Nyungwe National Park, Rwanda

 

Nyungwe National Park is one of the oldest rainforests in Africa, and the largest extensive area of Rwanda, covering 1,019 km² of dense afro-montane forests, wetlands, bamboo-covered slopes, and grassland. The park feeds two of the largest rivers, the Congo and the Nile, and provides a significant part of Rwanda’s fresh water. Over 1,100 recordered plant species, 345 bird species, and 85recorded mammal species, and including 13 of Africa’s primates notably, Chimpanzees, Rwenzori Black –And –White Colombus and L’Hoest’s Monkey are found in the exceptional landscape.

Nyungwe National Park is one of the only three existing national parks in Rwanda and is the largest rainforest in East Africa, and it has existed for over 900 years. The park was established in 2004. Nyungwe National Park entails quite high standards of a preserved rainforest in the mountains throughout East Africa. It is located in south-western Rwanda, in the watershed between the basin of the river Congo to the west and the River Nile to the east. The nearest town is Cyangugu, 54 km to the west. Mount Bigugu is located within the park borders. The main activity of this park is chimpanzee tracking with an extensive network of well-maintained walking trails that wind through the forest to various waterfalls and viewing points of these creatures.

It is best known for its habitat for wildlife species such as primates, birds, and mammals. Nyungwe National Park is located in the southwestern region of Rwanda, bordering Burundi in the south with Lake Kivu and the Democratic Republic of Congo, which lies in the western part of the park. With a successful partnership with the Rwanda Development Board in Akagera National Park, in 2020 African Parks signed a 20 year management partnership with the Rwandan government for Nyungwe. This partnership is to assist in restoring the park’s vital ecosystems, support community development and establish economic sustainability. Through the support of community cooperatives, comprising small-scale enterprises, the park promotes sustainable resource use while facilitating income-generating activities to stimulate the local economy.

History of the Nyungwe National Park

The history of Nyungwe National Park is quite long, though you will be amazed to see the park’s interesting facts about Nyungwe that you didn’t know. During the colonial period, Nyungwe National Park was declared a national forest reserve by the German colonialists in 1933. Later, the population around Nyungwe came from a different part of the country. The presence of people around the forest became a big threat to the forest, because they used the forest resources in ways like collecting firewood, poaching wildlife, illegal mining and cutting down timber. This reduced the park’s size from 1,140 km² to 1,019 km², from 1958 to 1973, and to make things bad, Rwanda had political instability. During this time, the forest elephants and buffaloes were still present until late 1999. The last buffalo was killed in 1974 while the last elephant was killed in 1999.

From around 1970 to the 1980’s, some research was started in Nyungwe by biologists and different researchers. In the early 1980s the border zones of eucalyptus were established as boundaries to mark off boundaries with the communities. Border zones were introduced to eliminate the need for
firewood in the park.
In 1985, the Wildlife Conservation Society began the protection programme of Nyungwe forest in collaboration with the Rwandan government. The project of protecting Nyungwe was named Projet De Conservation De La Foret De Nyungwe [PCFN]. The society came up with some long-term training and they habituated primates for tourism purposes. They also started a project of creating trails in the park, in cooperation with the US Peace Corps. Then the business centres that were established in the park by the communities were stopped. The mining in the park was stopped immediately for the betterment of the park.

This is when the first biggest troop of Columbus monkeys with several 400 individuals was confirmed in Nyungwe forest by the Wildlife Conservation Society. An ongoing survey of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and plants became more applicable. Tourist infrastructure facilities were also established in Nyungwe and particularly around Uwinka reception centre. Though this did not last long because in 1994 during the Genocide, all of these were destroyed.

Later on in 1995, the reconstruction of Nyungwe Forest Reserve’s infrastructure began again until 2004 when the forest was established as a National Park and later in 2005, it was confirmed and declared to be a National Park of Rwanda. By that time, the Nyungwe Park became the 3 rd National park if Rwanda after the Akagera National Park and Volcanoes National Park. Since then researchers have kept doing their work in Nyungwe National Park. The reason why researchers kept carrying out research in Nyungwe was that they believed there was many wildlife you can’t find anywhere due to Nyungwe’s history since ancient age. There are theories about where Nyungwe National Park took its name from and the traditional people have more to tell. The name Nyungwe is abite similar to the name of the leopard [Ingwe] in the Kinyarwanda language.

