Kigali
Kigali, officially the City of Kigali also known as Kigali City, is the capital, largest city, and a province-level administrative unit of Rwanda.
It is located near the country's geographic centre, in a landscape of rolling hills marked by valleys and ridges connected by steep slopes. As Rwanda's primary city, Kigali is a relatively young urban centre. Founded in 1907 as a German administrative outpost, it served as a minor administrative centre until it became the national capital at independence in 1962, shifting the main administrative focus away from Huye.
Getting to Kigali
- 01Kigali International Airport
Kigali International is a small and organized airport in Kicukiro District, 5 km from the city centre, and it is rare to encounter any problems there.
- 02Nyabugogo
The main hub for buses arriving and departing to many parts of Rwanda and abroad.
Things to 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.
- 01Nyandungu Eco-park
A 120-ha restored wetland and forest area and an important bird area.
- 02Ten
Kimihura (next to the pool at Mamba Club),.
- 03Nyamirambo Women's Center
- 04Ave
Here you can take guided walking tours, cooking classes, or have lunch at an enterprise geared toward enabling women to succeed with computers, literacy, sewing and handicrafts.
Where to 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.
Getting around Kigali the local way
- Get aroundMatatus/city buses (minibuses) provide major routes throughout the city and are the cheapest way to get around.
- Get aroundThe minibus in Rwanda is one of the best forms of transport in East Africa.
- Get aroundThere are several minibus companies which connect Kigali and the other cities in Rwanda.
From Wikivoyage: Kigali, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us. Last edited 2026-09.
Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Davyimage (CC BY-SA 4.0), Wikimedia Commons.
