Gisakura Tea Estate

Gisakura sits where Nyungwe's forest gives way to tea, and the contrast is abrupt: dark closed canopy on one side of a line and bright green clipped bushes on the other. The estate runs walks through the plantation and the factory, and the tea from here is grown at over two thousand metres, which is high even by African standards. A small fragment of forest cut off from the main park sits beside the estate and holds a troop of Angola colobus that is easily seen.

What you actually see

• The tea terraces - clipped plantation running to the edge of the forest.
• The forest boundary - the abrupt line between plantation and closed canopy.
• The colobus troop - Angola colobus in the isolated forest fragment beside the estate.
• The factory - processing on the estate, shown on arranged visits.

When to go

June to September and December to February are the drier windows. Picking runs year round in this climate. Mornings are best for the colobus in the fragment.

Honest expectations

Factory visits must be arranged in advance and are not always possible. The colobus fragment requires a park permit and guide even though it is tiny. Nyungwe's weather is wet in any season and rain is likely.

Nearby

Nyungwe National Park is east, and Rusizi is southwest.