Some surveys have confirmed the presence of leopards in Nyungwe forest until now. So the park was named after the leopard as Ingwe in the local language to get the name Nyungwe. The history of Nyungwe National Park brings back memories of what we see today as a key tourist attraction in Rwanda.

 

Tourist attractions at Nyungwe National Park.

Nyungwe Forest National Park is another primate park of Rwanda located in the south western part of the country. The closest town to Nyungwe Forest National Park is called Cyangugu which is close to Lake Kivu shared between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Nyungwe forest park is currently sited on an area of 970 km² and was previously a forest reserve in the early 90’s. It was in 2004, 22 years ago that this former forest reserve was given national park status.

The Nyungwe Forest is currently Africa’s largest montane forest and has existed for many years. This forest is said to be a source of the River Nile, the longest river in Africa and the second longest in the entire world. Nyungwe Forest National Park welcomes a number of visitors every year and the major attraction of this park is the chimpanzees.
Nyungwe National Park hosts 12 other primate species and to 1,060 plant and tree species, 72 different mammals, and 310 bird species. A few of the primate species of Nyungwe forest are rare species like the Owl-faced Monkey, Colobus Monkey, Baboons, Vervet Monkey, Silver Monkey, Red-tailed Monkey, Dent’s Mona Monkeys, Chimpanzees, L’Hoest’s Monkeys and Golden Monkeys. 13 primate species are a total of primate species in a quarter of Africa’s parks, making Nyungwe Forest National Park the ideal destination for a Primate Safari.

The National Park hosts over 310 bird species, including the 29 Albertine Rift Endemic birds, which make one of the best birding areas in Rwanda. Bird species in Nyungwe Forest National Park include Shelley’s Crimson Wing, Purple Breasted Sunbird, Rwenzori Turaco, Regal Sunbird, Grauer’s Swamp- Warbler, Grauer’s Warbler, Regal Sunbird, Shoebill Stork, Blue-Shouldered Robin-Chat, Dusky Long- Tailed Cuckoo, Fire-Crested Althea, Grey Parrot, Hair-Breasted Barbet, Lemon Dove, Olive Green Bull, White-Spotted Fluff Tail, Snowy-Headed Robin-Chat, Rwenzori Nightjar, Black And White Casqued Hornbill and many others.

Nyungwe National Park is a top spot while on a Rwanda Safari if you’re a primate lover. Get to take on some activities in this park for a mind-blowing experience. The visitor goes through thick forests, high altitudes of the mountainous forest, past great waterfalls, and a chance to see some forest species.

Activities done while at Nyungwe National Park.

Tourist activities in Nyungwe National Park. The park is located in south-western Rwanda, is one of the must-visit places in Rwanda. Nyungwe is a wonder of nature, wildlife, and birding. The great Nyungwe Forest itself is an assortment of over 1,060 tree species and has a unique landscape of swamps, valleys and flat land. The unique nature of the forest makes the perfect habitat for over 100 bird species and several animal species, including chimpanzees for tracking while on Rwanda Safaris. The park has several activities one can engage in when they visit in the park. In this article, we detail some of the activities you can do at the park on your visit, including:

Chimpanzee trekking

Chimpanzee trekking means taking long walks and hikes to find the chimps and spend time with them. The great Nyungwe forest is famous for chimpanzee primates, as stated above, and are one of the animals that live there. These chimpanzees in this National Park have been habituated and are available for trekking on a daily basis. Chimpanzee trekking is done after buying a permit for each. Permits are issued before chimpanzee trekking.

