One of Africa's Great Lakes, with no crocodiles, no hippo and no bilharzia — so you can swim. It runs the length of Rwanda's western border, which makes the lakeshore road the natural link between Volcanoes National Park in the north and Nyungwe in the south.
- Towns
- Rubavu (Gisenyi), Karongi (Kibutsi), Rusizi (Cyangugu)
- Swimming
- Safe — no bilharzia, crocodiles or hippo
- From Volcanoes NP
- 1.5 hrs to Rubavu
- To Nyungwe
- 2–3 hrs from Karongi
- Congo Nile Trail
- 227 km, hiking or mountain biking
- Best for
- Two nights doing nothing
Three towns, three moods
Rubavu, formerly Gisenyi, is the closest to the volcanoes and has the sand and the old colonial waterfront. Karongi in the middle is quieter, prettier and better placed for boat trips out to the islands. Rusizi in the far south sits beside the Nyungwe forest and the Congolese border at Bukavu.
On the water
Boat trips run out to Napoleon Island for the fruit bat colony and to the coffee-growing islands around Karongi. Kayaks are available at all three towns. The swimming is the real draw, and after a muddy trek at 3,000 metres it is exactly what you want.
The Congo Nile Trail
A 227-kilometre route along the lakeshore from Rubavu to Rusizi, walkable in ten days or rideable in five, through banana groves, coffee terraces and fishing villages. Day sections are easy to arrange and are the best way to see rural Rwanda properly.
Why it belongs in the itinerary
Rwanda's two great forests are at opposite ends of the country. Driving between them in one push is possible and joyless; breaking it on Kivu turns a transfer day into the part of the trip people photograph most. Our 6-day Rwanda itinerary is built around it.
Questions
Frequently asked
Can you swim in Lake Kivu?
Yes. There is no bilharzia and there are no crocodiles or hippo. The lake does hold dissolved methane and carbon dioxide at depth, which is monitored and poses no risk to swimmers at the surface.
How far is Lake Kivu from Volcanoes National Park?
About an hour and a half from Musanze to Rubavu on good tarmac — an easy afternoon transfer after a gorilla trek.
Next
Keep planning
- 6-day Rwanda gorillas, Nyungwe and Kivu — the itinerary along this shore
- Nyungwe Forest — two to three hours south
- Volcanoes National Park — ninety minutes north
- Rwanda gorilla safaris — the country in full