Virunga sits on the forest-covered volcanoes of central Africa and is home to over half the global population of mountain gorillas. Virunga was placed on the UNESCO World Heritage Sites List in 1979. Visit Virunga National Park. Political instability, resource extraction and poaching, resulted in the park being placed on the list of World Heritage Sites in Danger in 1994. +1312 818 0158 (USA) , +256 782186562 (UGANDA) The last 20 years, the park has endured an almost uninterrupted series of challenges. YES, it’s real! Virunga National Park Sees Its Worst Violence in a Decade, Director Says. The new twin gorillas born in Virunga National Park on the 22 nd September 2020 are not the only baby gorillas born in the park during the temporary closure due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Accommodation of Virunga National Park: Mikeno safari lodge, Kibumba tent camp, Bukima tented camp, Nyiragongo summit shelters. Gorilla trekking rules and regulations for Virunga National Park- Are you planning to explore Congo’s mountain gorillas in Virunga National Park? Newborn baby gorilla in Virunga National Park. Virunga National Park in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is the oldest national park in Africa, and among the oldest worldwide. Virunga National Park temporarily closes Mountain Gorilla Safaris Due to COVID-19. Join our new commenting forum. Virunga National Park (covering an area of 790,000 ha) comprises an outstanding diversity of habitats, ranging from swamps and steppes to the snowfields of Rwenzori at an altitude of over 5,000 m, and from lava plains to the savannahs on the slopes of volcanoes. Virunga national park is a home of wildlife species such as elephants, hippos, lions, … Are you planning and interested in going for gorilla trekking and you are finding it hard to choose where to go between Volcanoes National Park and Virunga National Park, here below is the comparison based on our expertise to help you choose and decide where to go for gorilla trekking experience. The park is 7800 sq kilometers (3000 sq kilometers) including forests, Savannah, lava plains, erosion valleys, swamps, active volcanoes with the glaciated peaks of the Rwenzori Mountains. Virunga national park is one of the four national parks that are famously known because of the endangered mountain gorillas, for example, Bwindi Impenetrable national park which harbours the largest number of the gorilla families, Mgahinga national park in Uganda and Volcanoes national park in Rwanda. We’ve received dozens of messages about the photo. Congo. Those gorilla gals are always acting cheeky so this was the perfect shot of their true personalities! The mountain gorillas in Virunga National Park are big in number and like about 44 gorillas that can be seen at once on your gorilla trekking in Virunga National Park. Plan your safari to the Virungas with extensive information on booking gorilla permits, planning gorilla tours, booking hotels and safari lodges in the Virunga National Park. Whether you are a seasoned traveller or a first time visitor, you are in exactly the right place. Rangers patrol near the government-controlled Tshabirimu outpost, not far from a small group of gorillas living in the north of Virunga National Park. Virunga National Park has made the decision to ban visitors until 1st June 2020, citing “advice from scientific experts indicates that primates, including mountain gorillas, are likely susceptible to complications arising from the COVID-19 virus”. At least six rangers were ambushed and killed in the park over the weekend. Day 1: Arrival at Grande Barriere border crossing by 11:30am and ensure check-in with Virunga tourism office by 11:30am, which is conveniently located in the Grande Barriere border post building, opposite passport control. Gunmen recently killed five rangers and a driver—the park’s deadliest attack in recent history. Virunga national park is listed under UNESCO World Heritage Centre that was formed in 1925 to safe guard Mountain Gorillas and was the very first National park in Africa. Best Time to Visit Virunga National Park in D.R. Park rangers patrolling the Virunga National Park in Congo in 2012. Virunga National Park mountain gorillas Democratic Republic of Congo. The greater virunga conservation consists of 8 volcanos comprising of three Gorilla parks namely Volcanoes national park, Mgahinga gorilla national park & virunga national park in D.R. Virunga National Park. This legendary dedication, Virunga’s population of mountain gorillas has actually