Bird watching

Nyungwe Forest National Park is home to over 300 recorded bird species, including Albertine Rift Endemic Birds and migratory birds, which makes it one of the best Birding Destinations in Rwanda. During bird watching in Nyungwe Forest Park. During this experience, the visitor will be guided by a ranger throughout the trip, which will help you spot different types of bird species. These birds will include: Handsome Francolin, Grauer’s Warbler, Strange Weaver, Blue Headed Sunbird, White Tailed Flycatcher, Neumann’s Warbler, Rwenzori Hill Babbler, Red Collared Mountain Babbler, Yellow Eyed Black Flycatcher, Rwenzori Batis, Kivu Ground Thrush, Archer’s Ground Robin, Great Blue Turaco and many more at the Nyungwe National Park.

Hiking

The Nyungwe Forest National Park landscape is unique, with some hilly rock parts that add to the massive beauty of the forest. This landscape has different hiking trail routes that are good for adventure lovers to take on while exploring the forest. These hiking trails are: Rukuzi Trail, Isumo Waterfall Trail, Igishishigi Trail, Bigugu Trail, Muzimu Trail, Imbaraga Trail, Ngabwe Trail, Kamiranzovu Marsh Trail, Lrebero Trail, Karamba Birding Trail, Congo Nile Trail, Umoyove Trail, and Source Of The Nile Trail. There are so many others that are in the forest. During the hiking, some routes are longer and tougher than others; therefore, each trail requires a different kind of fitness so a visitor should inquire on which one would work for one’s fitness. Each trail also ends at a waterfall point, which is refreshing and beautiful sightseeing.

Canopy Walk

Above Nyungwe Forest National Park, there is a canopy walk that is 60 meters high and about 200meters longs. The canopy walk is an interesting activity in Nyungwe Forest National Park that allows you to enjoy scenic views of the forest. This walk in Nyungwe Forest National Park takes about 2 hours and it starts at Uwinka Visitors Centre with a briefing about the rules and regulations. Afterward, you start hiking following different trails like the Igishigishi trail, where you will be viewing different wildlife species, primates, bird species, rolling hills, aerial views of trees and others.

Forest Nature Walks/waterfalls

Explore the beauty of the Nyungwe forest on amazing forest nature walks; on these walks, you get to see numerous species in the forest. The tropical waterfall hike is an adventurous activity in Nyungwe Forest National Park that can either be done in the morning or afternoon, with a briefing at Gisakura Guest House about rules and regulations to follow during the tour. After the briefing, the visitors will start the walk through the tea plantations, listen to flowing rivers, birds singing, view primates, and other wildlife.

Colobus Monkey Trekking

Colobus trekking is another interesting activity carried out that attracts tourists to visit Nyungwe Forest National Park. This primate trekking takes about 3 hours, and trekking starts with a briefing that will contain rules and regulations to follow while on the trek. After the briefing, visitors will start the trek by passing through tea plantations and once the colobus monkeys are found, you will be watching them feed, climbing, and jumping in trees, among others. During colobus monkey trekking, you will be able to spot Blue Monkeys, Mona Monkeys, Grey-cheeked Mangabey, plus others that will be in the forest.

How to get to Nyungwe Forest National Park

How to get to Nyungwe National Park: Nyungwe Forest National Park is among the national parks in Rwanda that you should not miss out on during your Rwanda safari, because of a number of attractions that are hosted by this park. Nyungwe Forest Park is home to 13 primate species and wildlife species, with rewarding views that can be seen when you get to Nyungwe Forest National Park. Getting to Nyungwe Forest National Park is easy depending on the different modes of transport that can be used, which include air and road transport.
By using road transport from Kigali via Huye town, tourists can board public means like buses from Nyabugogo bus terminal, where you will go through towns like Kamonyi, Muhanga, Ruhango, Nyanza, Huye and Nyamagabe. From there you will access Nyungwe Forest. During the drive, you will stop over at a number of memorable sites if you have time such places like; king’s place, Kamageri rock in case you want to understand more about Rwanda.

A visitor can also use air transport which will land at Kigali International Airport, where you will also book a domestic flight from Kigali international to Kamembe airport where you will use road means to the park which is 40km away from the airport.

