Bird watching Tours in Nyungwe forest national park

Bird watching Tours in Nyungwe forest national park; Nyungwe Forest National Park in Rwanda is one of Africa’s oldest rainforests, located in southern part of the country between Lake Kivu and the Burundi border. The national park was created in 1903 as a forest reserve and was later elevated to a national park in 2004.

The Nyungwe Forest National Park in Rwanda covers an area of 970 square kilometers and is home to a variety of wildlife species, including 75 mammals such as duikers, bush pigs, and giant forest hogs, as well as 13 primate species such as chimps, red tailed monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys, dwarf galago, and butterflies.

Nyungwe Forest National Park is one of the top bird viewing places in Rwanda, with over 310 documented bird species, including 25 Albertine rift endemics, 11 of the 23 Guinea-Congo forest biomes, montane birds, and migratory birds.

Bird watching tours in Rwanda’s Nyungwe forest national park can be done in the morning or evening, and you will be accompanied by an experienced bird guide and follow well-constructed birding trails such as Karambi trail, Bigugu trail, Gisakura trail, Kamiranzovu trail, among others, where you will be able to spot various bird species including; the Great Blue Turaco, White Tailed Flycatcher, Chapin’s Flycatcher, Red Collared Mountain Babbler, Grauer’s Rush Warbler, Cinnamon-chested bee-eater, Red Throated Alethe, Ruwenzori Batis, Shelley’s Crimsonwing, Kivu Ground Thrush, Archers Robin-chat, Ruwenzori Apalis, Dusky Crimson wing, Ruwenzori Nightjar, Kungwe Apalis, Regal Sunbird, Handsome Francolin, Stripe-breasted Tit, Neumann’s Warbler, Yellow-eyed Black Flycatcher, Congo Bay Owlet, Rwenzori Hill Babbler, Rockefellers Sunbird, Barred Long Tailed Cuckoo, Mountain Sooty Boubou, Red-faced Woodland Warbler, Blue-headed Sunbird, Strange Weaver, White Bellied Robin Chat, Grey-chested Kakamega, Doherty’s Bush Shrike, Blue Turaco among others.

Best time to go bird watching tours in Nyungwe forest national park

Bird watching tours in Nyungwe Forest National Park in Rwanda can be done all year round, but the best time is during the wet season, which runs from March to May and September to November. There is plenty of food for the birds during this period, so you will be able to see a variety of colorful and migratory bird species.

Where to stay in Nyungwe forest national park

There are several lodging options in and around Nyungwe Forest National Park where you may stay on your birding safari. Budget, medium, and luxury lodgings are available such as; One and Only Nyungwe House, Nyungwe Nziza Eco lodge, Chimpanzee Lodge Gisakura, Nyungwe Forest Lodge, Kitabi Eco-Centre, Golden Monkey Hotel, Mariah Hill Resort, Rwiza Village, Gisakura Guest House, Nyungwe Top View Hotel, Gisakura Family Hostel, E.R.A Gisakura Visitor Guesthouse, Emeraude Kivu Resort, Rusizi Progress Hotel, Nyungwe Eco Village, Uwinka Campsite, Café Resto Bar Keza among others.

What to pack for your bird watching safari in Nyungwe forest national park

A field guide book, hiking shoes, a pair of binoculars, a waterproof rain jacket, a camera and extra batteries, insect repellent, a wide brimmed hat, energy snack and drinking water, and a back pack are among the essential items that visitors should pack or carry when going on a bird watching adventure.

Other activities in Nyungwe forest national park

Aside from bird watching, Rwanda’s Nyungwe Forest National Park offers other adventurous activities that tourists can participate in during their safari, such as chimpanzee trekking, where you will be able to spend one hour with the chimps, nature walk/hiking, canopy walk, tropical waterfall hike, and colobus monkey trekking, where you will be able to view different primates such as red tailed monkeys, vervet monkeys, blue monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys, l’Hoest monkeys, grey cheeked mangabey, olive baboons, Angola colobus monkeys, Mona monkeys, among others.

How to get to Nyungwe forest national park

The Nyungwe Forest National Park is located in the southern part of Rwanda and may be reached by road from Kigali through Muhanga, Kings Palace in Nyanza, Butare, and finally to the park headquarters, which takes around 6 hours.

Nyungwe forest national park is also accessible by air, with guests booking charter helicopter trips with Akagera aviation from Kigali International Airport to the one and only Nyungwe home. Travelers can also arrange flights with Rwanda Air from Kigali airport to Kamembe airport in Rusizi and then drive one hour to the park headquarters.

Please contact Explore Rwanda Tours for more information on birding tours in Nyungwe Forest National Park, or visit our website to arrange a birding trip with us.