watching birds and their related species with reduced risks for Malaria.
Q3: How is communications in Rwanda?
Rwanda’s cell phone network is outstanding as it was ranked among the top three African countries with the best internet connectivity resulting from an ever-growing fibre optic network. Apart from domestic phone networks that work in almost all regions of the country ranging from Kigali city to the countryside, international phone calls also work to a higher extent where an individual can communicate with friends or relatives based outside Rwanda easily. All SIM cards for the network are always available everywhere, even in rural areas. Cell phones can be purchased or rented from numerous shops in Kigali and remote regions. Some places especially towns, have internet cafes and computer centres.
Q4: What are the official languages spoken in Rwanda?
Rwanda has three official languages including English, French and Kinyarwanda mostly used by native speakers. In some cases, Swahili is also an official language for the East African Community
Q5: What do I have to know about safety and health in Rwanda?
Arriving and departing passengers at Kigali International Airport must present a negative COVID-19 PCR test taken within 72 hours before departure and should abide by other health guidelines. In addition, for international tourists to travel in Rwanda, a certificate of yellow-fever vaccination is needed. Tourists travelling to Rwanda are advised to take prescription medicine such as prophylactic drugs to prevent Malaria. In case of sickness, there are hospitals for inpatient care when an individual is in life-threatening conditions and clinics for non-emergency outpatient care in most regions of the country. Learn more at www.rbc.gov.rw.