Discover Musanze: Volcanoes, Trails, and Twin Lakes

Musanze sits at the foot of the Virungas, and almost everything worth doing here starts before sunrise. Trailheads are a short drive from town, which is the argument for staying close rather than commuting from Kigali.

Gorilla trekking permits are booked months ahead and briefings start at 07:00 sharp. Lodges in Kinigi are fifteen minutes from the gate; from central Musanze allow forty.

A half-day walk between the two lakes, mostly on farm tracks, with the volcanoes behind you the whole way. No permit needed.

A small sacred forest on the edge of town, an hour end to end. The easiest thing to do on an afternoon you had written off.

Six hours up and back to a crater lake at 3,711 m. Steep, wet underfoot, and worth it on a clear morning.