Lake Kivu

On Rwanda’s western border lies Lake Kivu, a dazzling interlude on any safari. Think palm-fringed beaches, misty hillsides, and a lake so vast it looks more like the sea (but with fewer waves and no sharks). It’s the ideal breather between the primate hotspot of Nyungwe Forest and gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park.

The winding roller-coaster road around the lake meanders past lush, terraced fields and misty rainforest, occasionally opening to watery blue vistas that will have you reaching for your camera (again). Stay in the old colonial town of Gisenyi, with its sandy beaches, lined with swaying palms, and languid charm. Or in Kibuye, a laid-back town with charming bays.

Down south, you could even stay on Lake Kivu as a handy base for a day trip into Nyungwe Forest — just 30 to 40 minutes away.

Unlike most African lakes, Lake Kivu has no hippos or crocodiles making it safe for swimming off some of the pretty beaches.

Though smaller than its Great Lakes cousins, Lake Kivu still stretches across 2,700 square kilometres. That makes it the sixth-largest lake in the world. It covers a whopping surface area of 2,700 square kilometres. It’s also one of the deepest, plunging to 500 metres. In fact, it’s the world’s highest major lake, sitting in the Rift Valley with the dramatic Virunga volcanoes as its backdrop.

Unusual Fact

Lake Kivu is one of the only lakes in the world where you can take a boat trip over vast reserves of methane gas stored deep below its waters — an unusual quirk of geology that makes it both fascinating and ever so slightly mysterious.