VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK

Volcanoes National Park is one of the best places to see the endangered mountain gorillas within the Virunga Mountains in Rwanda. Besides the gorillas, this park is also home to rare golden monkeys, black-fronted duiker, buffalo, spotted hyena, bushbuck and pristine crater lakes which together makes a complete Rwanda safari package.

No experience compares with trekking the mountain gorillas and that heart-stopping moment when you see an immense silverback staring at you while surrounded by adorable gorilla babies. It’s a moment that takes your breath away and no one ever forgets.

The park is home to 12 gorilla families – each with a silverback male, several females and their young ones. During the gorilla trekking, you will spend 1 hour with them which is plenty of time to observe their family dynamics, snap pictures, and make lifetime memories.

The park was also made famous by the zoologist Dian Fossey, who fled from the difficult political environment in DRC Congo to establish her research center here. She studied the gorillas and created a conservation campaign to stop their poaching. She is credited with saving their population from extinction, publicizing their endangered plight to the world. Dian Fossey was murdered by unknown assailants in 1985 and her story was told in the film called Gorillas in the Mist.

As of today, Dian Fossey’s conservation efforts continues to emphasize on protection of the mountain gorillas. In the year 2005, the park authorities together with the local people began an annual naming ceremony for baby gorillas called “Kwita Izina”. The mountain gorilla infants born each year are named based on the traditional Rwandan ceremony for naming human babies.

Best time to visit:

The park is open throughout the year, but best time to visit is during the dry season from June through September.