Nyungwe Forest National Park is one of the best preserved national parks in the central African parts, it has the last remaining tracts of the tropical rain forest in Rwanda, it is a big treasury that awaits discovery, the forest is said to have survived the ice edge era a time of formation of earth, the park was created in 2004, covering an area space of approximately 970 square Kilometers, Nyungwe is tucked along the southwestern corner of Rwanda bordering Burundi, the park is one of the biggest national parks of Rwanda known for its popular species the Chimpanzee, it is said to share up to 98 % of the human DNA.
The forest is comprised of up raised trees forming an angelic forest in Rusizi district, it is located along the floor of the great West African rift valley, it is known for its endemic species, harbouring over 200 tree species, many species of orchids have been recorded to date including the species that cannot be found anywhere else. There are many animal species present in the conservation area although they are rare to sight, the best you can see here is the Chimpanzee and large troops of Black and white colobus monkey, Nyungwe is home to 13 primate’s species, over 300 birds of these 29 are endemic species, the rich biodiversity of Nyungwe is supported by the marshy swamps, thick forest growth, Bamboo thicket, and an open woodland, it has the most well constructive trails in the park will lead you to view animals.
The Nyungwe forest offers unique activities to do while on a visit to Rwanda including Chimpanzee tracking, these primates will welcome you with a loud charter sound before you can actually meet them, they are scientifically proven to be the closet similarity of mankind, social and intelligent species, the activity begins at the Umwika visitor early in the morning by 5:00 am east African time, it begins with a briefing from the park rangers on how to behave once you meet the primates, the experience is as beautiful, led through by a park ranger, amazing as it may seem one hour is allowed while with the Chimpanzee after which you return to find your guide. Black and white colobus monkey tracking topples the cherry on a visit to the park,
Canopy walk is key feature in the forest, the suspended bridge stretches over 160 km across the park suspended between trees to enjoy the above look of the park premises, this is the only place you can enjoy the canopy walk in the whole of east Africa, one of the most beautiful aspects of the park is to take a walk along this trail, it is done by everybody imagine sensing a distant L’hoest monkey or even an olive baboon, it is the magical moment everyone would love to experience.
Birding in the forest is done through the well distributed trails on a guided nature walk, there are many bird types most of these are endemic to the national park, example species include the mountain buzzards, turacos, eagles, and the purple breasted sunbirds, some of the birds of the forest are endemic to the Albertine rift valley region.
Nyungwe is approximately 225 square kilometers from the Capital city of Rwanda and can be accessed by car or by air, en-route clients can choose to stop over at Nyanza kings palace for visit of some of the most old architectural design kingdom and the Rwanda museum. There is available accommodation in Nyungwe Forest National Park for example the one and only Nyungwe. It can be visited all throughout the year.