Your 10-Day Rwanda Bird Watching Safari begins when you arrive at Kigali International Airport. Meet your birding guide and transfer to your hotel.

Depending on your arrival time, begin with a relaxed birding experience around Kigali. Kigali can produce surprisingly good bird sightings, particularly around gardens, wetlands and Nyarutarama Lake. Species recorded around the city include African Swamphen, Grey-headed Bushshrike, African Goshawk, Palm-nut Vulture, Crested Barbet and several sunbird species.

Use the evening to prepare your equipment and review the birding checklist with your guide.

Wake early for a morning birding session around Kigali's wetlands. Early mornings are particularly useful for birding because many species are active before the heat of the day.

After breakfast, drive toward Akagera National Park in eastern Rwanda. Akagera's combination of wetlands, lakes, woodland and open savannah makes it one of Rwanda's most important birding destinations. The park has recorded hundreds of bird species, including the sought-after Shoebill and Red-faced Barbet.

Arrive in the afternoon and begin your first birding session around the park.

Wake before sunrise for a full day of bird watching in Akagera. Your specialist guide will focus on the park's different habitats, including papyrus wetlands, lakeshores, woodland and open grassland.

Possible sightings include: Shoebill · Red-faced Barbet · Papyrus Gonolek · White-winged Swamp Warbler · Carruthers's Cisticola · Grey-crowned Crane · African Fish Eagle · Kingfishers · Herons · Egrets · Storks · Raptors · Waterbirds.

The exact species list will depend on season, habitat and recent sightings. Return to your lodge in the evening.

Today you explore Akagera's birdlife from the water. After an early morning birding session, take a boat trip on Lake Ihema. The lake and surrounding wetlands provide excellent opportunities for observing waterbirds, hippos and crocodiles.

The boat excursion can also give you opportunities to look for African Finfoot, which is regularly recorded in the Akagera area, together with other water-associated species.

Spend the afternoon birding around the park before returning to your lodge.

After breakfast, leave Akagera and begin the long journey toward southwestern Rwanda. The landscape changes from eastern Rwanda's savannah and wetlands to the mountainous scenery of the country's southwest.

Continue toward Nyungwe National Park, one of the most important birding destinations in Rwanda.

Arrive in the Nyungwe area in the evening. Relax and prepare for several early-morning forest birding sessions.

Wake early for your first major birding session in Nyungwe. Nyungwe contains approximately 322 recorded bird species, including a large number of Albertine Rift species. The park's specialist birding experience is particularly valuable for travelers looking for forest species that are difficult to find elsewhere.

Your guide will take you along suitable forest trails, searching for species such as: Rwenzori Turaco · Red-collared Babbler · Handsome Francolin · Grauer's Warbler · Rwenzori Batis · Yellow-eyed Black Flycatcher · Regal Sunbird · Purple-breasted Sunbird · Mountain Sooty Boubou · Neumann's Warbler · White-tailed Blue Flycatcher · Albertine Rift endemics.

Birding in rainforest requires patience. Many species remain high in the canopy or move quickly through mixed feeding flocks. Return to your lodge after the birding session.

Today is dedicated to finding some of Nyungwe's more specialized forest birds. Depending on current sightings, your guide will select the most productive trails and habitats.

The Red-collared Babbler is one of the most sought-after species in Nyungwe, while other targets may include Rwenzori Turaco, Grauer's Warbler, sunbirds, boubous and other Albertine Rift species.

For experienced birders, the day can be adapted around particular target species.

After breakfast, continue your exploration of Nyungwe. Depending on conditions and availability, visit the Nyungwe Canopy Walkway. The elevated walkway provides a different perspective of the forest canopy and can offer opportunities to observe birds that are difficult to see from the forest floor.

The afternoon can be dedicated to another forest trail or a quieter birding session around the lodge and surrounding forest edge.

Nyungwe also supports a remarkable diversity of primates, so you may encounter monkeys during your birding walks.

Wake early for a final birding session around Nyungwe before beginning the journey back toward Kigali. The route provides opportunities to stop at suitable habitats for additional birding.

Depending on the season and route conditions, your guide can make short stops around wetlands, agricultural landscapes and forest edges.

Arrive in Kigali later in the day. Enjoy your final evening in Rwanda.

Wake early for a final birding session around Kigali. Depending on your flight time, you can visit Nyarutarama Lake or another suitable urban birding site.

Kigali can produce a surprising variety of birds, making it possible to add several final species to your checklist before departure.

Your guide will then transfer you to Kigali International Airport for your departure flight.