Democratic Republic of Congo is one the top most destinations to visit in Africa commonly known for the great Gorillas and Chimpanzee species in its top Known destinations named Virunga National Park and Kahuzi Biega National Park. Democratic Republic of Congo is located in the Central part of the African Continent bordering Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania in the East, Central African Republic in the North, Angola & Congo Brazzaville in the West and Zambia in the South.
It is the second-largest country in Africa by area and eleventh largest in the world. With a population of over 78 million, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the most populated officially Francophone country, the fourth most-populated nation in Africa and the seventeenth most populated country in the world.
How best to reach Democratic Republic of Congo?
In the past years Democratic Republic of Congo had some insecurity issues which interfered with its air transport systems but currently all insecurity issues are fixed and the country now is stable with boosting tourism but air transport still not of good quality, therefore its better you land in Rwanda at Kigali airport and cross to Democratic Republic of Congo via Goma border as it is usually done by all tour operators for their clients who wish to visit DR Congo.
To cross borders you must apply for a visa which issues you permission from the Virunga offices, you have to apply for this Visa early before your crossing dates because it is processed in one week’s time. After clearing with the required offices at the border you will be transferred by the Virunga Safari Jeeps to your destinations of interest and here we always offer gorilla tours in Uganda and Congo.
Gorilla Trekking in Democratic Republic of Congo.
Democratic Republic of Congo is also commonly known for both Mountain Gorillas and Low land Gorillas. This is a unique activity you should not miss while in Democratic Republic of Congo for Vacations. Mountain Gorillas are found in Virunga National Park and Low land Gorillas are found in Kahuzi Biega National Park.
Virunga National Park formerly named Albert Rift Valley covers 7800km2 of Area and is located in the Eastern part of Democratic Republic of Congo stretching from the Virunga Mountains in the south, to the Rwenzori Mountains in the north, in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, bordering Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda and Rwenzori Mountains National Park & Queen Elizabeth National Park in Uganda.
Mountain gorilla trekking in Virunga National Park is usually started in the morning from Bukima after some briefing by the park officials at the park offices about the Dos and Don’ts while in the presence of these apes. Some of the Don’ts appear to be; do not eat in the presence of these apes, always move slowly while in the Jungle, keep your voice at a low tone, keep a distance from these apes, do not use flush camera when taking photos of these apes.
After that briefing you are assigned a park ranger to lead you through the Jungle while searching for these apes, after discovering these apes you are allowed to stay in their presence for only one hour while sighting them feeding, playing with young ones, laughing and taking photos of them. After this session you descend back to the park offices for Gorilla trekking certificate Award, to remind you visiting these apes in the Jungle you must buy a permit which costs $400 USD per person and once this money is paid its non-refundable.
Kahuzi Biega National Park. This park is one of the Gorilla hosting destinations in Democratic Republic of Congo commonly known for the Eastern Low land Gorillas it’s near Bukavu town in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, situated near the western bank of Lake Kivu and the Rwandan border.
Eastern Low land Gorillas are residents in this park characterized with brownish hair all over the body, they are very huge and big in size when compared to Mountain Gorillas, and they reach up to 1.5 meters in height when standing. The tracking for these endowed Low land Gorillas in Kahuzi Biega National Park also starts in the morning at similar permit costs of $400 USD per person and always booked in advance before your travel dates.
Chimpanzee Habituation Walk in Democratic Republic of Congo.
This experience was started by Frankfurt Zoological Society by habituating group of Chimpanzees in the Tongo Forest around the park headquarters in Rumangabo. The walk is mostly started at 6:00am by the guests along the developed trails to find the Chimpanzees; the group is always limited to four people and the permit costs $100 USD per person.
In 1987, Frankfurt Zoological Society developed an 80 km network of trails inside the Tongo forest and began a two-year process of habituating chimpanzees to the presence of humans. By 1989, approximately 50 chimpanzees had been habituated. Treks soon began, and for the next three years, provided an important source of tourism revenue for the park and the small community of Tongo.
