Experience the best of Gisenyi

Gisenyi, also called Rubavu, lies on the northern shore of Lake Kivu in western Rwanda, with the town of Goma across the border in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Belgian-era villas stand in gardens along the lakeshore, sandy beaches run along the water, and the green hills of the Virunga region rise on the horizon.

Lake Kivu, one of Africa's Great Lakes, is long and deep, with many islands and a shoreline of steep, terraced hills, and the Congo Nile Trail follows the shore south for about 230 kilometres. The Virunga volcanoes rise to the north-east: Volcanoes National Park, with mountain gorillas and golden monkeys, lies to the east near Musanze, and the crater lake on Mount Bisoke can be reached on foot.

Grilled tilapia from the lake, sambaza, tiny fried fish, and brochettes of goat come with plantain and cassava, and Rwandan coffee grown on the hillsides is served strong. At an altitude of about 1,500 metres the climate is mild, and the drier months are June to August and December to February.