Parc National des Volcans

The rainforests of the Virunga Volcanoes are the last refuge of the Mountain Gorilla. The lush slopes of the volcanoes provide an appropriately dramatic natural setting for what is perhaps the most poignant and thrilling wildlife experience to be had anywhere – to see the Mountain Gorilla in its natural habitat.

It is this beautiful mountain habitat that leapt to fame as the adopted home of the famous primatologist Dian Fossey, immortalised in the film ‘Gorillas in the Mist’. It was here that she carried out her most important and pioneering studies into the behaviour of the rare mountain gorilla. That mountain gorillas survive today is largely thanks to Dian, who is buried at Karisoke, her research centre in the Virungas. Roughly half the world’s population of approximately 650 gorillas are resident on the Rwandan slopes of the Virungas, where four habituated groups – ranging in size from 7 to 37 individuals – can be visited on a daily basis.