Virunga National Park

Virunga National Park is one of the most exciting safari destinations that all sightseers who have a great spirit of mother nature can go to and have an exciting adventure from, the national park is strategically located within the Eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo and is situated within the Albertine rift valley covering a total surface area of about 77,893 square kilometers.

Virunga national park is considered to be among the oldest national parks in the country and this is because it was established as a national park in the year of 1952 and besides it being the oldest national park in the country it also known for its great physical features and exciting wildlife to marvel at.

Virunga national park is surrounded by a tropical rainforest covered by dense vegetation and the montane forests plus over 3000 flora species all acting as homes to the many wildlife species and among these are the endangered mountain gorilla species and other animals.

Visitors at the national park get to have a lot of exciting safari ventures that are so exciting to be engaged in and some of these include; bird watching, gorilla trekking, chimpanzee trekking, community visits, guided nature walks all these lead by well experienced safari guides who are lead visitors to different trails due to the fact they are more familiar with many parts within the park, where they get opportunities to explore through the beautiful landscapes , visiting the Senkwekwe orphanage centre which is found in Rumangabo, cultural encounters and wildlife viewing and many others.

Three things to see in Virunga National Park.

Mountain Gorillas.

The national park is home to over 604 mountain gorillas that tourists exploring this national park can always see from the numerous destinations where visitors can explore the over 8 habituated mountain gorilla groups and include; Kabirizi gorilla group, Mapuwa gorilla group, Humba gorilla group, Rugendo gorilla group, Bageni gorilla group, Lulengo gorilla group, Nyakamwe gorilla group, Munyaga gorilla group. before the trekking sightseers need to have a permit and this is charged at a fee of about 400 USD per person for the foreigners and 150 USD per person for the Congolese citizens.

Wildlife species.

Virunga National Park is home to over 196 mammal species such as; buffaloes, Uganda kob, Blue duiker, hippos, bay duikers, water bucks, giant forest hog, yellow-backed duiker, 70 amphibians, 200 reptiles and other primate species such as; red tailed monkeys, chimpanzees, blue monkeys, mona monkeys, Hamlyn monkeys, Mantked guereza, African red colobus monkeys, olive baboons, grey cheeked mangabey and many others. Therefore, tourists who opt to visit this park can get chance to see all the above-mentioned species, which makes their adventurous safari a successful one.

Bird species.

For sightseers that are bird lovers the national park is one of the most exciting safari destinations to go to for birding and this is because the national park is a birders paradise with over 706 bird species and this is due to the fact that it is surrounded with a thick forest vegetation and some of these bird include; red knobbed coot, brown-throated wattle eye, white thighed hornbill, blue crested flycatcher, blue headed sunbird, cinnamon breasted bunting, African paradise flycatcher, mountain wagtail, black winged stilt, mourning collared dove, blue headed sunbird, willow warbler, blue cheeked bee-eater, red backed shrike, stripped kingfisher, spot flanked barbet, grey-headed sparrow, snowy crowned robin chat and many others.

Contact our trusted tour operators for more information about Virunga National Park and book with our tours and travel companies such as; Explore Tours Rwanda who offer the best tour packages while on your safari in the Democratic Republic of Congo.