RwandAir boosts its London Heathrow–Kigali (KGL) flight frequency to six flights per week in response to strong passenger demand. The East African flag carrier has future plans to increase its Heathrow to Kigali service to daily flights by early 2024.

Rwanda is fast becoming a popular long-haul destination for many U.K. and U.S. travelers because of its strong cocktail of culture, tradition and natural beauty. Rwanda is home to one of the largest populations of mountain gorillas in the world, and the poignant Kigali Genocide Memorial won a 2023 Trip Advisor Best of the Best award.

“We appreciate the value of the European and US markets and their potential for both RwandAir as an airline, and for the country of Rwanda as a whole,” said Habba Hadijah, senior manager, marketing & communications, RwandAir. “We want to offer our customers the best possible product in terms of service, and this means increasing flight frequency on the London–Kigali route.”

RwandAir launched flights to London in 2017 with a service to London Gatwick Airport. During the pandemic, this service was moved to Heathrow but continued to operate via Brussels (BRU). In November 2022, due to increased demand, the airline switched its London Heathrow flights to direct services, removing the Brussels tag.

“RwandAir welcomes both business and economy passengers in equal measure on all our long-haul flights, and we continually look at evolving our inflight service,” added Hadijah. “While we improve our fleet and expand our route network, we also attend to the fundamentals including taking the best care of our passengers.”

© RwandAir

The increase in capacity on the London–Kigali route is predominantly driven by high levels of U.K. leisure traffic both to and from Rwanda. Reports illustrate U.K. visitors to Rwanda are the country’s second-highest, behind only to those from the United States.

RwandAir has a codeshare agreement with Qatar Airways, operating twice-daily services from Doha (DOH) to Kigali, helping further unlock the region to U.S. travelers. The Qatar Airways’ codeshare flights depart from Doha in the morning and evening.

Once arriving at RwandAir’s Kigali hub, travelers can visit many nearby countries by simply accessing the airline’s comprehensive regional network, including departures to Lagos (LOS), Nairobi (NBO), and Cape Town (CPT), South Africa. Adding RwandAir’s other long-haul destinations such as Paris (CDG), Dubai (DBX) and Mumbai (BOM) mean Rwanda is truly open for business.

“There are many new companies and offices opening up in Rwanda and in other neighbouring countries. Business traffic is currently one of RwandAir’s fastest growing market segments as many passengers travel to Rwanda to attend meetings, incentives, events, and conferences,” continued Hadijah.

The 2023 World Travel & Tourism Council Global Summit was hosted in Kigali and is one example of a high-profile event held in the capital city. For U.S. and U.K. travelers, an extra incentive to visit Rwanda is its simple visa application process that can simply be completed on arrival at Kigali International Airport.

Kigali International Airport has low wait times and its relatively small size helps RwandAir maintain its excellent reputation for on-time performance.