Volcanoes National park is located in the Northern region in Rwanda in Musanze district. It is also considered the smallest national park in the country covering around a total surface area of about 160 square kilometers. More so, Volcanoes national park is famously known and commonly visited because it is ranked to be the best destination for gorilla trekking activities because it is a home to over large numbers of about 340 mountain gorillas and about 10 habituated gorilla groups that are always available for the visitors. More so, this National park is also seen as a birders paradise due to the fact that it harbours around 178 beautiful bird species, 16 subspecies which happen to be endemic to Virunga national park and the Rwenzori mountains, 13 primate species such as; golden monkeys among others.
Volcanoes national park in Rwanda is found within Kingi sector and it is noticed to be sharing boarders with other national parks situated in different countries like; Virunga national park located in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mgahinga gorilla national park in Uganda and many others.
What are the activities done in the Volcanoes National park in Rwanda?
Gorilla Trekking.
Gorilla trekking is one of the major activities that are done within Volcanoes national park and it has led to the great improvement towards the development of the tourism industry because it is a home to over 340 mountain Gorilla species. The trekkers are always encouraged to arrive at the Rwanda development board (RDB) offices an hour before the trekking and this is when they are always given short briefings about the rules and regulations that they are supposed to follow during the trekking and later they are being put in groups of about 8 members depending on which gorilla groups they are willing to trek. More so, this activity always goes for about 6 hours depending on where the gorilla species are located. More so, after these species are located, tourists are given about one hour to spend with them as they learn about their behaviours and character such as; they get to see how they eat and feed their young ones.
Bird Watching.
Volcanoes national park is considered to be among the three important birding areas (IBA) in the country, which has the rare Albertine Rift endemics. Therefore, exploring around this national park always get chances to sight see very many beautiful bird species and they encouraged to always carry their binoculars which help them to capture classic views of the bird species while they are in distant places and cameras to capture nice pictures of the birds. In addition, during this activity, tourists are always accompanied with their bird guides who lead them through.
Visiting the Musanze caves.
Visiting the Musanze caves is one of the most interesting activity that is conducted in Volcanoes national park. The Musanze caves were due to the volcanic eruption, which was formed on the underground space, which is very large enough for the human beings to enter. More so, tourists can always walk about 2 kilometers whereby they use the walkways and the stairs, which lead you into the dark interior of the caves. In addition, this activity is commonly by many tourists within the morning hours after Gorilla trekking.
Hiking.
Hiking is an interesting activity however, it is best for individuals who are physically fit due to the fact that it involves in moving to the slippery grounds and hiking to the top of the mountains. More so, tourists can hike mountains like; hiking to mount Bisoke, which is known to be a remarkable crater lake at the top and provides tourists with a rewarding hiking adventure experience and hiking to this mountain always takes about 6 hours with 2 hours inclusive, which are well spent while descending back down.
More so, tourists can also opt to hike to Mount Karisimbi, which is the highest of the Virunga volcanoes at 4507 meters above the sea level, and it is ranked as the fifth highest in the whole of Africa. Mount Karisimbi derives its name from the word “Amasimbi” which means “white shell” in Kinyarwanda language because of the white capped summit, which is a result of hail and sleet while accumulating. More so, the Karisimbi Hike is strenuous and very rewarding which takes about around 2 days for the entire journey starting from Bisoke. In addition, during the hiking, tourists always get chances to sight see large numbers of beautiful bird species and several primate species among others.
However, apart from the mentioned above, there are many more other activities that tourists can engage in while touring around Volcanoes national park and some of these include; guided nature walks, cultural encounters, community visits, dian fossey tomb tour, golden monkey trekking and many others.
Contact our trusted tour operators in case of any more information about things to do while exploring in Volcanoes national park and Book with our tours and travel companies such as; Explore tours Rwanda who offer the best tour packages while on your safari in Rwanda.