Best Time to Visit Nyungwe Forest National Park

Nyungwe Forest National Park can be visited anytime throughout the year. The best time to visit is during the dry season in the months of June-September and December-February because during this period, there is less rainfall I the Park therefore, nature walk and chimpanzee trekking trails will be dry and navigable, which makes the trekking and hikes easy.

The Untold Stories about the Nyungwe National Park.

Most articles about Nyungwe recycle the same handful of facts. It has 13 primate species, a canopy walk, and chimpanzee trekking. Dig past the tourism copy, and there’s a stranger, more human set of stories- legends about swallowed elephants, scientists tripping over new species by accident, and the quiet obsessions of the people who actually work in the forest.

The swamp that swallowed elephant

Deep in the park sits Kamiranzovu, one of the largest high altitude peat wetlands in Africa. Its name comes from two words Kamira [swallow] and nzovu [elephant] and according to local legend, it’s called that because elephants wandering through the area would occasionally sink into the swamp’s deep mud and never come back out. No research has ever confirmed the story, but it’s persisted long enough that it’s now attached permanently to the map, and guides still tell it to hikers making the 3 hour trek to the swamp’s waterfall.

What makes the legend eerier is that it turned out to be a strange kind of prophecy. Nyungwe’s real elephants didn’t vanish into folklore, they vanished for real. The very last one was killed by poachers in the swamp in 1999, and its skull now sits in a glass case at the Uwinka Interpretation Centre, a physical object at the end of an oral story.

A Guide Who Rediscovered a Lost Species by Accident.

In recent years, a Nyungwe guide named Christian was walking with a group of tourists when he spotted an unassuming frog sitting in the undergrowth. It turned out to be the Bururi long-fingered frog, a species that had been feared extinct until it briefly resurfaced in Burundi in 2011. It had never once been recorded inside Nyungwe Forest. A guide doing his job on an ordinary walk added a new data point to a species’ entire known range, not a research expedition, just someone paying close attention.

Scientists Are Still Finding Animals New To the Park- and to the World

Nyungwe has been studied by biologists since the 1970s and 1980s, yet it keeps out-pacing the people trying to catalog it. In 2013, entomologists on a targeted insect survey collected two praying mantis specimens at roughly 2,500 meters elevation and realised they belonged to no known species. They named it Dystacta tigrifrutex-informally the tiger bush mantis. Even more strikingly, in 2025, a researcher confirmed the rediscovery of the Hill’s horseshoe bat, a critically endangered species, rooting inside the park- finding it significant enough to prompt fresh conservation talks in Kigali.

A Park Manager’s Déjà Vu

Nyungwe’s current park manger, Protais Niyigaba. He grew up not far from the forest and first fell for it as a biology student on a class trip. A trip remembered mainly for waking up covered in ants, which some of his classmates hated and he loved. He described walking certain trails today and feeling an inexplicable sense of déjà vu, as though he had stood in that exact spot in some earlier existence. It’s a small, unscientific detail, but it says something about the pull in this particular forest seems to have on people who spend their lives in it. A sentiment echoed by rangers and guides across the park, many of whom grew up in the villages on Nyungwe’s edges and see their work less as employment but more as a form of belonging.

Questions that are commonly asked about Nyungwe Forest National Park.

Here is all you need to know about Nyungwe forest national park. Read our compiled frequently asked about Nyungwe National Park. Nyungwe national park is one of the oldest rainforests in Africa that lies on the south western part of Rwanda bordering Lake Kivu occupying about 1,020km squared. It has an outstanding biodiversity and spectacular scenery. This forested park lies between the river Congo basins to the west Nile basin to the east.
The park came under Rwanda Development Board for the government to protect conjunction with Africa parks in 2004. This beautiful mountainous region comprises wildlife that encompasses a small population of chimpanzees as well as other 12 primate species which include the endemic specie of the Albertine Rift Valley which Are L’Hoest’s Monkey, Dent’s Mona Monkeys, Angola Colobus, silver monkeys, blue monkeys among other.

How to Get to Nyungwe National Park?

