Volcanoes National Park is the intriguing safari destination on a Rwanda safari. The park is in the corner of the extension of the big Virunga area that faces south. Volcanoes national park is renowned for the abundance of the mountain gorillas. The park is in the valley of the Albertine rift. Mountain gorillas are famous not only in Volcanoes National Park, but also in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda.
Not only do most people visit the park to see the mountain gorillas, but the national park also has plenty of other safari attractions. These include seeing the golden monkeys, hiking to the tomb of Diani Fossey, a famous primatologist in Rwanda, hiking the volcanoes, and watching birds in the park. The best way to see the best parts of Volcanoes National Park is on a Rwanda safari.
Attractions in Volcanoes National Park.
Mountain gorillas.
Volcanoes National Park’s main attractions are mostly the mountain gorillas and the trekking safaris to see them. Mountain gorillas are very big animals that visitors should not miss experiencing. As these are some of the most important reasons why most people should come to the country. Mountain gorillas are the biggest living apes, and their DNA is 99.8% the same as ours. When you go on a Rwanda safari, you can see these creatures in their natural habitat, which makes your safari the most amazing one.
Animal species.
Volcanoes National park nevertheless it’s popular for the mountain gorillas. The park is a home to numerous different kinds of animals, such as golden monkeys, forest elephants, bushbucks, duikers, buffaloes, spotted hyenas, and many more. There are more than 200 bird species in the park, and 29 of them are only found in the Albertine Rift.
Research center of Dian Fossey.
The research centre is in Volcanoes National Park, which is known for the American primatologist Dian Fossey. She spent a lot of her time teaching people about how to protect mountain gorillas and making people aware of the need to do so. Dian Fossey lived at the bottom of the park, near the foothills of Mount Karisimbi. This is where she started her study and worked to protect the mountain gorillas.
On a Rwanda safari, exploring Volcanoes National Park is the best way to relax. The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund Museum in Musanze was built to honor her, and it welcomes visitors and gives them the chance to learn more about her work, which is what most tourists come to see. This is the best way to get people to care about nature and help protect it. When people are in Musanze, they can see the Virunga Mountains in all their glory.
Virunga Mountains.
Mount Muhabura, Mount Karisimbi, Mount Bisoke, and Mount Gahinga are some of the volcanic mountains that can be seen in Volcanoes National Park. As these volcanic mountains are dormant or extinct volcanoes, they offer the perfect hiking safari to f these volcanoes. As people hike the volcanoes, they are able to observe different kinds of wildlife, and the paths to each volcano are different.
Activities done in Volcanoes National Park.
Gorilla trekking.
The most popular safari activity in Volcanoes National Park is gorilla trekking safari. Gorilla trekking begins with a briefing regarding the rules and regulations about gorilla trekking at the park headquarters. After the briefing, the travelers can be split into groups of eight, and the experienced park guides will go with them into the jungle. Gorilla trekking safari activity can take anywhere from 30 minutes to four hours, depending on where the gorillas are. Once you find them, you can spend an hour with them and watch how they play, groom each other, eat, and do many other things.
The gorilla trekking permit in Volcanoes National Park is 1500 USD per permit per person, you can book your gorilla trekking permit to trek these creatures on a Rwanda safari to get the unforgettable safari memories.
Golden monkey trekking.
Golden monkey trekking safari in Volcanoes national park is the enticing safari activity done in the park. This gives people a chance to see the beautiful golden monkeys, which are unique to the Albertine rift and are as amazing to see in the wild as mountain gorillas. Golden monkey trekking in the park is a great safari experience that gives people great memories of their trip.
Hiking Virunga Mountains.
Rwanda is one of the safari destinations in Africa where you can see the most Virunga Mountains. In Rwanda, you can see 5 Virunga mountains. This is the best safari experience that gives tourists something back. As tourists hike, they can see birds like strange weaver, red-throated alethe, Rwenzori batis, long-tailed cisticola, and others. They can also see primate species like black and white colobus monkeys and as well as spotting various spectacular vegetation as well.
Dian Fossey hike.
A Rwanda safari is never finish without taking part in the Dian Fossey hike, in Volcanoes National Park as this gives you a chance to get to know more about her work in Rwanda and the mountain gorilla conservation. Dian Fossey’s story is interesting because she gave up her adult life to care for and study gorillas. She did this by setting up the Karisoke research station, where she worked on a number of projects to learn how to keep mountain gorillas alive.
Dian Fossey made some discoveries about mountain gorillas. For example, she found that mountain gorillas are a very vulnerable species that often get sick, especially during gorilla trekking safari. This is why trekkers are told to stay at least 7 metres away from gorillas in the wild to keep from getting sick and spreading diseases to them. Dian Fossey did a lot of research and stopped poaching in the park. She did this by setting up regular patrols in the park to keep the number of these species in their natural habitats from going down. She also destroyed the poachers by burning their homes down, killed their dogs. During this time, she was found dead in her cabin and was buried with her friends at the gorilla cemetery.
Where to stay in Volcanoes National Park.
Volcanoes National Park offers the tourists with the highest quality accommodation facilities for the travelers who come to explore the park, as these are most appropriate that are divided into Luxury, Mid-range and the budget and these include Mountain gorilla view lodge, Da Vinci gorilla lodge, Kinigi Guest House, Muhabura hotel and among many others.
How to get to Volcanoes National Park.
There are different ways to get to Volcanoes National Park in different parts of different countries. That’s a two-hour drive from Kigali, the capital of Rwanda. Guests coming from the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Virunga can easily get to Volcanoes National Park in just one hour from Goma. Those coming from Uganda can cross the border at Cyanika, which takes only a few hours by vehicle.