CONGO VISA
Congo Visa : Congo Visa is a must have before embarking on your Congo safari. In fact, you can never be allowed into Congo minus a visa. This article therefore brings you all the possible information about how to obtain a Congo Visa, the cost of Congo visa and where exactly to obtain your Congo visa. Unlike other destinations, Congo is a different one thus one must apply for the Visa at least 2 weeks in advance and the entire process is done online.
This is done to ensure safety of everyone entering into the country since the country has had endless civil wars, diseases and many more but apart from that Congo thrills with a whole lots of tourist attractions that you need to explore on your next Africa safari.
Some of the best destinations to explore include Virunga national park a home to the endangered mountain Gorillas and volcanos that thrill within Virunga massif. Congo also has Kahuzi Beiga national park a home to Eastern lowland gorillas and many treasure that lie with in Eastern part of Congo make Congo one of the most visited country in Africa. In fact Congo is blessed in that each of its 2 most visited national parks harbor gorillas but to visit these beautiful parks in Congo, one must have a Congo visa.
How to obtain a Congo Visa
While planning to explore Democratic Republic of Congo in your next Africa safari, you need to make appropriate inquiry about how best to acquire your Congo Visa. Check on if you’re eligible to travel visa free, obtain visa upon arrival or must have via prior to visiting Congo. Some of the countries exempted from Congo visa include Chad, Cameroon, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, and Central African Republic. So as long as you are from the stated countries and hold a Biometric Passport, you are free to spend 90 days in Congo visa free.
Well, for the remaining countries, to enter into Congo, one has to obtain a Congo visa and the following are the requirement necessary as you apply for your Visa.
Requirements to obtain a Congo Visa
A valid passport which is the number travel document to enter any country. Well, you passport should be valid for at least 6 months on the time of your visa application.
A valid certificate showing proof of yellow fever vaccination is a must have before obtaining a Congo visa as well as 2 colored passport photos.
A letter from the tour company Cleary stating the reason of travel .the letter should include the date of travel, the length of your safari, the contact address, the place of origin and then the letter be addressed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Democratic Republic of Congo for verification.
What is the cost of a Congo Visa?
According to the agreement between the ICCN (Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature) and Congolese wildlife authority alongside (DGM), a Congo visa for tourists who intend to explore Virunga national park costs $105 for a single entry and one must first obtain either a gorilla trekking permit, a mount Nyiragongo hiking permit or book accommodation with Mikeno luxury lodge since the tourist visa and these permits or accommodation go hand in hand and in any case this visa obtained through Virunga national park is non-Refundable.
On the other hand, tourists who intend to visit other parks in Democratic Republic of Congo other than visiting only virunga national park, obtain their Congo visas through Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature (ICCN) where an applicant forwards in their documents with the permit bookings and accommodations and make payment for the visa then obtain an order number to proceed with an online application process.
And after the application process, you will need to print out your document and come with it on your travel date since you need to present it at the border point at Grande Barriere indicating clearly that you paid for all activities and accommodations. And keeping in mind that your Congo safari starts either in Uganda or Rwanda, you will as well need to process those visas.
However, for those who need to take direct flights into Goma in Democratic Republic of Congo, you have to notify the team about it at least 2 weeks in advance prior to your departure such that your visa information is forwarded to the airline you intend to board.
Conclusion,
We are always here to assist you in process your travel visa into Democratic republic of Congo and organize an entire Congo safari on your behalf. Send us a message today on how you wish us to organize your next Africa safari to Congo.