A road trip to Nyungwe National Park takes you about 5 hours from Kigali airport. On the way, you have
optional stopovers. Some include Nyinza palace in Nyabisindu home to the former king Rwanda, Gikongoro Genocide Memorial, the national Museum, Arboretum National Museum and so much more.

By Air
On request and advance booking, Rwanda airport offers charter flights from Kigali airport to Nyungwe.

What Activities Are Done In Nyungwe Forest National Park?
Chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe National park
Chimpanzee are the primates that share 99% of their DNA with human beings, their behaviours are
relatively similar to human beings, trekking is the major activity in Nyungwe National Park, the
habituated chimpanzees are well used to human beings. A group of 8 people is allowed to do gorilla
trekking in Nyungwe Forest and the trek takes 7 hours depending on the trekkers’ mobility but once
chimpanzees are found, only 1 hour is spent with them. Taking photos and asking different questions to
the experienced ranger guide.

The chimpanzee permits are sold at Rwanda Developments board at a cost per person during a trek but
can also be paid online and present proof of payment.
Birding in Nyungwe National Park.
Birding in Nyungwe Forest National Park is worth adding to a Rwanda birders’ itinerary. This tropical
lies on the Albertine Rift Valley sharing a favourable environment to support a great birdlife with over
300 bird species inclusive of 25 which are endemic to rift valley, these Are Rwenzori Turaco, Malachite
Sunbird, Dusky Turtle Dove, Handsome Francolin, Grauer’s Warbler, Strange Weaver, Blue Headed
Sunbird, White Tailed Flycatcher, Neumann’s Warbler, Rwenzori Hill Babbler, Red Collared Mountain
Babbler, Yellow Eyed Black Flycatcher, Rwenzori Batis and many more.
Canopy walk over the Nyungwe National Park
A suspension bridge is elevated over Nyungwe National Park for about 91meters and 50meters above the
forest canopy ranking the best destination in East Africa when it comes to canopy walk which enable
visitors to have a clear view of Nyungwe forest. This special hike is found in Nyungwe National Park.
From Uwinka the main headquarters of the forest to canopy walk which lasts about 2 hours away taking
the Igishishigi trail. Lots of birds can be spotted fly over the huge canopy.
Primate Walks
Nyungwe National Park is a biodiversity park harbouring various monkey species including Angolan
colobus monkey which no longer exists in Angola, Dent’s Mona monkey, Hamlyn’s monkey, Rwenzori
colobus, red-tailed monkey, golden monkey silver monkey many other.
Waterfall visits.
The forest water is a water catchment area with a number of rivers traversing it some creating dazzling
waterfalls. The most outstanding is Kamiranzovu waterfalls and the name mean swallowing an elephant.
The fall derived its name from the Kamiranzovu swamp which feeds it. During nature walks, the falls
beautifully come into view at the end.
What Is The Age Limit For Chimpanzee Trekking In Nyungwe National
Park?
The age limit for chimpanzee trekking is 15years in Nyungwe National Park. This is because of the nature
of the trek to locate the chimpanzees. The topography has volcanic work that created ridges and soft
volcanic soils that are slippery. Even the chimpanzee keep you moving when you locate them.
Children below 15 years may not manage the forest conditions and steepness of the way. They get tired
quickly.
Which Accommodation to Book at Nyungwe National Park?
Staying within and outside Nyungwe National Park allows you to enjoy its amazing views. A wide range
of accommodation facilities are available based on what is on your budget. The facilities are graded from
luxury, mid-range, and budget facilities. Some of these accommodations in Nyungwe Forest are;
Nyungwe Top View Hill, Gisaku Guest House, Nyungwe Forest Lodge, Nyungwe House, Gisaku Family
House and many more.

What Are The Best Time To Visit Nyungwe National Park?
Nyungwe National Park is open for visitors to come visit all year, although this should be done in the
drier months of June-September are more vibrant. The chimpanzee feed closer to the ground since the
trails are less covered by the undergrowth.
Many birds breed more during dry seasons in this park, providing more chances for keen birders to
identify different species. The birds are busy constructing nests to take them through the wet