Best Time To Visit Virunga National Park
Virunga National Park is situated in Eastern region of Democratic Republic of Congo in the Albertine Rift Valley. Virunga national park was the first park to be established in Africa to protect the endangered mountain gorillas living in the forests of the Virunga massif in 1925 as Albert national park. It covers an area of approximately 8,090 km2. In 1979 Virunga was declared a UNESCO world heritage site.
The fragment of Virunga’s bountiful mixed ecological community includes volcanic mountains, block mountains, the Albertine rift, rain forests, open grasslands, craters and crater lakes, woodlands, marsh and wetland vegetation among others. The park is a habitant to different mammals such as buffaloes, bushbucks, giant forest hogs, elephants, waterbucks, Uganda Kobs, primates like Chimpanzees, Mountain gorillas, olive baboons, blue monkeys, red tailed monkeys and various species of birds such as brown throated wattle eye, thick billed canary, black tailed godwit, blue headed sunbird etc.
Democratic Republic of Congo experiences two seasons in the year that’s to say the dry season and the wet season. However Eastern Congo receives frequent rainfall through out the year since it consists of thick forests. Therefore, Virunga National Park can be explored any time of the year
However, as much as the Park can be visited all the year around, the dry seasons from June to September and December to February are the finest times to visit. Due to the good weather and climatic circumstances, these months are also thought of as the busiest times of the year, and the majority of tourists choose to make reservations for their intended activities. The trails are frequently dusty thus moving tourists through jungle becomes simple. Hikers of Mount Nyiragongo and gorilla trackers are highly urged to schedule their expeditions throughout this time.
It is acceptable for individuals who want to visit the park in the rainy season of March to May, and from October to early December. The encounter will be identical! Unfortunately, heavy downpours during tracking may cause disruptions and make it difficult for visitors to walk around because of the park’s slippery and muddy trails.
As a word of caution, the wet season can be a great time to visit Virunga National Park due to the outrageous discounts offered by various service providers. For example, the gorilla trekking permits during this season are at a discount and lodging facilities reduce on their room rates.
Virunga national park in the DR Congo is therefore able to be visited at any time of the year by making a direct reservation with the park or any trusted tour operator like Adventure in the wild safaris based on your financial capabilities and convenience.
Popular Safaris
- 10 Days Kibale Forest Chimp Trek
- 15 Days Kibale Primates Safari
- 20 Days Unique Primates Of Kibale
- 8 Days Chimps & Red Tail Monkey
- 7 Days Kibale Birding In The Forest
- 25 Days Colobus Monkey Kibale
All About Kibale
- History Of The Park
- Things To Do
- Places To See
- Getting There