Day 1: Arrival at Grande Barriere border crossing by 11:30am and ensure check-in with Virunga tourism office by 11:30am, which is conveniently located in the Grande Barriere border post building, opposite passport control. Clients will have their rapid COVID test and then the staff will provide guests with gorilla and volcano trek permits at check-in which must be presented before the start of each trek. Guests will be transported to Mikeno Lodge at the Park headquarters in Rumangabo. On arrival to Mikeno, a late lunch will be served and the afternoon can be enjoyed at leisure, including exploring Rumangabo’s several nature trails, bird watching or paying a visit to the Congohounds.
Day 2: After an early breakfast at Mikeno Lodge, guests will set off for Bukima Ranger Post. On arrival to Bukima, trekkers will meet their Ranger guides and local pisteurs to receive a briefing before starting the gorilla trek. Treks usually require 1-2.5 hours of hiking each way, depending on location of the group being trekked and the difficulty of the terrain. After spending the allotted hour with the gorillas, trekkers will return to Bukima camp and then will be transported back to Mikeno Lodge where the remainder of the day can be spent relaxing on the lodge terrace or visiting the gorilla orphans at the Senkwekwe Center.
Day 3: After breakfast, guest will be transported to the Kibati Ranger Post, departure point for the Nyiragongo volcano trek. On arrival to Kibati, climbers will receive a briefing and have the opportunity to hire porters. The climb up the volcano takes around four to six hours and trekkers will overnight on the summit.
Day 4: Early in the morning, climbers will leave the crater rim and start the descent back to Kibati. Average descent time is four hours. Once at the bottom, guests will be transported back to Goma with drop-off at the Grande Barriere border crossing.
