Game Drives in Akagera National Park.
Game drives in Akagera National Park are among the most thrilling activities to enjoy on your safari in the park, located in the northeastern region of Rwanda. It’s the only savannah park in the country and is famous for hosting the Big Five mammals: lions, elephants, rhinos, buffalo, and leopards. The park was established in 1934, and it covers an area of approximately 1122 square kilometres.
Akagera National Park has a rich biodiversity, it’s home to over 90 mammal species, 480 bird species, including migratory birds, savannah birds, woodland birds, and water birds species, reptiles and amphibians. The park’s rich biodiversity is supported by its diverse ecosystems, such as woodlands, lakes, savannah grasslands, and wetlands that provide a habitat to various wildlife and bird species. If you are interested in wildlife safaris in Rwanda, Akagera National Park must be added to your bucket list, as the park offers the best safari experiences in East Africa.
Game Drives Experiences in Akagera National Park.
There is no complete safari in Akagera National Park without going on a guided game drive safari, which allows visitors to explore the open savannah grasslands and woodlands. This is a guided activity led by an experienced park guide who gives more information about the wildlife and bird species that you might encounter on the drive. The park has three sessions of game drives: morning, evening and night game drives, which all provide exceptional safari experiences.
The morning game drive is conducted early in the morning, at around 6:30 am, providing visitors with the opportunity to spot various animals and birds while they are still active. They might have a chance of seeing predators roaming around the park with prey, and other animals like elephants, buffalo, warthogs, statunga, waterbucks, zebras, elands, and impalas wandering freely and grazing. Bird lovers will find the park a haven for birding, with various species of birds, including Secretary bird, Red-faced Barbet, Crested Francolin, Ring-necked Francolin, Shelley’s Francolin, Red-necked Spurfowl, Red-winged Francolin, Dusky Turtle-Dove, Speckled Pigeon, Mourning Collared-Dove, Ring-necked Dove, Emerald-spotted Wood-Dove, Denham’s Bustard, Black-bellied Bustard, White-crested Turaco, Ross’s Turaco, Purple-crested Turaco, and Eastern Plantain-eater, among others.
Evening game drives in Akagera National Park provide an opportunity to observe nocturnal animals emerging from their daytime hiding spots as they prepare for nighttime activities. This includes elusive predators like leopards, which rest during the day and hunt at night, hyenas, bush babies, among others.
Night game drives offer a remarkable experience as they allow you to witness nocturnal animals such as leopards and hyenas in action, along with various bird species, including Verreaux’s Eagle Owl, Pearl-spotted Owlet, Barn Owl, African Scops Owl, Pennant-Winged Nightjar, and Slender-tailed Nightjar, among others.
Best time to do game drives in the park.
Visitors can do game drives in Akagera National Park at any time of the year, and the best time depends on the individual’s preferences. The park experiences two seasons: the dry season and the wet season. The dry season runs from December to February and June to September, during this period, the park receives little to no rainfall, the tracks are dry, which makes it easy to search for wildlife species, and the vegetation cover is short. This creates a clear viewing of various birds and wildlife species, and taking clear pictures.
However, game drives can also be done in the wet season, which runs from March to May and October to November. This season is characterized by enough rainfall, the tracks are muddy, making it challenging to penetrate the park, and the vegetation cover is tall, creating an unclear view of wildlife species from a distance. This season favours budget travellers as tour companies and lodges often give discounts.
