gorillas in congo

Gorillas in Congo are one of the biggest attractions in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Gorilla Trekking is one of the biggest selling activity. Mountain gorillas are also known as Gorilla Beringei Beringei and in Congo are found in two national parks namely Virunga National Park which is located in the eastern part of Democratic Republic of Congo harbours mountain gorillas and Kahuzi Biega national park which is situated in the eastern part of Congo, located in western part of Bukavu town near the southern shores of Lake Kivu, borders with Rwanda harbours Eastern lowland gorillas. The Democratic Republic of Congo is located in central Africa and is the second-largest country on the continent after Algeria, which is the largest continent.

Mountain gorillas are found in the mountain areas of Bwindi impenetrable national park and Mgahinga national park in Uganda, Volcanoes national park in Rwanda and Virunga national park in Congo. The Democratic Republic of Congo is a safe and peaceful destination which allows visitors to go for gorilla trekking in the steep and rugged rainforests with guides and armed rangers who offer protection to the visitors against the wild elephants during gorilla trekking activity.

Gorilla trekking in Congo

Gorilla trekking is a major and interesting activity in Democratic Republic of Congo which allows visitors to move in the rainforests in search of the mountain gorillas hence giving visitors unforgettable moments with the gorillas in their natural habitat.

Mountain Gorillas in Congo are found in Virunga national park which is a home of 8 habituated gorilla families that are available for trekking every day by the visitors. The gorilla habituated families include:

Rugendo family is comprised of 9 members and is also the oldest family to be habituated in Virunga national park,
Bageni family comprised of 26 members and is the largest habituated gorilla family in Virunga national park,
Kabirizi family comprised of 19 members,
Mapuwa family comprised of 22 members,
Munyanga family comprised of 9 members,
Lulengo family comprised of 9 members,
Humba family comprised of 10 members and is the most interesting family to visit due to its calm characteristics
Nyakamwe family comprised of 11 members and is among the new habituated gorilla families open for trekking in Virunga national park.

Lowland Gorillas are found in Kahuzi Biega national park which is situated in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This is a less visited national park but has rich biodiversity, landscape and harbours the endangered eastern lowland gorillas. The lowland gorillas live groups just like the mountain gorillas and the groups are dominated by the silverback. Kahuzi Biega national park is a home of about 12 gorilla families with 4 habituated gorilla families open for gorilla trekking on a daily basis and one family called Nganwa comprised of 10 members and is still under habituation process hence allows 4 visitors to participate in the habituation process and spend four hours with the gorilla families.

The habituated gorilla families in Kahui Biega national park include

Mpungwe family which is comprised of 21 members and is the largest group in the park,
Chimanuka family comprised of 19 members,
Bonnani family comprised of 5 members
Mugahuka family which is comprised of the dominant silverback,
the other group members went to Chimanuka family after the disputes with Chimanuka group hence the group is recommended for conversational and old visitors.

Kahuzi Biega national park offers great gorilla trekking experience to visitors who don’t like hikes in that the gorillas are found in the lowlands, unlike the mountain gorillas which are found in the mountain areas.

Gorilla trekking in both Virunga national park and Kahuzi Biega national park allows a maximum number of 8 people to visit each gorilla family therefore there are 64 available gorilla trekking permits in Virunga national park due to the 8 habituated gorilla families and 32 gorilla trekking permits in Kahuzi Biega national park available daily for the 4 habituated eastern lowland gorillas. Gorilla trekking takes about one to three hours depending on your physical fitness and the location of the gorillas and once found the visitors spend one hour with the gorilla groups unlike during gorilla habituation experience where the visitors spend four hours with the gorillas in their natural habitat.

Cost of a Gorilla trekking permit in Congo

Democratic Republic of Congo offers the cheapest gorilla trekking permits which costs $400 for Foreign Non-Residents and $150 for Congolese residents compared to other gorilla destinations like Uganda where the permit costs $600 for Foreign Non-Residents, $500 for Foreign Residents and $1500 for all nationals in Rwanda which is the highest price for gorilla permits in all the three gorilla destinations.

The Democratic Republic of Congo also offers discounted gorilla trekking permits at $200 during the low season months of October, November and March to May which favours the budget travellers. However, the gorilla trekking permits should be booked at least four months in advance so as to avoid competition and being sold out.

