Kigali

Kigali is the capital of Rwanda. The centre of political and commercial life, Kigali dominates Rwanda and few visit the country without passing through. The city is developing fast, and is very much a showpiece capital designed to impress visitors from tourists to foreign investors and visiting dignitaries.

Understand


With a population topping 1 million, the city spreads over several hills and valleys, with many of the better restaurants and hotels away from the traditional downtown area. The Kigali City Masterplan outlines the future for this burgeoning metropolis, with plans for a new city to be built south of the current city centre.

As a clean, comfortable and ordered city, Kigali is very popular with long term expats, and the city is teeming with westerners, from young church or NGO volunteers having their first African ‘experience’ to career development workers enjoying a relaxed lifestyle where it is safe to bring up young children. This in turn means the city supports numerous restaurants, coffee shops and supermarkets that cater to this demographic. The downside of Kigali’s popularity with foreigners is that it is easy to forget you are in Africa.


 * Visitor information from the Kigali city government.

Talk
Learn a bit of French and maybe even a bit of Swahili and Kinyarwanda; all three are extremely useful here. English is also widely spoken, at least in Kigali. A useful Kinyarwanda vocabulary cheat sheet is available, or you can buy a conversational booklet from sellers at bus stations.

By plane


If you fly from Kigali Airport, you may need a Yellow Fever Certificate at your destination (e.g. South Africa). Also be careful of waiting in the cafe for your flight: some flights (e.g. Kenya Airways to Nairobi) are often overbooked, and you won't hear any announcement when they decide to start boarding early and might miss your flight.

Ground transportation from the airport
Airport taxis are always waiting for fares, but discuss the price in relation to the distance you have to travel before getting into a cab.

There are also buses passing in the front of the airport leading to Remera, Kigali City, and Nyabugogo.

Some people use also moto bikes for the transportation, but they are not as safe as a car.

If you need any help obtaining these services or hiring a car, airport guides are available to help you.

Airport amenities
There are a few 24-hour bar and restaurants in the airport, plus duty-free shops and supermarkets. The airport also provides free Wi-Fi, and luggage storage, medical services and police are on site.

A new airport called Bugesera Airport is under construction, but as of 2023 is not expected to be operational until 2032.

By bus

 * There are a couple of daily buses that run directly between Kigali and Kampala in Uganda with some services continuing to Nairobi. The buses are sometimes cramped and uncomfortable, but are the cheapest choice.
 * There are a couple of daily buses that run directly between Kigali and Bujumbura in Burundi. Yahoo Car, New Yahoo, East African Car Express (big bus) and Belvedere have buses in the morning.

Get around

 * Motorcyle taxis (motos) are the most popular and fastest way to get around town. The fare for the motorcycle ranges from FRw400-1500, depending on distance, but most of the motocyclists will ask for FRw500-1000. A trip to or from the airport should be FRw1500-2000 (Feb 2024). On the main road out to the airport they really put their foot down. It is however a good well sealed road, nice views over Kigali City and a thrilling ride.
 * Matatus/city buses (minibuses) provide major routes throughout the city and are the cheapest way to get around. The minibus in Rwanda is one of the best forms of transport in East Africa. Most of the buses are still new and are maintained well. There are several minibus companies which connect Kigali and the other cities in Rwanda. All of them give the same price depending on the distance. For short distance, such as to Ntarama, it costs only FRw600. The distance to Ruhungeri cost FRw2500 and to Gisenyi FRw3000.
 * City buses inside the city of Kigali there is an organized and secure scheme of public transport that involves with transportation of people and some of their goods inside the Kigali city, prices vary between FRw110 and FRw517. As there are different buses that are going in different destinations every bus has a route Identifier number, for more details regarding the route identifiers and the price of fare that was set by Rwanda Utilities Regulation Authority, you can check here.
 * There are several car rental agencies in Kigali that operates under the license from the authorities, some of those include Ndoli Safaris, Tom transfers Inc, Kigali car rentals, Self Drive Rwanda,
 * There are many taxis in Kigali, and in comparison with motos are expensive. A short 1km trip will cost FRw2,000 after haggling, going up to FRw10,000 for an airport run. Taxis are mainly of two types in Kigali: those operated by individuals (usually with some form of yellow stripe on the vehicle) and more professorially run services operated by a single large operator. The Kigali Airport Taxis and Kigali Taxi Service are the two major groups, there are others companies also running taxis, but these are the largest and both operate a number you can call to summon a taxis. 3122 for Kigali Taxis service and 476586 for Kigali Airport Taxi service.  A reliable individual is Alex, who is on 0788741559 (French & some English spoken).

See




Do
Take a trip to a craft centre, like the Dancing Pots Craft Centre or the Cards for Africa workshop and sales room in Kigali.

Work
Your best bet would be with an aid organization or NGO. If you are a resident of the US or EU, you can avoid paying for an expensive residency permit by declaring yourself a tourist upon arrival and then traveling outside of Rwanda once every 90 days for the length of your day. Your 90-day tourist visa (automatically granted upon entry) will be renewed each time you leave and reenter the country (and it's a convenient excuse to go on vacation!)

