Inzu Lodge

Inzu Lodge is an eco-lodge located in Gisenyi (Rubavu), Rwanda, in front of Lake Kivu and close to Bralirwa. Its name comes from Kinyarwanda, in which "inzu" means "house." The lodge was opened on March 24, 2012, by Marie-Noëlle DeVito, a Canadian traveler who first came to Rwanda in the summer of 2010 for a Québec sans frontières internship in partnership with L'AMIE. Inspired by the TV show Partir Autrement with Bruno Blanchette and by her stay in the "thousands hills" country, she decided to return and open an ecolodge. The lodge's stated mission is to provide ecological accommodations and a unique tourism experience while respecting Rwanda's traditions and benefiting the local community. It supports organizations such as Travel Without Plastic and Travelers Against Plastic. In addition to lodging, Inzu Lodge operates a restaurant and offers wood-fired pizzas that must be ordered one day in advance, with dine-in or delivery options. The lodge also engages in community and environmental initiatives, including recycling glass jars and empty wine bottles into glasses, organizing a reverse advent calendar donation drive, and assembling Christmas baskets of food, toys, and clothes for families in need near the lodge. Inzu Lodge has received annual Guest Review Awards from Booking.com and Certificates of Excellence from TripAdvisor, and it holds a Tourism Operating License from the Rwanda Development Board (RDB). It is privately owned by its founder, Marie-Noëlle DeVito, and remains an active hospitality brand in Rwanda's Rubavu district.

Inzu Lodge was opened on March 24, 2012, by Marie-Noëlle DeVito in Gisenyi (Rubavu), Rwanda, in front of Lake Kivu and close to Bralirwa. The idea for the lodge took shape several years earlier when DeVito watched the TV show Partir Autrement with Bruno Blanchette, which inspired her wish to open a hotel involved in the community where visitors could also contribute to its well-being. Her connection to Rwanda began in the summer of 2010, when she undertook a Québec sans frontières internship in Rwanda in partnership with L'AMIE. During that stay she fell in love with the "thousands hills" country and its inhabitants, and decided to return to open an ecolodge. The lodge's mission is to provide ecological accommodations and a unique tourism experience while respecting Rwanda's traditions and benefiting the local community. It supports organizations such as Travel Without Plastic and Travelers Against Plastic. Over the years, Inzu Lodge has received annual Guest Review Awards from Booking.com and Certificates of Excellence from TripAdvisor, and it holds a Tourism Operating License from the Rwanda Development Board (RDB). The lodge has also engaged in community and environmental initiatives. It has recycled glass jars and empty wine bottles into glasses, organized a reverse advent calendar through which participants donate items during advent for distribution to those in need, and assembled Christmas baskets of food, toys, and clothes that were handed to village authorities for distribution to families near the lodge. In addition, Inzu Lodge has offered wood-fired pizzas, available for dine-in or delivery with one day's advance order, and maintains a restaurant on site.

• 2012

  Inzu Lodge opens on March 24 in Gisenyi (Rubavu), Rwanda.

• 2010

  Marie-Noëlle DeVito undertakes a Québec sans frontières internship in Rwanda in partnership with L'AMIE.

Ecological accommodations and unique tourism experiences that respect Rwanda's traditions and benefit the local community.

• Eco-lodge accommodation

  Ecological accommodations near Lake Kivu.

• Wood-fired pizzas

  Available for dine-in or delivery with one day's advance order.

• Restaurant dining

  On-site restaurant serving guests.

1. 1INZU Eco Lodge – official websiteinzulodge.com
2. 2About INZU Lodge – INZU Eco Lodgeinzulodge.com
3. 3Histoire, culture et religion au Rwanda – INZU Eco Lodgeinzulodge.com
4. 4Inzu Lodge – Wikidatawikidata.org