Rwanda>Nyungwe Forest>Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel
Honestly- we’ve seen this hotel with about four variants on the name on different websites. But when we went there, Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel is what it said on the sign, so we’re sticking with that. Oh, and by the way, we liked it too!
What’s Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel really like?
Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel sits perched a short drive away from the main park headquarters of Nyungwe Forest. A short bumpy track takes you up from the main road to the lodge, where the first building you see is a large rondavel. When we visited it was having some repairs done so looked rather imposing, but inside it was surprisingly light and welcoming. Upstairs there was a café with jaunty red tablecloths, serving a menu of international style food, and below there’s a bar, colourfully decorated with thousands of old bottle tops- this has to be seen to be believed, but the overall effect we found to be quite jolly and ingenious.
Outside, a lush terraced garden falls away from you, with rows of cottages either side. There’re probably around 5 or 6 on each side, built from brick with terracotta roofs. Inside rooms have tiled floors and a fairly simple bedroom and bathroom. They also have a small balcony outside mainly looking into the forest. Rooms are set up with various configurations of 1-3 beds so this can work well if you are travelling with children. It can be extremely difficult to categorise this kind of bush lodge by conventional hotel standards, but we’d say that if you came here expecting a simple, practical lodge you probably wouldn’t be a million miles off- it’s clean, well located and comfortable enough so if you don’t need the high interior design standards (and even higher prices) of the deluxe lodge down the road, this is a very good bet.
What can I do at Nyungwe Top View Hill Hotel?
Well, really the main reason to come here Guests come to this part of the world to explore beautiful Nyungwe Forest nearby. The park headquarters, and the start point of many excellent hikes, is a short drive away. There’s also a canopy walkway here, which is gorgeous, but not for those afraid of heights. Nyungwe’s amazing for spotting all kinds of monkeys, birds and butterflies and there are walks to cater to every level of fitness. On the edge of the forest, around 40 minutes to an hour away, you can also trek for chimps. This certainly isn’t the easiest chimp trekking we have ever done, but it’s still pretty incredible to look high up in the trees and see them hooting, leaping and searching for food.
Want to know more? We’ve been here , so just
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