Top 5 activities in Nyungwe forest national park

Top 5 activities in Nyungwe forest park.

Top 5 activities in Nyungwe forest ; Nyungwe forest national park is one of the best parks that Rwanda has as it is blessed with lots of attractions like primates, bird species, vegetation types, butterflies and a few wild animal species.  People that are interested in primates and birding will find Nyungwe Park the best place to visit any time of the year. Visiting Nyungwe gives you the opportunity to explore a natural forest with its really ancient trees.

Nyungwe park has swampy areas and grasslands where the wildlife wonders around. Although most people traveling to Rwanda opt for Volcanoes national park as their first priority, a trip to Nyungwe forest national park is similarly an undeniably beautiful experience that one shouldn’t miss out while in Rwanda. It is located only 3-4 hours away from Kigali the capital of Rwanda and this park is worth visiting. Listed below are the top 5 activities in Nyungwe forest national park;

Chimpanzee trekking.

Chimpanzee trekking is the most popular  commonest activity that is done in this park especially because this forest is a home to huge population chimpanzees and you can expect more that the chimpanzees during the trek.  Nyungwe forest houses close to 400 chimpanzees and a big number of them have been habituated and therefore used or tourism purposes. Tracking is done every day and it starts with a briefing about the dos and don’ts of Chimpanzee tracking from Gisakura. Just like gorilla tracking, you will have an hour to stay with the chimpanzee watching how they behave little more like humans, watch them feed, see how the mothers take care of their young ones’ adult females nurse. Do not forget to take as many pictures as you can.

Chimpanzee trekking requires prior booking and it also sometimes starts as early as 5am Rwanda time.

Primate walk/ Black and white Colobus Monkey Trek.

Nyungwe has one of the largest concentration of black and white colobus monkeys on the African continent. Therefore, making it a perfect forest for a primate walk. The Primate walk takes between 2 to 4 hours and it can be done in the morning or in the afternoon.

Bird watching

Birding is one of the top 5 activities in Nyungwe forest. Rwanda as a country is blessed with so many different bird species and in Nyungwe is home to some.  There are over 300 different bird species therefore making it one of the best birding destinations in Rwanda. About 121 birds out of the whole number of species are said to be forest birds. 27 of the total number of species are endemic to the albertine rift valley. Some of the commonly spotted birds include; Rockefellers sunbird, the Great blue Turaco, there are  the  red collared mountain babbler,  the Chapin’s flycatcher, Rwenzori Turaco, there are the Rera grauer’s rush warbler, the white tailed flycatcher, there are also the  Rwenzori batis and barred long tailed cuckoo.

The Rwenzori night jar and the Rwenzori hill babler are found almost everywhere in the park. The forest also has the yellow eyed black flycatcher, Congo’s Congo bay owlet birds as well as the Neumann’s warbler birds among so many other species. The guide will also all the information you may need to know about these birds as you meet them.   Birding watching in Rwanda can be done any time of the year whenever you get time to travel is perfect time.

Nature walk

Forest or nature walks are also very common in Nyungwe.  This is attributed to the fact that the park is forested. You can also opt to explore Nyungwe forest on a bike along the Congo-Nile trail. Some of the trails that you can consider walking include; the Igishigishigi trail, the Bigugu trail, the Isumo waterfall trail, the Ngabwe, there is the Kamiranzovu marsh trail.

Other trails available for nature walks include;  Muzimu trail, the Karamba birding trail, the Imbaraga trail and the Rukuzi trail as well as the Umoyove trail. Nature walking hours, are dependant on the trail you choose to trek. Some walks take 3 hours and others take 3 days like the Congo Nile Trail.  During the walks, watch our for birds, lots of primates and so much more.

Canopy walk;

Nyungwe National Park is the only place across East Africa where the canopy walk is done. This canopt trail stretches for over 200metres above this dense forested canopy of Nyungwe. The Canopy stands tall to as high as 60metres above sea level. Therefore, giving you excellent views of the canopy and a chance to spot Chimpanzees in the canopy.  The Canopy walk takes about two hours to get to the finishing point which is at Uwinka information center. Canopy walk is noted allowed for children below 12 years and currently it costs USD 60 per person per trek.

There is are more activities to do in Nyungwe Besides the forest activities. You can also opt to explore Rwanda’s culture to include; the king’s palace, the Ethnographic museum and local communities. With that information you need a minimum of at-least 3 days to fully explore Nyungwe national park. Join our  3 days Nyungwe forest safari to participaate in some of the top 5 activities in Nyungwe forest.