Name: Musanze Caves Hotel
Address: 金沙洲环洲二路63号(地铁6号线A1出口), Kigufi, Kigufi, Kigufi, 0, Rwanda
Rating: 8

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Goma Airport

Musanze Caves Hotel

Kigufi

I love love love the caves. They are stunning - the darkness of the innermost sections to the secret gardens at the mouths. It’s a lot of up and down on stairs so need to be fit enough (not super athletic, just fit). It’s possible to only do half of the system if needed. 

Definitely a highlight of Volcanoes National Park!

It was a nice  adventure during our walk in musanze Caves accompanied by the ranger guide  and he was very professional about wild life and had a good customer care  in addition to we also studied the historical concept concerning Musanze Caves.

Our great tour to Musanze caves.

I would say our visit was good. It is pricey indeed  but like everything  in volcanoes national park. 

It is nice that you can also do it on an afternoon.  There was a path, but indeed you have to watch your step. 
We found our guide giving enough information and giving answers to questions.

After all the uphill hikes, it is nice to see this other side of the Virunga mountain range.

For bat-lovers, they have moved to other caves., so chances of seeing them are slim these days.


Nice thing to do in the afternoon 

Musanze Caves offers a different aspect to the rest of Volcanoes NP. There are 4 caves that run one after another with small outdoor sections that run in between. The tour lasts for about an hour, and slotted in perfect after the golden monkeys morning tour. It's 50 usd pp which is pricey for just an hour tour, but then seeing the gorilla pricing kind of makes you think again.
Before the tour, everyone is given a hard hat and solar torch to help you on your way. Patrick conducted our tour, and showed us areas were bats resided and great rock formations, with varying glimpses of light being allowed inside the cave showing stunning contrasts. Even though you have a torch, you still need to watch were your walking as it can get very dark, especially the 1st cave that is by far the longest in distance and the longest without seeing any natural light. Silence will occupy you along with frequent drops of water, but not sure if an armed ranger was completely necessary considering our surroundings. Overall good but not great, but the underground experience offered variety while in VNP...

Musanze Caving Network...

We visited these caves as part of our trip to Rwanda.  They were included in an itinerary our operator put together for us.  They are neat to walk through but I wouldn't go out of my way to see them (especially if you've been to other caves).  These caves are a series of lava tubes about 2km long and takes about an hour to hike.  A stone path is laid out and you cannot wander outside of it.  Not a very strenuous hike but the terrain is definitely uneven and requires sturdy footing.  The guides provide hard hats and flashlights.  Armed guards accompany you the entire time.  We saw some interesting rock formations and collapses and several bats.

Lava tube caves

Would not recommend! 
Lots of loose rocks and steps inside caves. Rolled my ankle and had temporary swollen and sore ankle. Guides did not verbalize any information about caves. They continued the lead and paid little attention to the group,
The caves were very hot, musty and humid.
We were charged $50 to go in the caves. I felt it was a total waste of money and not safe. By the way I have done hikes for both the gorillas and golden monkey and this was by far the most careless and uncomfortable!

Musanze Caves

A unique experience if you haven't been to a lava tube before to see how lava flows underground, carves caves while flowing and leaves deposits or hints to mineral deposits.  

Having been to the Ape Caves under Mt St Helens, I have to say this was a completely different experience.  These caves were not cold at all, rather quite the opposite since they are just barely under the surface and you go in and out of multiple entrances of the tube were it has collapsed over time.  I took my jacket off, and the long sleeve shirt I had on.  You are supplied with a hard hat (so you don't hit your head, not because of falling debris), and latex gloves to prevent your skin oil from damaging the caves, and must be escorted by a tour guide.  If you plan it right (and I got lucky) you can do a golden monkey viewing in the morning and then the caves right afterward.  Buy your tickets for both at the gorilla/monkey base camp so you don't have to go back and get them separate.   However, if your monkey or gorilla viewing takes too long, you may have to do the caves in the afternoon session.  It sounded like they do it twice a day, once in the morning  and once in the afternoon.  This was not information I was able to find online before I went, so take note.  AND, you have to have your own transport to the cave entrance from the office where you meet, and then to pick you up from the hotel where it exits behind (with the name of Musanze Caves Hotel).

I had a beer at the hotel with my fellow splunkers on the tour, and then saw them later in my trip. The hotel at the end is new and still under construction.  But the lady there (Rose) said they serve a stewed dish called Igisafuriya which is unique to the area and I hadn't seen elsewhere.  So, may be worth trying that, although it takes about an hour to cook from what she said.

Near Surface Lava Tubes

I wouldn't go out of my way to go there, BUT, if you happen to have a few hours open while in Ruhengeri or Musanze, it is worth popping down to it. It is a relatively new attraction, and gives you a flavor of how these caves were used in olden times by kings and during the genocide era by militia/rebels for secret rendezvous.

Now it is mostly inhabitated by bats, which is interesting to observe. You'll be supplied with the equipment you need to explore (flashlight, helmet, gloves, etc.) with a guide and an armed ranger.

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