Akagera

Visitors travel across open savannah where Masai giraffes, introduced from Kenya in 1986, now number 78, and encounter both eastern black rhinoceros and southern white rhinoceros, the only Rwandan park to host the two species after reintroductions in 2017, 2019 and 2021. Lions, reintroduced from South Africa in 2015, have risen to a herd of 72, while the park’s large‑mammal count grew from 4,000 in 2010 to over 13,500 by 2018. The lake system offers boat trips through reed‑lined channels, and the Kagera River provides scenic riverbank walks.

Management shifted to a partnership between the Rwanda Development Board and African Parks in 2010, prompting security upgrades such as a 120 km western fence, aerial surveillance and a canine anti‑poaching unit. Tourist arrivals climbed from 8,000 in 2010 to 67,661 in 2025, generating $4.8 million in revenue and earning a place on National Geographic’s 2026 top‑25 destinations list. The coexistence of black and white rhinos, each reintroduced after a decade‑long absence, remains the park’s most distinctive feature.