Da Vinci Gorilla Lodge

Lovely and large room with king bed and a fire place. Ensuite was also large. They also put hot water bottles in our bed at turn down - such a lovely gesture. Staff are extremely helpful and welcoming. Food good and fresh too. We also saw a Golden Monkey there too. Nb. Worth noting that the laundry service doesn’t include ironing/pressing.

This is a delightful small hotel in Kinigi, close to the Gorilla Experience headquarters. The rooms are in spacious huts with a fire and hot water bottles provided at night as it gets quite cold. The staff are extremely polite and helpful, lighting fires in the lounge and dining room at sunset and with little portable fires for each table. The setting is rustic and charming with 4 star facilities and don’t forget the wonderful complimentary foot massage and shoe cleaning after the gorilla trek. Delightful little hotel.

Exceedingly lovely staff. So many nice surprises like burning fireplaces in the rooms with hot water bottles in the beds, foot rubs and shoe cleanings after our hike. Mattresses were amazing. Food was quite good, the included breakfast is expansive. Very beautiful grounds. Live dancing one night. Lovely dog Sparky. A few words of caution: most of our showers did not have hot water. Drinks and dinner were pretty pricey, so would consider at least bringing your own bottled water. They didn’t have the best intel re: Mt. Bisoke hike, so we just took ourselves, got COVID tested and registered on site.

This hotel is the best place to stay in Kinigi/to gorilla trek! It’s the closest lodge to the Dian Fossey campus and women’s village, and the staff is exceptional. They are very friendly and helpful and went above and beyond. We loved that we’d come back to the hotel and they’d clean our shoes and give us a foot massage. They’d also get a fire going in your room while you are having dinner. We’d come back to bed with a heated bed (thanks to a warm water bottle they place in there) and a fire going. We felt we were in the coziest hotel room ever. The food was great too with an ever changing menu. I’d recommend getting the full board. It’d be hard to try restaurants at different lodges, so you’d save money instead of buying the meals separate. Last but not least, the super sweet dog Sparky. He added so much charm and welcomed all guests. We loved having him around so much.