3 Days Mount Bisoke and Karisimbi Hike

Wake up, eat a quick breakfast, pack a lunch, and our driver guide will pick you up from your hotel in Kigali and take you to the park headquarters for a briefing at around 7:30 am. Following the briefing, you will be paired with an experienced park guide and driven to the beginning of the hiking trail, where you will receive a hiking stick and hire a porter to assist you when hiking in difficult terrain. You will then begin hiking Mount Karisimbi, which is located at an elevation of 4507 meters above sea level. It takes about 6 hours to hike Mount Karisimbi, passing through vegetation zones like bamboo forests, hagania-hypericum forests, giant lobelia, volcano edges, ridges, steep altitudes, and calderas with fantastic views of numerous birds and primates, among others. For your overnight stay and dinner, you’ll make a pit stop at a camp which is 3,700 meters.

You will have an early breakfast on the second day of the three-day hike up Mounts Bisoke and Karisimbi before setting out for the summit, passing through a series of steep slopes. When you reach the summit, you’ll be treated to breathtaking views of the Nyiragongo and Nyamulagira active volcanoes, forests, local communities, and the Virunga mountain ranges. You can also take some incredible photos. You will begin your 3 to 4 hour descent back to the starting point after enjoying the summit’s breathtaking views, where you will meet your driver guide and be taken to the lodge for lunch and some downtime.

Following an early breakfast, you’ll pack a lunch and meet your driver guide to travel to the park’s administrative center for a pre-hike briefing. After receiving a briefing, you will be paired with an experienced park guide and driven to the starting point, where you will receive a hiking stick and hire a porter to help you ascend steep inclines and carry your backpack. It takes about 6 hours to hike Mount Bisoke, not counting the 2 hours it takes to get there. While hiking, you will pass through dense vegetation zones like bamboo, hypericum, and sub-alpine where you will have amazing views of animals like buffalo, elephants, various bird species, primates like golden monkeys, gorillas, and more.

You can take stunning photos and enjoy a picnic lunch after you reach the summit, which offers breathtaking views of the Virunga and Crater Lake Rwenzori mountain ranges. You will begin your descent to the starting point after lunch, where you will meet your driver/guide to take you to the airport or to your hotel, depending on whether you need to catch a flight out of Kigali.