Volcanoes National Park

Volcanoes National Park is the reason most travelers come to Rwanda, and it rarely disappoints. Set in the Virunga Mountains along the border with Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the park protects a share of the world’s remaining mountain gorillas and offers what is widely regarded as the premier gorilla trekking experience anywhere, with well-organized logistics and a limited number of permits issued each day to protect the habituated families.

Treks begin with an early morning briefing at park headquarters before guides lead small groups into the forest, with hiking time varying depending on where a gorilla family settled the previous night. Once found, visitors are given a full hour in the family’s presence, an encounter widely described as life-changing regardless of how much a traveler has read about it beforehand. Beyond gorillas, the park offers golden monkey trekking as a shorter, livelier complement, tracking a playful, highly social primate found only in this region, along with hikes up several of the five dormant volcanoes that give the park its name, including a visit to the grave of primatologist Dian Fossey.

For a mid-luxury itinerary, most travelers spend two to three nights near Kinigi at the base of the park, often combining a gorilla trek on one day with golden monkey tracking or a volcano hike on the next, before continuing on to Lake Kivu or Nyungwe further south.