Buy
First thing to be aware is that Kigali can be expensive. As a cash strapped landlocked country costs of imported goods are high and import duties and VAT considerable. Foreigners often complain that wine, olive oil, breakfast cereals, kettle chips and other mundane foodstuffs cost a fortune, so beware. Costs can be lowered considerably by buying Rwandan or East African Community goods - Kenya in particular produces a wide range of produce that often cost half the imported European equivalent.

Outside of supermarkets and restaurants most vendors are used to a bit of haggling (even over fruit and veg) although as always keep things in perspective - but don't let storekeepers charge you double what you think you should be paying.

Cash machines/ATMs – most banks ATMs now accept Master Card, Visa card, American card, Diners Club, Union Pay, and JCB, including Equity Bank, Ecobank, Bank of Kigali, Kenya Commercial Bank, GT Bank, I&M Bank; Ecobank HQ is in the center of town next to CNLS and near UTC. There are many ATMs accepting international cards at the airport also. Don't count on any particular ATM to have money or be working at any particular time - even at the airport.

There are banks in Kigali with counter service for withdrawals (and Ecobank can do MasterCard withdrawals).

What to buy Rwandan coffee is generally very good (although stay away from the cheapest stuff, which will be the sweepings from the grinding factory floor). Expect to pay around FRw4,000 per 500 g. Rwandan honey is great, especially the Nyungwe Highlands type. Around FRw1,750 per 500 g. Rwandan tea (both black and green) is also pretty good.

Local markets
These are stocked with Rwandan handicrafts, produce, clothing, fabulous colorful fabric from West Africa and just about anything else.





Eat
By all standards Kigali is an excellent city in which to dine. A combination of Belgian culinary influence, plenty of cows, plenty of freshwater fish, and plenty of fresh vegetables equates to some of the best eating in the region. And it's all pretty affordable.

Kigali restaurants and bars go in and out of fashion, not to mention close down, quite frequently. Check for the latest once you are in town; some places mentioned in some print guidebooks no longer exist. (The oft-mentioned Turtle Cafe has been closed since 2003!)

The region restaurants take their time – with a usual 45 minutes to 1 hour wait between ordering and your food arriving, especially for dinner. If you are after a quick meal at lunchtime, there are several African buffets around, where you pile your plate high and are out the door in 30 minutes.

As Kigali is quite a sprawling city eateries are organised by suburb.

Kimihurura




Other
The Camellia tea house has an amazing selection of teas, and has good food. Their lunch buffet is very popular.

Drink
Bottled water is recommended for foreign visitors. It can be bought at almost every supermarket or pump station. About FRw2,500 without deposit.


 * For alcohol try the night club and the . Both are superb.  Watch out for pickpockets outside the New Cadillac.

Sleep
Accommodation in downtown Kigali is noticeably more expensive than neighboring capitals like Kampala and Nairobi. Most of the budget options (for example the Hotel Gloria mentioned in older LPs) are gone. Outside the city center however, it is possible to find good budget options.

Splurge
Kigali now has three international class hotels, built as part of the country's bid to increase tourism and better support business travellers.



Connect
English language broadcasts are available from BBC World Service in Kigali on 93.9MHz, Royal FM in Kigali on 94.3MHz, Voice of America on 104.3MHz and there is French language broadcast on Radio France Internationale RFI 91.9MHz.

There are different cellular networks which are MTN, Airtel-Tigo. And there are several different Internet Service Providers Canal Box, Mango Telecom.

Stay safe
Kigali is relatively safe and friendly as far as African capitals go. Keep your eyes open and your wallet out of the reach of pickpockets, especially in crowded areas. Avoid walking after dark if possible, especially alone. Take extra precaution in the area between New Cadilac Nightclub and Carwash bar.

Police officers are generally helpful if you're in a bind, but don't expect speedy results.

Resources




Embassies

 * 🇿🇦 South Africa
 * 🇨🇭 Switzerland
 * 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
 * 🇺🇸 United States
 * 🇧🇪 Belgium
 * 🇹🇷 Turkey
 * 🇵🇰 Pakistan
 * Democratic Republic of the Congo
 * 🇧🇮 Burundi
 * 🇨🇦 Canada
 * 🇩🇪 Germany
 * 🇰🇪 Kenya
 * 🇯🇵 Japan
 * 🇲🇱 Mali
 * 🇳🇬 Nigeria
 * 🇺🇬 Uganda

Go next

 * Volcanoes National Park, home of the mountain gorillas, and the setting for Gorillas in the Mist author Dian Fossey's research. If you can afford it it's an excellent experience... even possible as a daytrip from Kigali. Enquire at the Rwandan Office for Tourism and National Parks (ORTPN), Boulevard de la Révolution n° 1, Kigali, +250 576514 or 573396, [mailto:reservation@rwandatourism.com/ reservation@rwandatourism.com]. US$600 cash, or it is possible to use your Mastercard.