Activities in Nyungwe Forest National Park
Activities in Nyungwe forest National Park are the ventures travelers and tourists engage in to fulfill their Nyungwe Rwanda Safari tours. These activities are referred to as the major things engaged in by several travelers on a Rwanda safari to Nyungwe forest national park carried out within the park time after time for a memorable experience in the land of a thousand hills.
Nyungwe national park is situated in the southwestern part of Rwanda bordering Burundi, DRC and Lake Kivu thus a visit to this park enables travelers to view a lot of things within the park and the neighboring countries all with beautiful landscapes with a charming vegetation cover that harbors different wildlife species of fauna and flora.
Are you interested in exploring the beauty that lays within this montane forest? , then below are the top most activities in Nyungwe forest national park that are worth taking part in as explained in details below;
Activities in Nyungwe Forest National park:
There are lots of activities in Nyungwe forest national park of which some are enjoyed by the adults-only such as chimpanzee trekking and monkey trekking while the rest are enjoyed by both young and old ranging from hiking trails, monkey trekking, birding, canopy walks, among others that are done at any given period of time since the climatic conditions in Rwanda are favorable throughout the year.
However, the best and highly recommended season to take part in the activities in Nyungwe forest national park still remains the dry season when all the roads within the parks are dry and passable by safari vehicles and the park itself has minimal vegetation cover with less leaves on the trees thus easy to penetrate and take clear photographs during any activity within the park. During the dry month the trails become less muddy and less slippery thus easing the hike and offering a crystal clear view of the wildlife in Nyungwe for a memorable exploration and adventurous safari.
Chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe forest: Chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe forest still remains the major activity that attracts several travelers to take part in activities in Nyungwe forest national park by primate lovers while on an African safari to Rwanda.
Nyungwe forest is home to over 500 chimpanzees making it one of the best destinations for chimpanzee trekking in Africa after Uganda’s Kibale national park a home to 1500 chimpanzees out of 5000 chimpanzees thriving in Uganda.
Chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe forest goes for $90 per person allowing eight people to trek a particular habituated chimpanzee family for about 2-6 hours depending on the trekking speed and the movement of the chimpanzees as they keep on moving up and down in the forest and trekkers follow them up until they finally settle down. Most primate lovers always prefer adding gorilla trekking safari and golden monkey trekking safari in Volcanoes national park to chimpanzee trekking safari in Nyungwe forest national to have a wholesome primate viewing adventure during Rwanda safari. Like gorilla trekking, chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe starts early in the morning with a briefing at the park headquarters and then armed rangers are allocated to a particular group of maximum eight people and off to the jungle trekkers start the journey of encountering the chimpanzees. Once a particular habituated chimpanzee family is sighted, a duration of one hour in close vicinity with the chimpanzees is allowed for trekkers to interact with chimpanzees, take photographs and learn more about our cousins that share about 98% of their DNA with humans.
Hiking in Nyungwe Forest National park: Hiking in Nyungwe forest is yet another interesting activity to get involved in while on a Rwanda safari. Nyungwe forest has over 14 different hiking trails offering different sightings depending on which trail one decides to take. Some of the trails lead to the canopy walk, waterfalls, river Nile, mountains and many more allowing travelers to encounter different primates, mammals, birds, butterflies and lots of tree species. Take part in one or more trails within Nyungwe forest to have an everlasting experience in the montane forest. These hiking trails range within one hour to three days depending on the length of the trail and they include; Muzimu Trail, Irebero Trail, Buhoro trail, Igishigishi trail, Imbaraga Trail, Umuyove Trails, Ngabwe Trail, Bigugu trail, Kamiranzovu Marsh Trail, Isumo waterfall Trail, Uwinka Trail, Uwinka Trail, Umugote Trail, Rukuzi Trail, Congo Nile Divide Trail among others. Adding a hike to the bucket list of the activities in Nyungwe forest national park is a fascinating experience that is worth a trial at least once in a lifetime.
Monkey trekking in Nyungwe forest: Nyungwe forest harbors several monkey species that are easily seen during monkey trekking including mangabey monkeys, L’Hoests monkey, red tailed monkey, blue monkeys, colobus monkeys, owl-faced monkey, and many more as they jump from one tree branch to another within Nyungwe forest. Monkey trekking in Nyungwe forest goes for $60 per person allowing about 1- 4 hours in the forest amidst monkeys taking photographs and interacting with these cheerful primates
Nyungwe canopy walk: Nyungwe Forest Canopy walk is the most interesting activity amongst all the activities carried out in Nyungwe forest.
Canopy walkway in Nyungwe forest is easily accessed via Igishigishi trail which is about two hours walk on a canopy raised at an elevation of 50m above the ground stretching to about 200m allowing travelers to have ample time on a canopy while viewing Nyungwe forest from above. During the canopy walk, travelers have a possibility of sighting different primates, mammals, birds, butterflies and sighting out different plant species within the forest. The canopy walk in Nyungwe forest goes for $60 per person allowing people aged 6 years and above to take part in the adventurous activity that always appears on almost every Itinerary.
Birding in Nyungwe forest: Birding is considered amongst the top activities in Nyungwe forest due to the nature of the forest that harbors over 300 species of birds including over 120 forest bird species, 27 species endemic to Albertine rift valley, water birds common in the swamps of kamiranzovu, and many more that exist in Nyungwe forest making it the best paradise for the birders. Some of the bird species are commonly sighted out by birders include; the Rwenzori turaco, Rockefellers sunbird, barred long-tailed cuckoo, white tailed flycatcher, Congo bay owlet, Rwenzori nigh jar, Chapin’s flycatcher, Rwenzori batis, yellow-eyed black flycatcher, Great blue Turaco, Rera Grauer’s rush warbler, Rwenzori hill babbler, red collared mountain babbler, Paradise Flycatcher, White-headed Wood Hoopoe, Green Pigeons, Ross’s Turaco, Mountain Masked Apalis, Red-Breasted Sparrow Hawk, and many more. All you need is a good hiking attire that enables you to trail in the forest, a pair of binoculars, and alongside a good birding guide, you will surely enjoy the experience in the forest as you capture different bird species and learn more about their specifications and characters.
Conclusion: Travellers on a Rwanda safari can decide to do one or all the activities in Nyungwe forest national park depending on the length of time required to spend in the park. However, taking park all the five top activities in Nyungwe offers an overwhelming experience with everlasting memories while on an African safari to Rwanda. Decide today, make your travel plan and let’s work with you to achieve your dream expedition in the land of a thousand hills.
