Getting out of Kigali is always a refreshing change of scenery and we’re lucky we have so many beautiful places to visit here!

A few weeks ago, some friends and I decided to take a day trip. We went north to a part of Lake Muhazi I’ve only been once before.

I typically visit the eastern part of the lake (Jambo beach for a sundowner drink!), but this is actually closer! We took the road going north from Nyabugogo, RN 3, to Rwesero. The road follows the Nyabugogo River.

The first time I went to the northern part of Muhazi, we went to a little bar/restaurant on the eastern side (Rwesero Beach Restaurant), where you have to kind of loop around the lake. We sat and had drinks and some food and listened to music while watching the sun go down.

It was a nice, relaxing Sunday afternoon. While there, we looked across and saw a hotel that looked pretty fancy and saw some people take a boat across to the hotel. We decided on this trip to go to the hotel on the other side and, instead of taking a boat across, we decided to try and find that hotel! There aren’t really any signs, but if you ask local people, they’ll help you out.

We kept watching for a turn-off on the right-hand side of the road, after driving for about 45 minutes.

The turn-off is in a small town on the main road, then you have to drive (up and down) a bumpy dirt road for about 7km! But the hotel at the end is gorgeous and the views on the way there are just as stunning.

The hotel itself is situated on a hill overlooking the lake but has pathways that take you down to the lake. It has a beautiful view, a pool, and nice large rooms. There’s even a volleyball court! The bathrooms near the lake are basic, but clean and they had good hand-washing facilities. There is even a little ‘beach’ but it looked a bit reedy, so probably has some good bilharzia! We didn’t stay the night but asked to peek in and see the rooms and may go back again for a weekend away.

We sat down on the dock and had some drinks and food for sundown. Everyone else got fish and potatoes or ibitoki, I just had a plate of chips without mayonnaise. Not the best options for vegans but the ambiance made up for the food and I was told the fish was delicious.

We figured out the name of the hotel too: Kingfisher Beach Hotel. It’s on google maps, but the directions are a bit sketchy, so when you’re getting near, just start looking for that turn off and ask the people around.

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