Best Places to See Chimps in Rwanda : The best places to see the chimps in Rwanda offer the opportunity to observe these intelligent and charismatic creatures in their natural habitat. Nyungwe forest national park, a lush and vibrant rainforest is a home to a large and healthy population is chimpanzees, and visitors can trek through the forest to have the wonderful experience. Other notable destinations such as Cyamudongo forest and Gishwati forest also provide a chance to see the chimps, as well as other rare and endangered species, making Rwanda a premier safari destination for chimpanzee tracking and wildlife enthusiasts.
Nyungwe Forest National Park
Nyungwe Forest is a primate lover’s paradise, home to chimps and twelve different species of monkeys. In addition to chimpanzees, you may spot endangered golden monkeys, blue monkeys, L’Hoest monkeys, and black-and-white colobus monkeys.
In fact, more than half of the chimp population in Rwanda lives in Nyungwe Forest National Park. These groups of chimps range far and wide, so finding them can be difficult most of the year, you have about a one in three chance of spotting them if you go chimp trekking on only one day. Visiting the park on a number of days increases your chances.
Opportunities to see chimps are more prevalent from June to August, when fig trees burst with fruit. For chimps, a fig tree in fruit is like an all-you-can-eat buffet that’s free and lasts for days. Also, when packed with food, chimps don’t move as quickly as humans do.
The vast networks of well-kept walking trails in Nyungwe include a suspended walkway high in the canopy that provides views of animals you might not otherwise see. But when looking for chimps, you may need to go off trail.
Gishwati-Mukura National Park
Rwanda’s newest national park, Gishwati-Mukura opened to visitors in 2020. It preserves the remaining remains of the formerly expansive Gishwati and Mukura forests. Gishwati Forest once stretched almost all the way to Volcanoes National Park to the north, but shrunk over the years due to farming, mining, and movement of the human population after the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
In 2004, the chimp population in Gishwati-Mukura was close to zero. Several conservation groups began working together to reforest the area and protect chimp habitat. Their efforts have been fruitful. Today, about 35 chimps live in Gishwati Forest, along with several monkey species and 125 bird species.
Being new, the park is somewhat of a secret and has relatively few visitors—a plus for any traveler who enjoys solitude and quiet. Accommodations are within the park near the Gishwati Research Station, giving quick access to trails. With two guest rooms and chef-prepared meals, the Forest of Hope Guest House is a cozy place to stay. Another choice is to stay at the nearby camp site.
After breakfast in the morning, you can head out onto the trails to search for primates, such as chimps. Then, with the assistance of knowledgeable trackers, you will proceed to the location where they were last spotted. A few hours may pass throughout the hike. Gishwati-Mukura has only two chimp tribes, but because of the park’s tiny area, there is a fair possibility of seeing one.
