Getting to volcanoes national park for gorilla trekking: Most visitors who would like to visits Volcanoes national park always ask this question to get a well-elaborated explanation about this magnificent National park. Volcanoes national park is located in Rwanda and it is referred to as Parc National Des Volcanos in fresh language. This is the only national park in Rwanda that houses / harbors endangered mountain gorillas and it presents the most accessible park for all those interested in doing gorilla trekking safaris in Rwanda. Rwanda has been known for tourism development partly because of the presence of mountain gorillas in this.  Volcanoes national park is the oldest national park on the African continent and is situated in Musanze province known as Ruhengeri and it is home to endangered mountain gorillas. The park is bounded by Mgahinga National park in Uganda,  Volcanoes National Park in the Democratic Republic of  Congo, and Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park still in Uganda which houses more gorillas un the whole of this East African region. Other than Endangered mountain gorillas, Volcanoes national park anchorages other primates and wildlife species including the gentle and beautiful golden monkeys that have attracted several visitors through the activity of Golden monkey trekking. The other wildlife species in Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda include Buffaloes, duikers, hyenas, elephant bushbucks among others. The Virunga vegetation is characterized by savannah grassland, vent swamps, bamboo forest, and mountain volcanoes that include Bisoke, Karisimbiu, Gahinga, Sabinyo, and Muhabura which offer hiking /climbing experience to visitors in addition to gorilla trekking.

Gorilla tracking is the key activity in Mgahinga national park and it has made the park popular for most visitors in addition to making it so amazing and attractive. Because of the large influx of visitors for gorilla trekking in the park, it has raised the question of how best to get to Volcanoes National Park for gorilla trekking. The directions are clear and simple and Volcanoes national park can be accessed by both road and air transport. The choice of either one of this type depends on the choice, interests, and your budget as the traveler. There are ten habituated gorilla families in Volcanoes National park with over 500 mountain gorillas. Mount Karisimbi gorilla family is the prominent gorilla family found in Volcanoes national park Rwanda and this is among few groups that were studied by primatologists Dian Fossey. The other groups of gorillas stay low down the slopes are they are easy to trek though constantly on the Move.

By Road transport

Visitors from Kigali international airport on arrival will have to travel for about 2-3 hours to access volcanoes national park on the road. Visitors can have organized trips especially with travel operators like Africa Adventure Vacations with experienced and professional guides knowing exactly all the routes leading to the park and the general knowledge about Rwanda. With this, our guides will find it very easy to get you to Kinigi the volcanoes park headquarters in the quickest time possible where you will start your activity of gorilla trekking. Accessing volcanoes national park from Kigali international airport is not the only route of connecting to Volcanoes national park some visitors have connected to volcanoes national park from Uganda especially those who have had enough time to tour Uganda and visit all its destination parks and associated activities like chimpanzee tracking, gorilla trekking, golden monkey tracking or safaris game drives. From Uganda for gorilla trekking, you can connect to volcanoes national park from Uganda in just 7 hours depending on which part or area of Uganda you are in. Some visitors enjoy trekking gorilla both in Uganda and Rwanda to the experience of the two countries just from Bwindi or Mgahinga national park for gorilla trekking you can connect to Volcanoes National park four about 3 hours via Cyanika Uganda Rwanda border. Yes, volcanoes national back is very accessible in that visitors can fly to Rwanda track gorillas in the park, and then fly back home just on that same day and this is because the park is near to the city Kigali. For Bwindi and Mgahinga National park, you will need to stay for another night if you want to fly out via Entebbe international airport. From Entebbe international airport, the drive takes 8-9 hours and this sometimes can be tiresome especially for those who are not interested in nature.

By Air transport to Volcanoes National park.

As earlier said, volcanoes national park is very close to Kigali international airport in Rwanda and therefore you will need to arrive and then be taken to your accommodation facility in Ruhengeri. Fact that the peak is close to the city center, you can as well arrive at Kigali at around 1600hrs and still go to the park to wake up for mountain gorilla trekking however in Bwindi this would be impossible as you will need a minimum of five hours if you land at Kigali international airport and about 8-9 hours if you land at Entebbe international airport in Uganda. For visitors wishing to start their gorilla trekking from Uganda, there is an option of using domestic flights to link you up to Kisoro that are available at Entebbe international airport or Kajjansi airfield at affordable and cheaper prices. All the domestic flights are scheduled in the morning due to the weather conditions in the Kigezi region where the Uganda gorilla parks are located.

