10 Days Gorilla Trek Africa, Congo Gorilla Safari Tour
10 Days Gorilla trek Africa is purely primate safari that will reward you with exploring Rwanda ( Aka Land of thousand Hills ) Democratic republic of congo for the Eastern Lowland gorillas in Kahuzi Biega National Park , Virunga National park for the mountain gorilla trekking , & Volcanoes national park for Golden monkey tracking , Bisoke hike which is among the top virunga mountains hiked on 1 Day hike tour.
10 Days Congo Rwanda Safari tour starts from Kigali Rwanda and ends in Rwanda , with the visit to the eastern lowland gorillas, Mountain gorillas , golden monkey tracking and hiking /climbing Bisoke Mountain. Go gorilla trekking in Africa to watch the primates in Kahuzi Biega national park as Gorilla Habituation , lwiro chimpanzee tracking with mountain gorilla trekking in Virunga National park. Book 10 Days Gorilla trek Africa to enjoy gorilla watching in Rwanda, Congo and hike Bisoke mountain with Rwenzori mountaineering service
Day 1. Transfer from Kigali to Bukavu
The guide will pick you up from your hotel in Kigali then you will drive to Bukavu. You can either use the route via Nyungwe forest or via Lake Kivu; both route will offer you beautiful scenery of Rwanda’s beautiful landscape. The journey from Kigali to Ruzizi (Rwanda and D.R Congo border) takes between 7-8 hours and then around 30 minutes’ drive from the border to your hotel/lodge. Check in at hotel begonias where you will have dinner and spend the night.
Day 2. Eastern Lowland gorilla habituation Experience
After breakfast at the hotel you will transfer to gorilla trekking starting point (kahuzi-biega national park). The park guide will brief you before you set out into the forest to look for the gorillas. The Kahuzi-Biega National Park is a protected area near Bukavu town in the eastern area of the DRC. It is situated near the western bank of Lake Kivu and the Rwandan border. Many travellers visiting Kahuzi biega national park use the Ruzizi Border of Rwanda. The park is the best destination for Eastern lowland gorillas and there are a number of Gorilla families that tourists can see.
The eastern lowland gorilla is a subspecies of eastern gorilla, which is endemic to the mountainous forests of eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. From the starting point, you will move through the tropical forests where you will expect to see other primates like monkeys and various bird species as well as different tree and plant species. One you find the gorillas, you will be given an hour to see the gorillas as they go about their daily lives, take photos and videos. You will then return to the hotel, refresh and have lunch. Dinner and overnight at Bungalow Lodge .
Day 3. Visit chimpanzee orphanage and waterfall
After morning break fast at Bungalow Lodge , you will have your packed lunch ready with you and then drive for about half an hours to lwiro chimpanzee sanctuary. Lwiro chimpanzee sanctuary is the only chimpanzee and monkey sanctuary in the kivu region, the Lwiro acts as a crucial resource for all conservation organizations working in the area. The sanctuary is a hone to over 50 chimpanzees which have been rescued from different parts of the country and about 10 different monkey species. The sanctuary has had tremendous growth over the past several years.
You will move through the forests at the sanctuary to look for the chimpanzees. This activity will take you around 1 hour and you will expect to see chimpanzees moving from one tree to another as they go about their daily life and look for food. You will as well spot some monkey species that live in the forest as well as different bird species.
After chimp tracking at the sanctuary, you will drive to the tshibati trail. You will start the trek through the forest to the magnificent tshibati falls. The walk will take you around 2 hours and you will expect to see sone monkey species and various bird species that live in the forest. The Tshibati Waterfalls Trail passes by three waterfalls and offers hikers the opportunity to take a dip in one of their plunge pools. At the falls, you will be met by beautiful views of the falls and the surround vegetation. This is a good place to take photos. Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight.
Day 4. Transfer to virunga (goma)
After breakfast at the hotel, you will drive to the dock on Lake Kivu where you will find boats going to goma. You will take a speed boat across Lake Kivu to goma. The boat ride will take you about 3 hours and as you travel across the lake you will have a feel of the Lake Kivu cool breeze which is a nice one. The virunga driver guide will be waiting for you and then transfer to mikeno lodge where you will refresh and have lunch. Dinner and overnight at the lodge.
Day 5. Gorilla tracking
After breakfast at the lodge you will drive to the trekking stating point in virunga national park. You will then move through the forests to look for the mountain gorillas. The activity will take around 3-5 hours depending on where the gorillas will be that day. As you trek the gorillas, you will expect to see other primates that live in the park like monkeys and also various bird species. When you find the gorillas, you will see them playing and feeding on bamboo shoots. You will be given an hour to watch the gorillas as they go about their daily life, and also take photos. You will then return to the lodge, refresh and have lunch. Dinner and overnight at the lodge.
Day 6. Visiting the senkwekwe gorilla orphanage
After breakfast at the lodge, you will walk with the guide to the orphanage where you will see some of the gorillas that live at the orphanage. The Senkwekwe Gorilla Orphanage is the world’s only gorilla orphanage and is currently home to four gorillas, ages 5 – 14. Two of the gorillas, both 9 years old, were orphaned during the gorilla massacre of 2007, the only surviving members of their family. The orphanage was put up to be a home for lost or orphaned mountain gorillas in virunga national park. As you move you will expect to spot some bird species that live in the forest. You will return to the lodge and have lunch. Dinner and overnight at the lodge.
Day 7. Transfer to volcanoes
After breakfast at the lodge, you will check out and then transfer to volcanoes national park. You will drive through goma town to the border, cross and then proceed. Check in at da vinci lodge, where you will spend the night.
Day 8. Golden monkey tracking
After breakfast at the lodge, you will drive to volcanoes national park headquarters, where you will be briefed by the park guide about the whole activity. You will then drive to the golden monkey trekking starting point. You will start the trek through the tropical forests to the bamboo area. You will expect to see golden monkeys jumping from one bamboo tree to another as they go about their daily life. Unlike the gorillas, you will have to keep moving with the monkeys as they move because they don’t keep in one place. After the trek return to the hotel and have lunch. Dinner and overnight at the lodge.
Day 9. Visoke hike
After breakfast at the lodge, you will drive to the visoke hiking starting point where you will be briefed about the hike by the park guide, be assigned guides and porters. Mount Bisoke which also known as Visoke is an active volcano in the Virunga Mountains of the Albertine Rift, the western branch of the East African Rift. It straddles the border of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but the summit is located in Rwanda. It is located approximately 35 km northeast of the town of Goma and adjacent Lake Kivu.
With all your hiking package, you will start the hike to the top. It takea about 4-5 hours to reach the top. As you hike you will expect to spot some monkey species as well as different bird species. You will return to the lodge refresh and have dinner. Overnight at the lodge.
Day 10. Transfer to Kigali
After breakfast at the lodge, you will transfer back to Kigali. The guide will drop you at the hotel in Kigali or at the airport. While in Kigali, you might choose to do a city tour where you will visit the Kigali genocide museum where you will get to know what happened during the genocide.