Best Time To Visit Nyungwe National Park In Rwanda

Best Time To Visit Nyungwe National Park In Rwanda : Nyungwe National Park in Rwanda experiences two seasons in a year and these are the dry season and the wet season. Both seasons are favorable for the visitors to visit the park though they all have different experiences to offer. Visitors go to this park at any time of the year but the best time to visit Nyungwe National Park is during the dry season of the year. The dry season comprises of the long dry season and the short dry season. The long dry season includes months from June to  September and the short dry season has months from mid December to mid February. The wet season also has exciting and exceptional experiences to offer to its visitors.

In addition to that, some visitors go to Nyungwe National Park depending on the activity they wish to do there. They base on the best season that a particular activity is offered in the park and below are the best seasons in which each activity is offered in Nyungwe National Park in Rwanda:

• Bird watching

The best time of the year to visit Nyungwe National Park for bird watching is during the months of March, April May, September, October and November. These months are particularly in the wet season of the year. During the wet season, the park receives rainfall that support growth of trees and other vegetation in the which attracts birds to come towards it in search of food. This makes it simple for tourists to spot a number of birds in the since the roam around the vegetation areas and flowers within the park. Some of the bird species in Nyungwe National Park include the great blue turaco, handsome francolin, yellow eyed black flycatcher, kungwe apalis, regal sunbird, dusky crimson wing, ruwenzori turaco, red throated alethe, black sawwing, stripe breasted tit and many more.

• Canopy walk

Canopy walks are offered all year through in Nyungwe National Park but the best period of the year to do this activity is during the dry season in the months of June, July, August, September, December, January and February. Visitors get the opportunity to view a variety of animal species and bird species that gather around water sources in groups in search of water because of the less water in the park. The trails that visitors take during the canopy walk are also not slippery which brings comfort and less difficulty while trekking through the trails in the dry season other than in the wet season when the trails are slippery.

• Cultural tours

Cultural tours in Nyungwe National Park are done in the local communities around and within the park. During the cultural tours, visitors engage with the locals which exposes them to the culture and traditions of the locals in the communities. Cultural tours are done through out the year in Nyungwe National Park though it is advisable to visit these communities in the dry season since the routes that lead to these villages are dry and less disturbing to the tourists unlike in the wet season when the routes are slippery which may cause difficulties in visitor’s movements.

• Nature walk

Nature walks in Nyungwe National Park in Rwanda are best done in the dry season if the year so it us advisable for tourists who opt to carry out nature walks in the park to visit it in the dry season in the months of June, July, August, September, December, January and February. The trails in the forest are not slippery during the dry season which eases the movement of visitors who walk through the trails to different nature spots in the park. The animal species and bird species can also be easily spotted at a closer distance during the nature walk since the forest is less thick in the dry season unlike in the wet season when it is very thick and dark.

• Hiking the trails

Nyungwe National Park in Rwanda has various trails that are situated within it and these include the Igishigishigi walk trail, buhoro walk trail, ngabwe walk trail, kamiranzonvu walk trail, imbaraga walk trail and many more. This trails have a lot if exciting sites to offers to the visitors that come to Nyungwe National Park. Some of the things that the visitors can encounter while hiking the trails include the birds and some of these bird species include the great blue turaco, dusky crimson wing, archer’s robin chat, yellow eyed black flycatcher, regal sunbird, handsome francolin, kungwe apalis, Albertine owlet among others, mammals include the chimpanzees, Angola colobuses, olive baboons, golden monkeys, grey cheeked mangabeys among others, landscapes and various tree species. The best time of the year to visit the park for hiking the trails is in the dry season in the months of June to September and December to February. Visitors walk comfortably through these hiking trails in the dry season because there is no mud that may make the trails slippery.

• Chimpanzee trekking

Chimpanzee trekking is one of the activities done in Nyungwe National Park and this activity is best done in the dry season of the year. The months of June to September are the best to carry out chimpanzee trekking. Visitors who visit the park in the dry season for chimpanzee trekking get the best Rwanda Safari experiences because the trails that lead to the chimpanzees are dry which makes it easy for visitors to trek through the trails. During the dry season, the chimpanzees are easy to trace since the forest is also less thick due to the less rainfall the park receives.

• Wildlife viewing

Some of the activities carried out in Nyungwe National Park in Rwanda is wildlife viewing. Visitors visit the park  at any time of the year for wildlife viewing but the best time to visit this park for wildlife is in the dry season in the months of June, July, August, September, December, January and February. Some of the animals in Nyungwe National Park include chimpanzees, golden monkeys, olive baboons, giant forest hog, leopards, duikers, serval cats among others.