Where to stay in Volcanoes National Park.

Volcanoes national park in Rwanda is surrounded by several accommodation facilities that are located at the edge of the park. The accommodation is available in the budget, midrange, and luxury facilities and thus the decision for you to choose for any accommodation to stay at will depend on your interest and probably your budget. The best accommodation facilities in and around Volcanoes National park include Sabinyo Silverback, Bisate Lodge, Virunga Volcanoes Lodge, Mountain Gorillas’ Nest Lodge. These accommodation facilities are so nice and they ensure that services are so nice and they give you the best with VIP rooms with best quality room services and offering both soft and hard drinks. Other lodges in the midrange category include Davic Lodge, Mountain gorilla view Lodge, Lebambou Gorilla Lodge at the best affordable rates. The presence of this midrange lodge is an indication that there quite a several options to choose from when going for mountain gorillas. There are also options for travelers who are on a budget and such accommodation facilities include Home Inn, Faraji Hotel, Virunga hotel, Kinigi Hotel, La Palme among others. It is good to book an accommodation facility that is close to the park that will enable you to reach the park headquarters at 7; 00 am for a briefing exercise before you commence your gorilla trekking exercise.

Price of the Gorilla permit in Volcanoes National Park

Compared to other gorilla destination countries such as Uganda and the democratic republic of Congo, the price for a gorilla permit is a bit expensive and a gorilla trekking permit costs USD USD1500.00 per person per trek, there are also special offers in Rwanda for gorilla trekking permits such visits include that for any visitor to visit 3 parks in Rwanda will get a discounted rate of USD1050.00 per person per trek and USD1275.00 per person for those who come to Rwanda for conferences

When to visit Volcanoes national park

Volcanoes National park in Rwanda is open for visitation throughout the year for gorilla trekking. This means that gorilla trekking in Uganda can be done at any time of the year and any day however the much preference is during June, July, August, and the start of September, and then December to February yearly. These are regarded as the drier months of the year with less rainfall that would hamper the gorilla trekking activities. Gorilla trekking is available all day and it is just a matter of you booking for your specified dates and we book for you the permit for gorilla trekking.

Optional activities that you can do while in Volcanoes National Park.

Don’t think that there are any other activities that you can engage in while in volcanoes national park. Yes, gorilla trekking is a major activity but there are also other activities that you decide to optionally participate in Volcanoes National park. A among these activities include Golden monkey trekking safaris where you can spend its day exploring the golden monkeys within the forests. The process of golden monkey trekking is a bit similar to gorilla trekking as the activity also starts at 7: am with a briefing before you go into the forest. The golden monkey trekking permit costs USD100.00 for foreign nonresidents, foreign residents United stated dollars 65.00 of Rwanda and foreign residents of East Africa other than Rwanda United States Dollars 80.00.

One can also get involved in Kiningi or climbing within the park. Volcanoes national park has got five mountain volcanoes of Virunga which enables hiking activities. Hiking in Virunga National Park is conducted on daily basis and in this case, there is no prior arrangement for this particular activity. An indication that one can hike nay tike on top of the highest peaks. Of the 5 volcanoes, the highest is Mt Karisimbi at 4507 meters this is followed by Mount Bisoke at 37771 meters, then Mount Gahinga at 3470 meters, Mount Muhabura at 4127 meters and Mount Mikeno at 4437 meters and the presence of such mountains gives arrange of options for you to choose from.

Other activities that you can engage in Volcanoes National park include cave visit tours, community visit tours, Nature walks safari, the famous Dian Fossey trail, Volunteer work among other activities. You can book these activities immediately you’re in Volcanoes National Park.

How to book a Gorilla safari to Volcanoes National park.

Gorilla safari booking is best done by the use of a well-reputed tour company that ensures that all the services involved are booked and confirmed to the client. It is Africa Adventure Vacations that provides answers for this cause. We provide quality services that are so reliable and we organize trips based on your interests. We have experience in handling various packages and you can as well check our website for reviews and more information.