August 06, 2025 | Bujo Safaris
The weather and climate of parks in Rwanda, which is commonly or also known as the land of a thousand hills due to the fact that Rwanda has a lot of hills, which give the country a breathtaking view. Rwanda is located in central East Africa, below the equator in the southern hemisphere, also a landlocked country bordered by Uganda in the north, Tanzania in the east, the Democratic Republic of Congo in the west, and Burundi in the south. Generally, Rwanda's weather and climate are described as wet and dry, meaning that this country experiences both rainy and dry or sunny seasons throughout the year. Returning to the topic that brought you here, let us start by addressing some of the frequently asked questions about Rwanda’s national parks.
Rwanda, as a tourism destination, has approximately 4 national parks. To answer this question, let us break down the details of each of these four national parks.
Located in the eastern part of Rwanda, Akagera National Park is the largest and only savannah in Rwanda. Akagera National Park was originally a very large park covering approximately 2,500 square kilometers, but due to the massive deforestation as a result of the Rwanda genocide, which took place in 1994 which causing people to evacuate from their homes and head to Akagera National Park seeking refuge. Akagera National Park has or experiences a moderate to warm climate made up of two distinct seasons, both dry and wet throughout the year, and the altitude is approximately 1250 – 1825 meters. Dry seasons in Akagera National Park start from June to September, and the short dry seasons start from October to December. The dry seasons in Akagera National Park start from March to May.
Nyungwe National Park is one of the four national parks located in the southwestern part of Rwanda, one of the oldest rainforest national parks in Africa. Nyungwe National Park is made up of montane forest, bordered by Burundi in the south and the Democratic Republic of Congo in the west, and Lake Kivu. Since Nyungwe National Park is a tropical rainforest, it has mainly two seasons, which are the dry season and the wet season. The dry season is experienced from June to September, and during this period, it is the best time to visit Nyungwe National Park, as the park is mostly dry and not muddy, making it easy for visitors to access its trails. The wet season in Nyungwe National Park is experienced from October to December and January to February. During this season of the year, the park receives a lot of rain, and its trails tend to be slippery and muddy, making accessibility very hard for tourists or visitors. During the wet season, the temperatures in Nyungwe National Park are consistently around 20 degrees Celsius.
Gishwati Mukura National Park is found in the northwestern part of Rwanda, close to Lake Kivu, and also happens to be the latest national park that has been established or opened up in Rwanda. Gishwati Mukura National Park was opened in the year 2015 and was formed by combining both Gishwati and Mukura forests, which were suffering from the impact of degradation and are both found in northwestern Rwanda. The weather and climate in Gishwati Mukura National Park are cool tropical because this national park is located near the equator. Gishwati Mukula experiences the wet and dry, but the wet season is longer than the dry season since rain in Gishwati Mukula National Park can pour down at any time. The wet season in Gishwati Mukura National Park runs from June to September, and the dry season runs from February to May. During this period of the year, a lot of rain is received, and from mid-October mid mid-December, short rains are received in Gishwati Mukura National Park.
Located in the northwestern part of Rwanda, Volcanoes National Park, also known as Parc National des Volcans in French, is famous for having a sanctuary for the critically endangered mountain gorillas, making it one of the few destinations where mountain gorillas are found in Africa and worldwide. When it comes to the weather and climate of Volcanoes National Park has or experiences four seasons in a year, which is divided into two wet seasons and two dry seasons. The long dry season starts from mid-June to mid-September, followed by a short wet season which begins from October to December. The short dry season begins from January to February; from there, the long-wet season will begin and last till the end of May.
Rwanda‘s national parks are always open for visitors or tourists to visit throughout the year. But just as they say, there is always a bet time for everything. The best time to visit Rwanda’s national Parks is during the dry season of the year. The dry season is the best time to visit because a lot of outdoor tourism activities like hiking, trekking, and nature walks can be done during this period of the year due as the trails are dry and more accessible than during the wet season, when the trails are muddy and slippery, which limits accessibility.
Depending on the fact that you are heading to a new travel destination that you may have ever or never been to before, there are certain things or items that you should consider packing or carrying to ensure safety and enjoyment. Some of these things or items include,
Because Rwanda’s parks are made up of a lot of vegetation cover, which includes forests, you should consider packing insect repellent to help protect yourself from insect bites, which may sometimes be dangerous to your health.
Having known by now that Rwanda’s parks experience both wet and dry seasons, it will be good if you pack along either a raincoat or both to protect yourself from direct rain and keep yourself warm in case it rains during any of your activities in the parks.
A camera should be brought along to capture all the beautiful moments and attractions you come across during your visit to any of the parks, and the extra batteries will help you not miss out on capturing any of the beautiful moments of attractions due to the fact that the camera battery has died.
Other items or things you should consider packing or bringing along include items such as a travel backpack, a hat or cape, a refillable drinking water bottle, binoculars, sunscreen, and energy-giving snacks, to name a few.
In conclusion, the weather and climate of Rwanda’s parks are determined mainly by the altitudes of the areas in which they are located. Apart from that, the weather and climate are also determined or affected by the equator since Rwanda is close to the equator in the south direction.
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