How to book for a Gorilla trekking permit in Congo

A gorilla trekking permit can be booked directly with Virunga tourism offices in Goma or booked through a trusted tour operator; in this case Achieve Global Safaris will be able to help you book a gorilla trekking permit for you hence saving you all the hustle. When booking through a tour operator there are different processes which you pass through including

Contacting the tour operator which is Achieve Global Safaris with the date, months and year when you want to visit either Virunga national park or Kahuzi Biega national park.
The company will check available permits which match with the dates provided
Send you the bank details where you will make the payments for the gorilla trekking permits
You will send your passport details which will be used to process the gorilla trekking permit
After the payments have been received Achieve Global Safaris will purchase the gorilla trekking permit for you.

Best time to visit Congo for Gorilla trekking

The Democratic Republic of Congo can be visited any time throughout the year for gorilla trekking and other activities but the best time that most visitors choose is during the drier seasons of June to September and December to February. During these months there is minimal rainfall hence gorilla trekking activity is easy in that the grounds are not so wet, muddy and slippery like during the wet season in March to May and October to November when trekking is more difficult due to heavy rains. However, during the wet season in the months of March to May and October to November there is no competition of the gorilla trekking permits like during the dry season also known as the peak season. The Democratic Republic of Congo also offers discounted gorilla trekking permits and the lodges also give discounts to the visitors on a safari hence encouraging people to visit Virunga national park and Kahuzi Biega national park for gorilla trekking.

What to pack and clothes to wear when visiting Congo

Visitors going for gorilla trekking activity in Virunga national park and Kahuzi Biega national park should park different gorilla trekking essentials to make gorilla trekking successful and they include

Camera, this is an important item in that it is used to capture all the moments with the gorillas during your safari in Congo
Hiking boots, these are used to protect your feet from getting wet due to the muddy grounds in the forest during gorilla trekking
Long sleeved shirts and trousers, these are used to protect your body from thorns, tree branches and insects while in the jungle and also keep you warm especially during the rainy season.
Waterproof rain jacket/poncho, this is used to protect you from the rain during gorilla trekking in the jungle
Walking stick, this is used to give you support while trekking in the rugged forests which are slippery during the rainy season.
Garden gloves, these are used to protect your hands from germs, thorns, tree branches among others since you will be using the tree branches as support especially on the steep slopes.
Backpack, this is used to carry the items like a rain jacket, camera snacks among others when trekking
Energy snacks, snacks include packed food which can be got from the lodge where you will be staying and 2 litres of drinking water, these will give you energy especially when you are trekking gorillas in long distances.

Where to stay

The Democratic Republic of Congo offers a wide range of luxury, mid-range and budget accommodation to visitors going to gorilla trekking activity in either Virunga national park or Kahuzi Biega national park. The lodges in Virunga national park include Lulimbi Tented Camp, Tchegera Island Camp, Kabumba Tented Camp, Mikeno Lodge, Lac Kivu Lodge, Bukima Tented Camp, Hotel Cap Kivu, Nyiragongo Summit Shelters among others and lodges in Kahuzi Biega national park include Lodge Coco, Orchids Safari Club, Mount Kahuzi Hotel, Lakeside Hotel Bukavu Camp, Exodus Bukavu Camp, Hotel Begonias among others. The lodges offer comfortable shelter, prepare both international and local dishes, offer great scenic views of the savannah vegetation, cool environment where visitors can chill and relax after a gorilla trekking safari in Virunga national park or Kahuzi Biega national park.

How to get to Congo for Gorilla trekking

Virunga national park can be accessed in different ways where visitors can fly to Kigali International Airport and then connect by road via Gisenyi town to Goma border which takes about 2 hours to reach the park headquarters in Bukima. Visitors from Uganda can also fly from Entebbe airport to Kisoro Airstrip where they will cross at Bunagana border in Kisoro town to Bukima headquarters which takes about one hour.

Kahuzi Biega national park can be accessed by road and air transport means where visitors can fly to Kigali international airport and connect by road cross Rusizi border to Bukavu town then Kahuzi Biega national park which takes around 7 hours’ drive. Air visitors can use chartered flights from Kigali International Airport to Rusizi border and then cross Bukavu town to Kahuzi Biega national park by road using a safari vehicle. This takes around one hour and thirty minutes.

Democratic Republic of Congo offers the best gorilla trekking experiences as compared to other gorilla destinations in Africa in that it harbours both the mountain gorillas which are found in Virunga national park and the eastern lowland gorillas which are found in Kahuzi Biega national park where visitors choose whether to trek the lowland or the mountain gorillas hence giving them unforgettable and lifetime memories on the tour in Congo.