Hello people..Today’s post is a guest post…
Rwanda is such a beautiful country and I had the opportunity to visit in 2011. Read about my experience here.
Venatius Tsi Fon recently visited Gisenyi and here is the 411..
The city of Gisenyi features a resort on the shores of Lake Kivu, with several hotels and three sandy beaches. The area is also known for water sports. The northern shore of the lake on which Goma and Gisenyi lie is a flat plain featuring lava formations from the eruptions of nearby Mount Nyiragongo. In contrast to Goma, Gisenyi escaped the lava flows of both the 1977 and the 2002 eruptions, which destroyed between 15 and 40% of the former. The centre of Gisenyi lies by foothills at the northeast corner of the lake, and low-density expansion is taking place in the hills, which are expected to be safe from future eruptions.
Gisenyi is also home to Bralirwa, the only brewery in Rwanda, which manufactures various local beers — Primus, Mützig, Amstel and Guinness — as well as a range of Coca Cola–branded soft drinks. Gisenyi is a small town compared to neighboring Goma in the DRC, though Gisenyi is growing quickly. In 2011, a new multistory shopping mall began construction over an old bus station. As of 2011, the main roads of the town are paved, and sidewalks are nearing completion for most of them as well.
Gisenyi has two borders with Goma, the “Petite Barrière” and the “Grand Barrière“. These names are a little misleading because the Petite Barrière is physically larger and features much higher traffic volumes. About 6,000 people crossed the Petite Barrière daily during . On the Gisenyi side, a large customs and immigration office was built with a large capacity, not yet matched by the Congolese facilities. Similarly, the road to the Petite Barrière is paved on the Rwandan side, but not on the Congolese side. The Grande Barrière is paved on both sides and receives more of the heavy truck traffic. It is also a diplomatic border.
Hotels: Gisenyi has many hotels like Serena , Gorilla , Nirvana heights and Inzozi, and many others. During my stay in Gisenyi I stayed at Nirvana Heights Hotel. As you can see from the pictures the hotel is on a hill and has an amazing view from when you wake up for breakfast, lunch and for dinner. I however had my meetings at Inzozi, from the pictures you will see two grass thatched roofs those are the roofs of Inzozi and Inzozi as well is the building you will see me standing in front that has marble. The lake Kivu shared on both the Goma and Gisenyi side is very calm and blue and in Gisenyi you can enjoy the lake and the beaches in the town this is the lake you see on my pictures.
You can pick up your visa at the airport upon arrival for the cost of 30 dollars. The Kigali to Gisenyi requires you to hire a taxi or bus which will cost about 100 dollars or a bus ride which costs less. Be patient and enjoy the three-hour ride. Hotels in Gisenyi like the one I stayed in cost 70 dollars and above and food is relatively affordable as well ranging from 10 dollars and above.
You can also use on stone to shoot two birds by crossing over to the DRC side of lake Kivu in Goma and if you are adventurous you can visit the mount Kivu and camp there or go hiking as well as visit the popular la Charlee in Goma. Best time to visit is in summer which is between April to August and the driest of them is June to August.
Rwandans because of their history are generally reserved people but very kind and courteous and I bet you, you will enjoy every penny spent.
Looking for a place to withdraw from the world and absorb the shock of Trump becoming president, Gisenyi Rwanda is the place. Check out my post on a travel experience to Rwanda here
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- Venatius Ts iFon is a Proposals and Reporting Coordinator for Save the Children International. His journey starts from Mankon in Bamenda. He is married with 2 kids and a graduate from St Paul college Nkwen and Southampton Business school and Southampton Solent University.
Thank you Vena for the very informative write up…
Thinking of a vacation destination somewhere #AroundAfrica ? Think Rwanda..Think Gisenyi!!
Y.M.
IRepCamer