increased, and for this, the world owes them a debt of gratitude. Virunga National Park Congo Gorilla Tours, In the first 35 years, poaching was kept to a minimum and sustainable tourism thrived due to the work of a large body of hand picked Congolese rangers and dedicated wardens. The mountain gorillas are the major tourist attraction of the Virunga national park where visitors visit the park with an aim of gorilla trekking. A gorilla trekking permit in Virunga national park goes for 400 USD which is the cheapest compared to Uganda’s permit that is 600 USD and Rwanda’s permit that goes for 1500 USD. The Cost of Gorilla Trekking, most visitors who are much interested in gorilla trekking always ask the major necessities and these are gorilla permit as a must, transportation from the airport and accommodation. Visitors travelling into Virunga have the possibility of coming into contact with two of these; Mountain Gorillas and Chimps. Land remuneration and the use of park resources, such as fishing and hunting by the local population, became an ever-increasing problem. The mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei) is one of the two subspecies of the eastern gorilla.It is listed as endangered by the IUCN as of 2018.. Volcanoes National Park Rwanda, Gorilla Trekking Safaris to Volcanoes National Park, Volcanoes National Park shares borders with Uganda’s Mgahinga Gorilla National Park and Congo’s Virunga National Park, Mountain Gorilla Trekking encounter in Volcanoes, Golden Monkey tracking, Dian Fossey hike, Volcano climbing among others. We offer extensive information on visiting the Virunga including best time to go, maps, guides, travel tips and much more. Virunga National Park has extremely diverse mammal, bird, reptile … info@gorillatrekk.com | +256785025022 | 24 Hours home As is now apparent and had been suspected for a while, Great Apes can contract COVID-19. Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature (ICCN), the Congolese wildlife authority, has an agreement with Direction Générale de Migration (DGM), the Congolese immigration service, to facilitate obtaining 2-week, single entry tourist visas for people visiting Virunga National Park. 23 rd August 2020 saw the birth of a new baby gorilla to the Mapuwa gorilla family, and also 2 nd July had a baby gorilla being welcomed in the Baraka gorilla family. Virunga National Park is the home to two of some of the most active volcanoes in the world Mount Nyiragongo and Mount Nyamuragira and it home to the endangered mountain gorilla species that can be tracked on a congo gorilla tour/ congo gorilla safari. Virunga gorilla permit costs $450 USD per person and it is one of the national parks in the Democratic Republic of Congo that offers discounted gorilla permits in the low season. Following the rapidly unfolding situation regarding the global spread of COVID-19 coronavirus, on Wednesday 18th March 2020, it decided to temporarily close mountain gorilla safaris in Congo starting Monday 23rd March 2020. Congo. Accessibility: the park can be accessed by both air and road transport means. Activities of Virunga National Park: gorilla tracking, game drives, birding, volcano hikes, mountain climbing, nature walks. Compare gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park with Virunga National Park in Congo. Ecotourism itself is not without risk, because people can pass infectious diseases to mountain gorillas. Virunga National Park holds three taxa of great apes: Mountain Gorillas, Lowland Gorillas and Chimps. Virunga National Park is a national park in the Albertine Rift Valley in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.It was created in 1925 and is among the first protected areas in Africa. Virunga’s National Park is Africa’s oldest National Park and the continent’s most biologically diverse protected areas. Visit Virunga National Park. You might have recently seen caretakers Mathieu and Patrick’s amazing selfie with female orphaned gorillas Ndakazi and Ndeze inside the Senkwekwe center at Virunga National Park. Congo Gorilla Trekking Safaris - Virunga National Park is one of the most biologically diverse protected areas on the earth. Virunga National Park also contains savanna, swamp, lake and river ecosystems as well as impenetrable forests. Mountain Gorillas in Virunga National Park, Gorilla Families in Virunga Park Congo, Virunga National Park counted six mountain gorilla families open for the trekking before it was closed in 2012 for insecurity in the area. 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