Nyungwe National Park: Rwanda's Chimpanzee Forest After the Gorillas

A rainforest, not a volcano

Nyungwe covers about 1,019 km2, making it the largest forest block in Rwanda. Mount Bigugu rises to 2,921 m inside the park and the forest reaches a maximum altitude of 3,000 m. Where Volcanoes National Park is all bamboo and volcano slopes, Nyungwe is dense Afromontane rainforest with a suspended walkway through the treetops.

UNESCO lists it as one of the most biologically important and diverse Afromontane forests in Africa. That variety is what makes the detour worthwhile after a gorilla trek. You trade one hour with a gorilla family for chimpanzees, a super troop of more than 400 colobus monkeys, and a zipline that runs 1,935m in three sections, one of the longest in Africa.

Primates

Thirteen primate species live in the forest. The stars are three semi-habituated chimpanzee communities at Cyamudongo, Mayebe and Gisovu, each visited by a maximum of eight people per day. There is also an Angolan black and white colobus super troop of more than 400 monkeys tracked from Uwinka, plus a group of about 50 from Gisakura Campsite.

Seeing a troop of 400 colobus crashing through the canopy is a spectacle no gorilla trek offers.

What the trek is like

Three communities are semi-habituated: Cyamudongo, Mayebe and Gisovu. Each receives a maximum of eight visitors per day, so your group is small and the forest quiet. Community freelance guides lead the trek.

Chimps move fast and call loudly, so tracking is a different rhythm from sitting with a gorilla family. Start at Uwinka Visitor Centre or the Cyamudongo forest edge depending on your assigned community, and bring the same waterproof gear and long sleeves you packed for the gorillas. Exact permit prices for chimpanzee tracking are not stated on the official park pages, so you confirm the current fee at the RDB booking portal or through your tour operator when you reserve.

Hiking and village experiences

Ten hiking trails start from Uwinka Visitor Centre and three from Gisakura Campsite, all led by community freelance guides. The catered three-day Cyinzobe hike overnights in wooden cottages along the trail if you want a proper expedition between the two gorilla parks. In the villages of Banda and Gisakura you can add tea tours, pottery, blacksmithing and traditional brewing.

These are easy half-day fillers on a rest day between treks.

What is known about costs

The official Nyungwe site lists no permit or entrance prices, so ask your operator for the current fee schedule when you book, or check the RDB portal at visitrwandabookings.rdb.rw. Cash payment at the park is not accepted for RDB permits in general, and a no-show makes the permit void, so book ahead either way. One saving is official and confirmed: the RDB low season discount gives 30% off gorilla trekking permits, applicable from November to May, when you combine the gorillas with a trip to Nyungwe or Akagera.

You need two nights in one park with a hotel receipt and one paid activity, or one night in each park on consecutive nights with the activity, and one discounted permit per 3-day 2-night stay. For scale, the Rwanda mountain gorilla permit itself costs $1,500 per person per day for foreign non-residents. Fees for gorillas are the big budget line, and adding Nyungwe can actually cut that line by 30% in the low season.

Routes and timing

The nearest town is Kamembe, 54 km to the west, which has an airport, Kamembe Airport. Most international arrivals land in Kigali and drive south to Nyungwe by private car or tour vehicle. A common plan is Volcanoes National Park first, back through Kigali, then a full driving day south to Nyungwe, then chimps and the canopy walk before returning to Kigali.

That adds at least two nights, which is exactly what the RDB low season discount requires. One safety note for the south-west: the UK FCDO advises against all but essential travel to the parts of Rusizi District within 10km of the border, including Kamembe Airport. Nyungwe itself is not named in that warning.

Check your own government's advice before you travel.

Where to stay

Stays inside and around the park include Munazi Lodge, Uwinka Campsites, Uwinka Guesthouse, Gisakura Campsite and Gisovu Guesthouse. Sleeping at Uwinka puts you at the visitor centre for an early chimp trek, the same logic as sleeping in Kinigi before the gorillas. Gisakura Campsite is the base for the smaller colobus group and the Gisakura tea experiences.

Timing around the discount

The RDB low season discount of 30% off gorilla trekking permits is applicable from November to May for combined trips that include Nyungwe. You need a hotel receipt for two nights in one park with one paid activity, or one night in each of two parks on consecutive nights with the activity. One discounted permit per 3-day 2-night stay.

For comfort on the trails, pack for rain at any time of year. Nyungwe is rainforest at up to 3,000 m altitude, so trails are muddy and mornings are cool. Bring the same waterproof boots and long sleeves you used for gorilla trekking, plus gloves for the stinging vegetation.

A five-day shape

Day one, drive from Kigali to Volcanoes National Park, about three hours by road. Day two, gorilla trekking, with briefing at 7:00am, two to five hours of hiking and one hour with the gorillas. Day three, drive south, overnight near Uwinka or Gisakura.

Day four, chimpanzee tracking in the morning and the canopy walkway in the afternoon. Day five, return to Kigali. In the low season, that structure qualifies for 30% off the gorilla permit, a saving on a $1,500 fee.

If you are weighing Rwanda against Uganda, the same trip in Uganda pairs gorillas with chimps in Kibale, which you can compare on the rwanda vs uganda gorilla trekking homepage. Guides on both sides of the border follow the same hygiene rules: keep your distance, stay away if you are sick, and leave no waste in the forest.