Primates safari in Congo

Primates safari in Congo will give you an opportunity to see the major primates in Congo which include Mountain Gorillas and chimpanzees found in Virunga National Park and Lowland gorillas found in Kahuzi Beiga National Park. These parks are also home to other various species of primates including monkeys like the unique Golden monkeys that you will be able to see during your trek through the forest. Primate safaris are one of the safaris mostly booked by travelers visiting Congo and many have reviewed the experience as unforgettable, magical, life-changing and worth the money spent.

Is it worth paying the money to see primates in Congo

What you pay for a primate safari in Congo is an investment in yourself given the fact this gives you an opportunity to learn more about how the endangered primates are still surviving in Congo and this gives you a great travel and learning experience. The money paid also helps in the conservation of the primates and their natural habitats in Congo. If here was no primate tourism in Congo all the primate habitats would be all destroyed by now but with the existence of these primates in the forests which bring in foreign exchange when you visit and pay entrance fees this has encouraged the government of the Republic of Congo through various partnerships to protect the homes of these primates which has in turn promoted environmental conservation in Congo, this also makes the money spent on the primate safari in Congo worth.

Money spent on your primate safari in Congo through your permit and park entrance fees also helps to benefit the local communities that leave near the forests where the primates are found this in turn encourages the local communities mostly the Batwa pygmies to conserve and protect these primates since their importance is known by the local communities through the percentage of the money they receive every year off the permit and park entrance fees paid by tourists who visit these primates. This money goes directly through payment of the local communities who are on the lead committees to protect the primates, employment and indirectly through infrastructure and projects that help contribute to a better life of the local communities through construction of schools, hospitals and practicing agriculture; this thus also makes the money spent on the primate safari in Congo worth.

The primate safaris in Congo are worth the money spent despite the high costs of trekking permits required to trek and see the primates, discomfort and time spent during walking through the forests to find the primates. Primate watching in Congo is a thrilling experience, which has impressed some people to do it over and over again despite the high cost, energy and time required to meet these gentle giants in their natural habitats, other travelers decide to pay for more than one permit and trek more than once on different days especially the Mountain gorillas this makes the primate safaris in Congo worth the money spent.

What is the cost of a Primates Safari in Congo?

The cost of a primates safari in Congo depends on the type of primates you are interested in seeing, days to spend, and places where to see primates on your primate safari in Congo. The permit price shares a much more cost for any primate safari in Uganda on top of other services like transport, accommodation, and guiding. A Congo gorilla trekking permit costs $400 for a foreign non-resident and this permit gives you an opportunity to spend 1 hours encounter with the mountain gorillas in Virunga National Park. For Lowland gorilla trekking in Kahuzi Beiga National Park the gorilla permit here costs $400 for foreign non residents, $200 for East African Residents, and $20 for Congo National Citizens.

On top of the permits, you will also pay for other services for successful trekking of primates in Congo which include transport, accommodation, and guiding. Below are the popular Primate Safaris in Congo;

3 Days Congo Gorilla Trekking Safari

5 Days Gorilla and Chimpanzee Trekking Safari in Congo

6 Days Congo Primates Safari

How to book a primate safari in Congo

You will need to have your permit secured in advance to confirm that you are booked for a primate safari in Congo. Once you have your planned dates of travel confirmed we will need you to send us an email here so that we check for availability of trekking permits online with the Virunga National Park or Kahuzi Beiga National Park once we confirm permits are available for your planned dates we will let you know so that we can send you an invoice for you to make payment for the permits. Once the payment is done and we have received it on our account we will go ahead and purchase your permits immediately and send you a scanned copy of the permits for your records and perusal, this will confirm you are booked for a primate safari in Congo. It is advised to book your permits in advance atleast 2-3 months prior your visit given the fact these sell out very quickly on first come first serve basis.

Best time to see primates in Congo

Congo is located in the tropics and it is majorly covered with tropical rain forest vegetation, with this it prone to receiving uncertain rains any time of the day or week, however given it is a tropical rain forest there are still good months to visit this park that is dry season which occurs in the months of December, January, February, June, July, August and September during these months it always easy to walk through the trails which are drier compared to the wet months then as well the vegetations is not fully grown and this makes sighting of gorillas easy and more clear. Other months which are a bit wet that is March, April, May, October and November most travelers avoid visiting gorillas during these months because the vegetation is fully grown and trails are much slippery making the trekking much harder.

How to get to Congo

Primate trekking is done in Kahuzi Beiga and Virunga National Parks which are located in the Eastern Part of Congo. You will fly to Kigali International Airport then connect to Gisenyi town; from Gisenyi town, you will cross the Rwanda-Congo border to Goma town in DR Congo then drive towards Bukima and then you will reach the park headquarters of Virunga National Park from where you will do start the gorilla trek from, it is approximately a 2 hours drive from Gisenyi town to reach the park headquarters from Virunga you will drive to Kahuzi Beiga National Park where you will do lowland gorilla trekking

Why book your Primates safari in Congo with Eco Adventure Safaris?

Eco Adventure Safaris boosts of a professional office and field team that takes care of all your requests and inquiries. We are highly recommended on trip advisor as well as Safari bookings. Our website is one of the best and reliable points to help you start preparing for your tour, we have the best and updated information that you can rely on. Eco Adventure Safaris is a local tour operator company owned and run by Ugandans who have well explored Congo for many years and as such, you will be dealing with a team that sells what they know. Contact us here.