Kudu Celebrates Attenborough

To mark Sir David Attenborough’s 90^th birthday, Kudu Travel launches new gorilla trekking tour in Rwanda

As Sir David Attenborough celebrates his 90^th birthday (8 May) and a week of special programming is scheduled by the BBC to mark the landmark occasion, Kudu Travel, a leading specialist in cultural walking tours, launches a new gorilla trekking tour in Rwanda.

Attenborough’s unforgettable encounter with Rwanda’s mountain gorillas – the mesmerising moment he became the plaything of a baby mountain gorilla – is perhaps the most famous sequence ever captured on a natural history film. The sequence was first broadcast in the Life on Earth series in the UK in 1979 and has since been watched by 500 million viewers worldwide, regularly being voted one of television’s most memorable moments.

If you are tempted to walk in the company of gorillas yourself, then Kudu Travel’s brand new trip should appeal: 

Rwanda: Gorillas and the Renaissance of a Country – from £6,890 pp

Travel through the land of a thousand hills on foot, by 4WD and by boat, staying in the vibrant capital Kigali, three National Parks, a tea plantation and on the shore of one of Africa’s Great Lakes. Over half the world’s remaining mountain gorillas reside in Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park. Here, accompanied by local guides and trackers, observe the magnificent creatures at close quarters. With three days to explore the park, there’s time to see golden monkeys too.

At Nyungwe Forest National Park, home to 13 primate species, listen and watch for chimpanzees, our closest genetic relatives, and the Ruwenzori colobus, an acrobatic herbivore that is endemic to the Albertine Rift. Akagera National Park, one of Africa’s oldest parks, on the border with Tanzania, is known for its scenic beauty, extensive bird population and recovering numbers of game (lion, elephant, buffalo, hippo) and 11 species of antelope (there’s a good chance of spotting impala, Defassa waterbuck, tsessebe, roan, eland, Bohor reedbuck, oribi, klipspringer, common duiker and bushbuck). Take a boat trip on Lake Ihema to observe waterbirds such as fish eagle, malachite kingfisher, African darter, openbill or jacana.

The 13-night ‘Rwanda – Gorillas and the Renaissance of a Country’ tour (5-18 January 2017) costs from £6,890 pp (two sharing), including accommodation (exclusive lodges, tented camps and comfortable hotels), all meals, private transfers, two boat trips, all sightseeing, entrance and national park fees as per the itinerary, game drives and walks with specialist trackers and rangers, and the services of a Kudu guide throughout. Walking grade: standard (a reasonable level of fitness is required. Chimpanzee and gorilla treks may be strenuous).

Please note that gorilla permit numbers are restricted and a deposit of £3,500 pp is necessary to guarantee the accommodation and permit reservations.

Flights are not included but can be booked through Kudu Travel.

For more details or to book, visit www.kudutravel.com or call 01225 436 115 to speak to an expert.