What to Pack for Rwanda

Rwanda sits just south of the equator but almost entirely above 1,500 metres, and much of what you will do happens between 2,000 and 3,000. That means warm days, genuinely cold mornings, and rain that arrives without much notice in any month.

Pack for layers and for mud, and you will be fine.

The gorilla trek list

If you take nothing else from this article, take this. The single most common regret we hear is about gloves.

• Gardening-weight gloves. The forest is full of stinging nettles at chest height and you will be grabbing vegetation to pull yourself up.
• Waterproof jacket and over-trousers, not a light shower layer.
• Boots with ankle support and real grip, broken in before you arrive.
• Gaiters, in any month. Volcanic mud goes over the top of boots.
• Long sleeves and long trousers, tucked into your socks.
• A dry bag for your camera.
• Cash for a porter.

Clothing generally

• Layers rather than heavy items: a fleece or light down for early mornings, t-shirts for the middle of the day.
• Neutral colours for game drives. Avoid bright white, and avoid blue and black in areas with tsetse fly.
• Something smart-casual for Kigali. The city dresses better than most visitors expect.
• Modest clothing for community and memorial visits. Covered shoulders and knees.
• Swimwear for Lake Kivu, which people forget surprisingly often.
• More socks than you think. Wet feet are the theme of a Rwandan trip.

A note on plastic bags

Rwanda has banned single-use plastic bags, and this is enforced at the airport on arrival. Bags are sometimes removed from luggage. Use dry bags, packing cubes or fabric bags instead — it is a small thing that catches a lot of visitors out.

Kit worth bringing

• Binoculars. Genuinely essential in Akagera and Nyungwe, and almost nobody regrets bringing them.
• A head torch for pre-dawn starts, particularly chimp tracking.
• Universal adaptor. Rwanda uses European-style two-pin sockets.
• A power bank; lodge generators do not always run all night.
• Insect repellent with DEET.
• High-factor sun cream. Equatorial sun at altitude burns faster than you expect.
• Any medication you need, in its original packaging.

Cameras

For gorillas, bring something fast rather than something long. The forest is dark and you are close — a wide-to-normal zoom or a fast prime does more work than a big telephoto, which will be too tight and too slow. Flash is not permitted.

For Akagera, the opposite: reach helps. And bring a beanbag rather than a tripod, because you will be shooting from a vehicle.

What you can leave at home

• A drone. Use is restricted in Rwanda and not permitted in the national parks; assume you cannot fly it.
• Heavy jumpers. It does not get that cold outside of a night on Karisimbi.
• A large first aid kit. Lodges and vehicles carry basics, and Kigali pharmacies are good.
• Plastic bags, as above.

One last thing: leave room in your bag. Kimironko market in Kigali sells kitenge fabric by the length and there are tailors who will make something up the same day.