Congo is a new destination added to the list where Car Rental in Uganda provides its car hire services.  We only offer car hire with driver service for Car Rental  Congo because of the volatile situation which makes the country so risky for self-drive expeditions.

You can meet the driver with the rental car from either Kampala or any nearby border points of Uganda and Congo. The most convenient and accessible border points of Uganda and Congo are the Arua Border in Northern Uganda and Bunagana in western Uganda.

These two border points connect travelers to the eastern side of Congo which has lots of attractions to explore.

Congo: A Destination to Explore

Congo is the second largest country on the African continent only beaten by Algeria and it is the largest in sub-Saharan Africa. Congo was formerly known as Zaire from 1971 to 1997 and later on changed to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The country is majorly dominated by the Bantu-speaking people and the commonest tribe in Congo is the Lingala people. This is a francophone country that was colonized by the Belgians. French is one of the widely spoken languages and the official language of Congo.

The Democratic Republic of Congo has one of the most active and interesting cities in Africa, the great Kinshasa. This is a residence of over 10 million people with different ethnicities but is majorly dominated by Lingala and French culture.

It is a city full of happy and showy people who live for a moment. The uptown of Kinshasa is full of administrative offices, clean streets, and people of a fluent background but the downtown of this city is a true cultural and interesting gem.

The downtown has the ivory market and the African cultural craft shops and this is the best place for one to get authentic African attire.   The capital; has numerous historical buildings right from colonial times, to Mobuto’s reign and the current times. Musée National de Kinshasa where most of the remains of Congo as a country are kept is also a place to visit.

In terms of tourism, Congo could have been the most popular and demanded destination in Africa but it has been greatly affected by the political instabilities, loose laws, and the poor infrastructure around its natural attractions.

Rebels have been looming in the forests of Congo causing insecurities and deterring the development of tourism destinations and auxiliary services. These instabilities normally occur in what you could call the most tourism potential area of Congo in the eastern part which has most of the unique wildlife species and geological features.

However, the unrest in Congo has not limited tourism to sprouting to some extent, tourists risk coming to Congo to visit its natural treasures. On the tourism side, Congo is a naturally endowed area with unique wildlife species that can never be experienced anywhere else in the world.

Congo is the home to mountain and lowland gorillas and also in its perch of apes, it has the bonobos a very rare species of great apes to find. It has the okapis, the forest giraffes which are only endemic to the great forests of Ituri. It has very amazing and peculiar geological features for instance the active volcanoes of Nyiragongo, which has live boiling lava at its summit.

Therefore, if you wish to visit Congo, don’t hesitate. There are numerous places to visit. One has to just book with the right tour operators. It has different Congo safari packages to offer to its clients. Below are some of the places to visit on a Congo safari

Virunga National Park

This is the most popular national park in Congo and the most visited. It is part of the oldest protected biodiversity area of the Virunga conservation area.  It is also a UNESCO heritage. The Virunga National Park is found at the Virunga massif at the edges of Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda. This is one of the most beautiful scenic places, a tourist can ever be.

It has tremendous landscapes with flowing streams symmetrically covered with green vegetation. In its amazing hilly forests, there is one of the portions of mountain gorillas left in the world.

The mountain gorillas are one of the most looked-for animal species in the eco-tourism world and this is why Virunga National Park receives over a thousand visitors throughout the year.

Apart from the mountain gorillas, Virunga National Park has some flora and fauna to experience for example the African forest elephants, buffaloes red river hogs, duikers, De Brazza monkeys, and common monkeys, and a plethora of bird species.

Since it is located on the Virunga massif, it has numerous volcanoes to hike but the most notable ones are the two active volcanoes in Nyiragongo and Nyamuragira.

Garamba National Park

It is located in the northeast of Congo and is one of the oldest national parks in Africa. It is a UNESCO heritage site managed by Africa Parks. It is a common game park.

Garamba has one of the best sceneries to watch or view wild animals. Its terrain is comprised of short brown savannah grassland where travelers clearly view animals marauding around the park.

In its brownfields, there is an availability of animals like rhinos, antelopes, giraffes, lions, elephants, hippos, and so forth. However, Garamba has been greatly affected by different issues like poaching, settlement in the park which has led to the loss of habitats, and also the rebels which cause instability around the park.

Kahuzi-Biega National Park

It is a natural game reserve located in the eastern part of Congo within the Virunga region. It derives its name from the two dormant volcanoes it sits on, Kahuzi and Biega.

These are not the only natural phenomena within the proximity of this incredible natural habitat, there is also Lake Kivu adjacent to it. Kahuzi-Biega is a very unique national park not only in Congo but also in the entire world.

It is the only natural environment where travelers go eastern lowland gorilla trekking. The lowland gorillas live at the base of Kahuzi and Biega volcanoes. The eastern lowland gorillas are a subspecies of eastern gorillas. These gorillas are critically endangered species of gorillas with a total population of about 3,800 individuals.

The lowland gorillas are only found in the Democratic Republic of Congo in Kahuzi Biega and Maiko national parks. They are the largest subspecies of gorillas in the world.

Within the Kahuzi Biega premises, there are also other residents like elephants, giant forest hogs, eastern chimpanzees, olive baboons, otters, and many other animals.

Salonga National Park

Salongo National Park was formerly known as Tshuapa National Park in 1956. It is a world heritage area and it is the largest tropical rainforest area in Africa.

The park cannot be accessed by road but by water through River Congo. It has a unique species of primates, the bonobos and chimpanzees. It also has other living species like elephants, peacocks, pangolins, mongoose,s and many more

Lola ya Bonobo Sanctuary

Lola ya Bonobo means paradise of bonobo is Lingala. This sanctuary is located in the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo Kinshasa. The bonobos are a species of great apes and are very rare to find in the world.

Some people term them pygmy chimpanzees but these are apes species on their own and Congo is the only place in Africa where a traveler can watch them in their natural setting.

Lola Ya Bonobo Sanctuary is a 30-hectare forest where the vulnerable bonobos are put after rescuing them from the harsh outside environment.

Mount Nyiragongo Volcano

Nyiragongo is located within the Virunga massif region, it is an active volcano whose eruption dates back to 2011 when lava flew as far as the nearby settlements leaving many homeless.

Nyiragongo volcanoes are one of the monumental natural features in Congo. This is a one-of-a-kind feature. It is a unique and beautiful picturesque place of nature, tourists love hiking the Nyiragongo up to the summit because what they are rewarded at the apex, is never-forgettable magic. This is food for the eyes.

The eyes cannot stop staring at the flaming lava at the top of Nyiragongo. To experience that magic tourists normally hike Nyiragongo in a two-day expedition.

Other tourist activities to engage in while on a Congo safari:

• Touring Okapi Wildlife Reserve
• Game viewing at other peripheral national game reserves around Congo.
• Encountering great watermarks like Lake Kivu and the iconic river Congo
• Experiencing Boyoma and Livingstone Falls
• Climbing mountains like Mikeno and Nyamuragira
• Engaging in mystical tours like visiting ancient caves like Kakanda, Thysville, Matupi, and Dimba