Africa's best national parks

More and more visitors flock each year to the continents' parks and reserves, bearing witness to nature on a grand scale and playing a vital role in generating tourism income.

Here are some of the top picks on the continent.

Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya

Maasai Mara National Reserve, which has been honored by the World Travel Awards, is named after its ancestral inhabitants, the Maasai people, and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in southwest Kenya.

In addition to an impressive population of big cats, rhinos and elephants, it plays host from July through to October each year to one of the world's more spectacular movements of wildebeest known as the Great Migration, the phenomenon involves more than 1 million wildebeest and hundreds of thousands of gazelles, zebras and other animals, which migrate from the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania.

Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

Serengeti National Park was established in 1951, making it Tanzania's oldest national park. The park is arguably one of the most famous in the world and covers 5,700 square miles of grassland, riverine forest, woodlands and savannah.

It is famed for its spectacular scenery, diverse wildlife and its part in the impressive annual migration of more than a million wildebeest and hundreds of thousands of other animals.

Virunga National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo

Established in 1925, Virunga National Park is Africa's oldest national park and is often considered the crown jewel of parks on the continent. It lies in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The park is known for being the "continent's most biologically diverse protected area" and is home to endangered species, such as the mountain gorilla and the okapi.

In the 1970s, Virunga welcomed an average of 6,500 visitors every year, but it has suffered terribly from armed conflict and poaching. The park is slowly re-establishing itself through international donations.

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda

The Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is located in southwestern Uganda and is home to a multitude of birds, butterflies and endangered species, including the mountain gorilla. Some 300 wild gorillas live in the park, accounting for nearly half the world's population
The park also boasts more than 160 species of trees.
The main tourist attraction is gorilla tracking, which generates a steady stream of revenue for the Uganda Wildlife Authority.

Kruger National Park, South Africa

Kruger National Park was established as a game reserve in 1898 and is home to a vast number of species, including more than 500 types of bird and more than 100 reptiles. It also boasts a huge diversity of trees and flowers.

The park is also known for big game, as well as more than 255 recorded archeological sites. Several rivers traverse the park from west to east, including the Sabie, Olifants, Crocodile, Letaba, Luvuvhu and Limpopo.

3 Days Gorilla Tour in Volcanoes National Park- Rwanda

Kigali - Volcanoes National Park

With a distance of approximately 80 Kilometers from Kigali International Airport to Volcanoes National Park, this drive at most takes 2.5 hours making this safari package ideal for short stay and business travelers to Rwanda. Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda is not only a fun and thrilling adventure but also a noble cause because a huge sum of the funds collected from the sale of Gorilla permits goes into conservation.

If you want to keep the magic alive a little longer you can add a few days in Masai Mara to your holiday agenda. Masai Mara is one of the most spectacular safari destinatins in the world, Huge herds, big adventures. Once you’ve been on Safari in the Masai Mara National Reserve everywhere else will feel tame by comparison.

DAY 1

Kigali – Volcanoes National Park

Arrival of your international flight. Met by our representative.

Your safari guide will take you around for a tour of Kigali City. Highlights of the Kigali city tour include a visit to the Kigali Memorial Center which is a memorial center in remembrance to the over 800,000 people who lost their lives in the 1994 genocide.

Arrive and check-in.

Dinner and overnight at the selected/available lodge or tented camp.

DAY 2

Volcanoes National Park

06h30: Early morning breakfast at the hotel/lodge then depart for the ORTPN offices for briefing prior to departing into the forest to start trekking the mountain gorillas.

Visit the local community in the afternoon after your lunch and close off the day by visiting the iby’iwacu cultural village for local musical performances by a cultural troupe

Dinner and overnight at the selected/available lodge or tented camp.

DAY 3

Volcanoes National Park – Kigali

06h30: Set off for an early morning mountain gorilla tracking adventure at the Volcanoes National Park

Tracking ideally will last anywhere between 30 minutes to 3 hours depending on your tour guide of the day
Depart for your homebound international flight at Kigali International Airport.

