Best Places Where to Buy Art & Crafts in Rwanda

Although not yet fully explored, cultural tourism in Rwanda is at arise. Many tourists are now visiting the country to learn and discover more about her unique culture and diversity of fine crafts produced by the local Rwandese. Today, Rwanda has many cultural locations where tourists are entertained by local music, dance and drama performances, they get all kinds of crafts produced in the country as souvenirs and a chance to have experiential tourism by participating to local activities especially the dances.

The major crafts produced in the country include jewelry, baskets, wood carvings, pots and other related clay products, shopping bags, papyrus mats, calabashes and many others. While on a tour in Rwanda, below are the leading places where tourists can buy art pieces and crafts for souvenirs;

Nyamirambo Muslim Quarters

This is one of the biggest city suburbs and among the most active neighborhoods in Rwanda with various youth centers. It’s a multi cultural center with a large percentage of Muslims hence the name Muslim quarters. This is one of the best places for city tours and walks; a visit to these quarters gives you a chance to learn about the culture and ways of life of Rwandese city dwellers.

At Nyamirambo, there is the Nyamirambo Women’s Center (NWC) that provides guided walks and tours around Nyamirambo. They take you through their markets where you can buy fruits if you want, visit the West African communities in the area and learn about their culture; hair styles, dressing code among others. The women’s center also provides homestays to interested tourists who get a chance to learn basic Kinyarwanda or how to prepare a simple local Rwandese meal. Nyamirambo has a prominent recording studio where many Rwandese upcoming artistes flock to try out their talent. A visit to this studio will give you a chance to listen to the sweet amazing voices and lyrics of people of Rwanda.

The Gatagara Pottery Experience

This pottery experience can be got in Gatagara which is an hour and thirty minutes drive from the capital Kigali. The local artisans are always ready and willing to teach the pot making process to any interested tourist. The Gatagara area has a number of clay products which include cooking pots, flower vases, bawls, clay plates and cups. All the clay products from this area are unique because Gatagara is blessed with special clay soils with some mica components.Tourists to this culture and heritage site are given chance to create their own pieces which provides a good and unforgettable Rwanda tours experience. Most of the pottery skills possessed by the Gatagara artisans were got from the Batwa –the original inhabitants of the place. Today these skills are being complimented by new modern skills to produce beautiful clay products.

Ivuka Art Center

It was opened in 2007 in Kaciyru district to explore the artisan talents of the local Rwandese and to act as selling center of the locally made crafts. The center exhibits various pieces of art including carvings, sculptures, pottery, pictorials and many others. Today, the Ivuka art center exhibits art works of over 14 local artistes and even gave way for the establishment of Bwiza arts Kigali, Uburange arts and Inema arts center. The Ivuka center also carries out international art exhibitions which any one on a Rwanda safari or cultural tour should not miss.

Rwanda Nziza

This offers a variety of local Rwandan made handcraft products like jewelry, carvings which makes all the earned profits to go back to the local economies. Different artisans also get to be known because all art products have the artisans’ personal profile, product description, its cultural significance and the cultural values attached to it. This has played a big role in preserving the art and craft cultures of the Rwandese. The Rwanda Nziza is also known as the Rwandan fair trade artistes association that was started to promote Rwanda cultural tours.

Ishyo Arts Center

This is a concert and events center in Kigali. The center was started to bring together musicians, dancers, comedians, actors and actresses to one cultural performance that would act as a learning platform form and support initiative to the upcoming talented artistes. If you are so much interested in having fun, this center can be a good place to visit on your Rwanda tour.

Caplaki Craft Village

At this crafts village, we find the Caplaki co-operative that deals with locally made handcrafts. While at the Caplaki craft village, you will find a variety of hand made crafts of all kinds. There are many craft shops around therefore you will have a wide range of options to choose from. Caplaki is among the oldest craft market streets and the craft villages also have crafts from Congo, Uganda, Tanzania and Burundi.