The Retreat by Heaven

EXPLORE KIGALI

Kigali City Tour is designed to give you an intimate view of Kigali on an entertaining packed day. Our curated tours are customized according the the specific interests of each client. We plan the day with a blend of Rwandan arts, history, food and culture. A sample day might include a drive through the old neighborhood of Nyamirambo, tour a local market, stop by a milk bar, taste of Rwandan coee, and a visit to an art gallery or fashion designer. We include a local Rwandan traditional lunch and banana wine making demonstration at Heaven Restaurant, and often end each tour with a visit to the Genocide Memorial.
This tour includes:
• Transportation by private vehicle for the day and drop off at the end of the tour
• Lunch
Details:
• Timing: 9:00 AM to 05:00 PM Tours offered: daily, except for the last Saturday of every month (Umuganda).

Price per person: $95

AVAILABLE IN HALF DAY OPTION:
Price per person: $65

FASHION TOUR

With international accolades and a New York Times writeup, fashion in Rwanda is a bright example of hope and creativity coming together. On this Fashion Tour, our guests have the chance to visit the best local Rwandan fashion boutiques and often enjoy the unique opportunity to meet with designers and artisans. Our guests can enjoy an optional tour of the vibrant African "kitenge" fabric markets, and place a custom order with our in-house tailor to make custom clothing during their stay with us! Guests enjoy a coee or tea and snack en route to see artisans in action at their workshops. Return to Heaven & The Retreat for visit to our own Made in Rwanda retail boutique and the onsite AZIZI Life Fair Trade Crafts Boutique!
This tour includes:
• Transportation by private vehicle for the day and drop off at the end of the tour Details:
• Timing: 9:00 AM to 01:00 PM / 02:00 PM to 05:00 PM
• Tours offered: daily, except for the last Saturday of every month (Umuganda); it is provided as an afternoon tour

Price per person: $65

ART & CULTURE TOUR

Art has not only been an essential part of Rwandan history, but it remains a vibrant part of modern life. We customize every Art & Culture tour based on each clients' interests. Clients will have the chance to meet with the contemporary artists of Kigali, engage with local artisans in a crafting workshop, appreciate public art and potentially enjoy a traditional dance and drumming with a stop for refreshments at a local cafe or traditional milk bar.

This tour includes:

• Transportation by private vehicle for the day and drop off at the end of the tour

Details:

• Timing: 9:00 AM to 01:00 PM / 02:00 PM to 05:00 PM

• Tours offered: daily, except for the last Saturday of every month (Umuganda); it is provided as an afternoon tour.

Price per person: $85

NATURE IN KIGALI

As important as it is to see the sights of a city as energetic as Kigali, it’s equally important to get out into nature and explore. Take an easy hike up one of the Thousand Hills of Kigali through lush forested hills with our guides and enjoy tropical birdlife, flora, spectacular views and a picnic lunch provided at the top! Sample Itinerary: • Hike Mt. Kigali – spend a few hours hiking up the hillside and enjoy expansive views of Kigali. • Extra Activities – You have the option to do archery, zipline, horseback ride in the arena or on trails, bocce ball, trampoline, badminton. If you are lucky, you might see monkeys living in the forest at the top!

This tour includes:

• Transportation by private vehicle for the day and drop off at the end of the tour Details:

• Timing: 9:00 AM to 01:00 PM / 02:00 PM to 05:00 PM

• Tours offered: daily, except for the last Saturday of every month (Umuganda); it is provided as an afternoon tour

Price per person: $75

CULINARY TOUR

Delve into a Rwandan culinary extravaganza! Taste the local fruits at a farmers market, and look for special ingredients needed to create modern African recipes. Enjoy the hands-on experience of making Rwandan banana beer (urwagwa), and participate in a private cooking class with our Chef featuring some of our signature recipes. Our bartenders may teach you how to make one of our innovative cocktails.. shush it's top secret!
This tour includes:
• Transportation by private vehicle for the day and drop off at the end of the tour • Lunch at the Hotel
Details:
• Timing: 9:00 AM to 01:00 PM / 02:00 PM to 05:00 PM
• Tours offered: daily, except for the last Saturday of every month (Umuganda); it is provided as an afternoon tour

Price per person: $150

LOCAL LIFE KIGALI CITY WALKING TOUR

Spend the day on a walking tour of a lively, local neighborhood, visiting and interacting with the owners of hair salons, tailor shops, markets, and resto-bars. Enjoy lunch made by a local Rwandan family in their home!

This tour includes:

• Transportation by private vehicle for the day and drop off at the end of the tour

• Lunch

Details:

• Timing: 10:00 AM to 01:00 PM

• Tours offered: daily, except for the last Saturday of every month (Umuganda)

Price per person: $60


NYAMATA GENOCIDE SITE, SURVIVOR TESTIMONY & VILLAGE TOUR

This remarkable community visit covers the history and amazing progress achieved in Rwanda. Visit the very epicenter of the genocide - Nyamata Church Genocide Memorial - and hear directly from a survivor. Then move on to see the incredible progress and prosperity we today in Mayange village with potential visits to a farmer’s home, the local health center and a women’s weaving cooperative. We customize the day based on each client's interests.
This tour includes:
• Transportation by private vehicle for the day and drop off at the end of the tour
• Picnic Lunch or Lunch back at Heaven Restaurant
Details:
• Timing: 9:00 AM to 05:00 PM
• Tours offered: daily, except for the last Saturday of every month (Umuganda); it is provided as an afternoon tour