Rwanda Increases Gorilla Permit Tarriffs

Press Release from Rwanda Development Board.

Kigali, 6 May 2017 – The Rwanda Development Board today announced an increase in the price of Gorilla Permits from US$ 750 to US $1,500 for all visitors effective immediately. A new exclusive package for tourists who wish to book an entire family of gorillas was also introduced at US$ 15,000, and will receive exclusive personalized tour guide services.

The price increase will not affect tourists who had already purchased their tickets for gorilla trekking at the time of this announcement.

Tourists who visit other national parks (Nyungwe and Akagera) for a minimum of three days, in addition to gorilla trekking will receive a discount of 30%. Similarly, conference tourists, who stay pre or post conference dates to see gorillas will be eligible for a 15% discount.

In line with Rwanda’s high-end tourism strategy, the price increase aims to strengthen conservation efforts and contribute more to the development of communities living around the Volcanoes National Park.

Along with the new tariff, the tourism revenue sharing rate for communities adjacent to the park, will also increase from 5% to 10%, which will quadruple the absolute revenues received by communities. Over the last 12 years, more than 400 community projects have been completed including hospitals, schools, business development centers and water supply systems to facilitate access to clean water. These projects directly benefit the people living around the parks.

Ms. Clare Akamanzi, the Chief Executive Officer at Rwanda Development Board said:

“Gorilla trekking is a highly unique experience. We have raised the price of permits in order to ensure sustainability of conservation initiatives and enhance visitors’ experience. We also want to make sure that the communities living near the park area receive a bigger share of tourism revenues to fund development projects and empower them economically.”

Rwanda’s Nyungwe Forest National Park

A visit to Nyungwe Forest National Park is a must for your next trip to Rwanda, with RwandaAir now flying daily from Kigali Airport to the nearby Kamembe Airport. Alternatively the trip by a car takes approximately five hours which is a good option for those who want to visit historical sites like Nyanza and Butare along the way.

Visitors to the Nyungwe National Park will be able to join excursions to view the rare species of Chimpanzees that reside in the area and can enlist the help of a guide to help them discover other animals found in the park; horticulturalists will have the opportunity to explore trails flanked by exotic flora and a multitude of different breeds of orchids.

Willing adventurers need to wake up as early as 5am for an incredible primate viewing experience and a visit to the Cyamudongo Forest because the Nyungwe Rainforest Chimpanzees wake up as early as 4am for breakfast.

Travelers to Nyungwe Forest National park have the option of staying at the Ultra-Luxury Nyungwe Forest Lodge which is set out in a tree plantation on the edge of the Nyungwe Rainforest.

For travelers looking beyond the typical Big-Five Style safari experiences on offer elsewhere in Africa and to instead set-up in a country with over 13 primate species and the endangered mountain Gorillas in Volcanoes National Park then you ought to look no further and pack up for a Safari in Rwanda.

Nyugwe Forest National park is the largest middle altitude rainforest in Africa with over 13 primate species, 275 bird species and over 240 tree species and boasts one of the highest biodiversity levels anywhere in the world.

Golden Monkey Surveying the Area

Sustainable travel enables conservation of the things that make a destination desirable in the first place.
 

Rather than denuding forests for a strip of souvenir shops and a tiny fenced reserve, places like Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park protect the native habitat for several rare species, including the golden monkey, mountain gorilla and forest elephant. Park tourism dollars employ guides, trackers and porters and also support community development projects that reduce the incentive to cut forest for illegal farms or set antelope snares, which can kill endangered monkeys and gorillas. 

Many primate families in the park are comfortable with close human presence. I was thrilled to get within twelve feet of this beautiful golden when it descended from the trees to search for tender bamboo shoots. It paid little attention to me, but surveyed the area briefly, perhaps as a caution against eagles.