Rwanda — Attractions
Lake Kivu
One of the African Great Lakes, Lake Kivu covers 1,040 square miles (2,700 sq km)on the border of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Three lakeside towns, Cyangugu, Kibuye and Gisenyi, are increasing in popularity with tourists with their offerings of water sports, island excursions, bird watching, and hiking.
Rwanda Genocide Museum
Built on a mass grave site, the Kigali Genocide Memorial Center is a stark reminder of the violent history of Rwanda. The genocide which saw 800,000 men, women and children killed receives meaningful and tasteful tribute with three permanent exhibitions, including the Education Center, Memorial Gardens, and National Documentation Center of the Genocide.
- Website
- www.kigalimemorialcenter.org
Dian Fossey's Grave
American zoologist Dian Fossey became famous for her dedication to studying and protecting endangered mountain gorillas in Rwanda. Her 18-year study inspired the 1988 film Gorillas in the Mist, and promoted primate conservation worldwide. She was murdered in 1985, and interred at Karisoke, a grave site she had constructed for gorillas. The journey to her grave involves a five-hour trek, and though the cabins and buildings are gone, visitors may glimpse buffalo, elephants and even gorillas.
Butare
Once Rwanda's largest city, Butare (also known as Huye) is home to several important Rwandan landmarks, including the Christian Cathedral and the national University of Rwanda. The two most popular attractions in Butare, however, are the National Museum of Rwanda, which chronicles the cultural history of the region through displays of photos and traditional artifacts; and Nyanza, the traditional seat of Rwanda's feudal monarchy, site of the restored 19th-century Royal Palace. The palace at Nyanza is home to the Rwesero Art Museum, Olympic Academy, Sport Museum, Cultural Center, and stadiums of various sports.
- Website
- www.museum.gov.rw
Tea Plantations
Tea is a major product of Rwanda's economy, with many thousands of tons exported each year. The government is slowly privatising plantations into cooperatives and 'Tea Societies', empowering local farmers. Many visitors to Rwanda enjoy seeing the plantations with their dramatically-sloped fields and panoramic vistas, and buying locally-produced varieties to take back as souvenirs from Rwanda. Plantations near Lake Kivu and Nyungwe Forest are especially popular as package tour excursions.
Karisimbi Volcano
With a name meaning 'white shell' is Kinyarwanda, Mount Karisimbi sticks out above the other seven major mountains of the Virunga range that divide Rwanda from the Democratic Republic of Congo. An inactive volcano, Karisimbi provides hiking and overnight trekking opportunities for tourists in search of gorillas and amazing views and is located not far from the former site of Dian Fossey's research station.
Lake Kivu
One of the African Great Lakes, Lake Kivu covers 1,040 square miles (2,700 sq km)on the border of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Three lakeside towns, Cyangugu, Kibuye and Gisenyi, are increasing in popularity with tourists with their offerings of water sports, island excursions, bird watching, and hiking.
Rwanda Genocide Museum
Built on a mass grave site, the Kigali Genocide Memorial Center is a stark reminder of the violent history of Rwanda. The genocide which saw 800,000 men, women and children killed receives meaningful and tasteful tribute with three permanent exhibitions, including the Education Center, Memorial Gardens, and National Documentation Center of the Genocide.
- Website
- www.kigalimemorialcenter.org
Dian Fossey's Grave
American zoologist Dian Fossey became famous for her dedication to studying and protecting endangered mountain gorillas in Rwanda. Her 18-year study inspired the 1988 film Gorillas in the Mist, and promoted primate conservation worldwide. She was murdered in 1985, and interred at Karisoke, a grave site she had constructed for gorillas. The journey to her grave involves a five-hour trek, and though the cabins and buildings are gone, visitors may glimpse buffalo, elephants and even gorillas.
Butare
Once Rwanda's largest city, Butare (also known as Huye) is home to several important Rwandan landmarks, including the Christian Cathedral and the national University of Rwanda. The two most popular attractions in Butare, however, are the National Museum of Rwanda, which chronicles the cultural history of the region through displays of photos and traditional artifacts; and Nyanza, the traditional seat of Rwanda's feudal monarchy, site of the restored 19th-century Royal Palace. The palace at Nyanza is home to the Rwesero Art Museum, Olympic Academy, Sport Museum, Cultural Center, and stadiums of various sports.
- Website
- www.museum.gov.rw
Tea Plantations
Tea is a major product of Rwanda's economy, with many thousands of tons exported each year. The government is slowly privatising plantations into cooperatives and 'Tea Societies', empowering local farmers. Many visitors to Rwanda enjoy seeing the plantations with their dramatically-sloped fields and panoramic vistas, and buying locally-produced varieties to take back as souvenirs from Rwanda. Plantations near Lake Kivu and Nyungwe Forest are especially popular as package tour excursions.
Karisimbi Volcano
With a name meaning 'white shell' is Kinyarwanda, Mount Karisimbi sticks out above the other seven major mountains of the Virunga range that divide Rwanda from the Democratic Republic of Congo. An inactive volcano, Karisimbi provides hiking and overnight trekking opportunities for tourists in search of gorillas and amazing views and is located not far from the former site of Dian Fossey's research station.
Lake Kivu
One of the African Great Lakes, Lake Kivu covers 1,040 square miles (2,700 sq km)on the border of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Three lakeside towns, Cyangugu, Kibuye and Gisenyi, are increasing in popularity with tourists with their offerings of water sports, island excursions, bird watching, and hiking.
Rwanda Genocide Museum
Built on a mass grave site, the Kigali Genocide Memorial Center is a stark reminder of the violent history of Rwanda. The genocide which saw 800,000 men, women and children killed receives meaningful and tasteful tribute with three permanent exhibitions, including the Education Center, Memorial Gardens, and National Documentation Center of the Genocide.
- Website
- www.kigalimemorialcenter.org
Dian Fossey's Grave
American zoologist Dian Fossey became famous for her dedication to studying and protecting endangered mountain gorillas in Rwanda. Her 18-year study inspired the 1988 film Gorillas in the Mist, and promoted primate conservation worldwide. She was murdered in 1985, and interred at Karisoke, a grave site she had constructed for gorillas. The journey to her grave involves a five-hour trek, and though the cabins and buildings are gone, visitors may glimpse buffalo, elephants and even gorillas.
Butare
Once Rwanda's largest city, Butare (also known as Huye) is home to several important Rwandan landmarks, including the Christian Cathedral and the national University of Rwanda. The two most popular attractions in Butare, however, are the National Museum of Rwanda, which chronicles the cultural history of the region through displays of photos and traditional artifacts; and Nyanza, the traditional seat of Rwanda's feudal monarchy, site of the restored 19th-century Royal Palace. The palace at Nyanza is home to the Rwesero Art Museum, Olympic Academy, Sport Museum, Cultural Center, and stadiums of various sports.
- Website
- www.museum.gov.rw
Tea Plantations
Tea is a major product of Rwanda's economy, with many thousands of tons exported each year. The government is slowly privatising plantations into cooperatives and 'Tea Societies', empowering local farmers. Many visitors to Rwanda enjoy seeing the plantations with their dramatically-sloped fields and panoramic vistas, and buying locally-produced varieties to take back as souvenirs from Rwanda. Plantations near Lake Kivu and Nyungwe Forest are especially popular as package tour excursions.
Karisimbi Volcano
With a name meaning 'white shell' is Kinyarwanda, Mount Karisimbi sticks out above the other seven major mountains of the Virunga range that divide Rwanda from the Democratic Republic of Congo. An inactive volcano, Karisimbi provides hiking and overnight trekking opportunities for tourists in search of gorillas and amazing views and is located not far from the former site of Dian Fossey's research station.
Lake Kivu
One of the African Great Lakes, Lake Kivu covers 1,040 square miles (2,700 sq km)on the border of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Three lakeside towns, Cyangugu, Kibuye and Gisenyi, are increasing in popularity with tourists with their offerings of water sports, island excursions, bird watching, and hiking.
Rwanda Genocide Museum
Built on a mass grave site, the Kigali Genocide Memorial Center is a stark reminder of the violent history of Rwanda. The genocide which saw 800,000 men, women and children killed receives meaningful and tasteful tribute with three permanent exhibitions, including the Education Center, Memorial Gardens, and National Documentation Center of the Genocide.
- Website
- www.kigalimemorialcenter.org
Dian Fossey's Grave
American zoologist Dian Fossey became famous for her dedication to studying and protecting endangered mountain gorillas in Rwanda. Her 18-year study inspired the 1988 film Gorillas in the Mist, and promoted primate conservation worldwide. She was murdered in 1985, and interred at Karisoke, a grave site she had constructed for gorillas. The journey to her grave involves a five-hour trek, and though the cabins and buildings are gone, visitors may glimpse buffalo, elephants and even gorillas.
Butare
Once Rwanda's largest city, Butare (also known as Huye) is home to several important Rwandan landmarks, including the Christian Cathedral and the national University of Rwanda. The two most popular attractions in Butare, however, are the National Museum of Rwanda, which chronicles the cultural history of the region through displays of photos and traditional artifacts; and Nyanza, the traditional seat of Rwanda's feudal monarchy, site of the restored 19th-century Royal Palace. The palace at Nyanza is home to the Rwesero Art Museum, Olympic Academy, Sport Museum, Cultural Center, and stadiums of various sports.
- Website
- www.museum.gov.rw
Tea Plantations
Tea is a major product of Rwanda's economy, with many thousands of tons exported each year. The government is slowly privatising plantations into cooperatives and 'Tea Societies', empowering local farmers. Many visitors to Rwanda enjoy seeing the plantations with their dramatically-sloped fields and panoramic vistas, and buying locally-produced varieties to take back as souvenirs from Rwanda. Plantations near Lake Kivu and Nyungwe Forest are especially popular as package tour excursions.
Karisimbi Volcano
With a name meaning 'white shell' is Kinyarwanda, Mount Karisimbi sticks out above the other seven major mountains of the Virunga range that divide Rwanda from the Democratic Republic of Congo. An inactive volcano, Karisimbi provides hiking and overnight trekking opportunities for tourists in search of gorillas and amazing views and is located not far from the former site of Dian Fossey's research station.