Price per person: $150

COFFEE MASTER CLASS

The best coffee in Rwanda doesn't happen by chance. You will be taken through a short coee history lesson on the entire coffee production process from growth to harvesting cherries from the trees in coffee farm to the roasting stage. Guests have the chance to taste coee from all over Rwanda, and create a custom blend *Each guest gets one gift bag to take home.
This tour includes:
• Transportation by private vehicle for the day and drop off at the end of the tour
Details:
• Timing: 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM / 02:00 PM to 05:00 PM
• Tours offered: daily, except for the last Saturday of every month (Umuganda); it is provided as an afternoon tour

Price per person: $60

 

RURAL LIFE EXPERIENCE

Designed and hosted by artisans and artists, it is a truly wonderful way to get a taste of the beauty and rigor of rural life and Rwandan culture. Become part of a weaving cooperative for the day. The morning begins with a drive to a nearby village, where you and your interpreter will be welcomed by the ladies of the weaving cooperative. After introductions from your hostess, a morning of family chores begins. You might help out in the kitchen, collect water from the valley spring, cut grass for the farm animals and get out in the fields for a seasonal agricultural activity. At noontime, you’ll share a simple local meal with your host family, with plenty of time to chat and learn about each other’s lives. After lunch, you will join with the artisan cooperative for an afternoon of weaving. You will learn how to harvest and prepare the natural fibers, and then the artisans will teach you how to create your own piece of sisal jewelry. You will love sitting with the ladies as you weave and laugh together. The day finishes back at the women’s cooperative where you can browse through some of the beautiful crafts made by the artisans and do a little fair trade shopping.
This tour includes:
• Transportation by private vehicle for the day and drop off at the end of the tour
• Lunch
Details:
• Timing: 9:00 AM to 05:00 PM
• Tours offered: daily, except for the last Saturday of every month (Umuganda)

Price per person: $250

FARM AND COFFEE WASHING STATION TOUR

Meet your guide for a morning coffee. Travel to Kayonza district. Meet coffee farmers and live demonstration of each step of growing coffee cherries. Tour of a coffee washing station with demonstration of each step of processing coffee. Farmers will roast coffee and serve the guests.
This tour includes:
• Transportation by private vehicle for the day and drop off at the end of the tour
• Lunch in Kayonza
• Coffee gift bag for each guest
Details:
• Timing: 07:45 AM to 05:00 PM
• Tours offered: daily, except for the last Saturday of every month (Umuganda)

Price per person: $225

Town & Country and The New York Times call The Retreat in Rwanda one of the top new hotels in the world in 2018. The American owners of Heaven Restaurant created The Retreat, a 12-room luxury boutique hotel located on a tree-lined street steps from Kigali City Center and 20 minutes from the airport. They have just expanded to 8 new luxury pool villas and a new wine lounge. The Retreat is Kigali’s first eco-friendly resort and features solar electricity, organic toiletries, locally-crafted furniture from a Tanzanian sustainable teak farm, outdoor showers, private terraces, a yoga and meditation room, spa, large heated saltwater swimming pool with jacuzzi and diving rocks, and an open-air fitness center. 

Fusion Restaurant and its Swahili-inspired bar, located at The Retreat, offer delicious farm-to-table international cuisine, while Heaven Restaurant (reached through the Retreat’s “Stairway to Heaven”) offers an innovative modern African menu. The Retreat is the perfect choice to host guests for 1 night or several days as it offers innovative, curated cultural experiences and exciting activities in and around Kigali. Josh Ruxin is the author of the book "A Thousand Hills to Heaven: Love, Hope & a Restaurant in Rwanda" which shares the whole of the Ruxin family story.

Deluxe King Room

(3 ROOMS) Room size 40 m²

This room features:

1 King bed

Furnished patio

Internet - Free WiFi

Entertainment - Plasma TV with premium channels

Food & Drink - Refrigerator, minibar, coffee/tea maker, complimentary unlimited purified water and 24-hour room service

Sleep - Pillowtop bed, Organic UK Naturalmat mattress, British linens, a duvet, a pillow menu, and turndown service

Bathroom - Private bathroom, rainfall showerhead, organic amenities (shampoo, conditioner, body lotion), single Duravit sink, teak wood vanity

Practical - Safe, desk, and phone, wheelchair accessible

Comfort - Air conditioning and daily housekeeping

Accessibility - Wheelchair accessible

Adjoining - 2 rooms adjoining (beds cannot be setup as Twin)

Non-Smoking


Superior King Rooms
(9 ROOMS) Room size 60 m²
This room features:
1 King Bed (Emperor King size - 2 meter x 2 meter)
(
4 rooms can be configured as Twin)
Furnished front balcony & private back deck
Layout - Separate sitting area
Internet - Free WiFi
Entertainment - Plasma TV with premium channels
Food & Drink - Refrigerator, minibar, coffee/tea maker, complimentary unlimited purified water and 24-hour room service
Sleep - Pillowtop bed, Organic UK Naturalmat mattresses, British linens, a duvet, a pillow menu, and turndown service
Bathroom - Private bathroom with indoor and outdoor rain showers, organic amenities (shampoos, conditioner, body lotion), double Duravit sink, teak wood vanity (2 rooms have a bathtub and showers)
Practical - Safe, desk, and phone
Comfort - Air conditioning and daily housekeeping
Non-Smoking
3 Rooms have pool view

Luxury Pool Villa

(8 ROOMS)

The lodge has just completed an entirely new wing of The Retreat with 8 Luxury Pool Villas - each featuring a large living area, front and back gardens, and private heated saltwater swimming pools.

Indoor and outdoor private living space: 120 m²

Room rate for Luxury Pool Villas is inclusive of the following amenities:

1 welcome complimentary 30mins massage, Fruit Basket, Snacks Jar, Welcome Amentity Plate, Complimentary Minibar on a daily Basis and Hotel Customize gift.

Country: