Nyungwe Forest National Park

The canopy walkway — a 160-metre suspension bridge strung between three towers, 70 metres above the forest floor — is Nyungwe's signature non-primate attraction: a genuinely vertiginous, thrilling way to see the rainforest from above rather than below, with views across the canopy toward Lake Kivu on clear days.

Chimpanzee tracking here follows the same format as Kibale in Uganda, though Nyungwe's community is smaller and the terrain steeper, generally making sightings somewhat less consistent than Kibale's near-guaranteed success rate. What Nyungwe offers instead is genuine remoteness and far lower visitor numbers — a rainforest experience with a wilder, less-trodden feel.

Beyond chimps, Nyungwe holds Rwenzori colobus (travelling in troops of up to 400, among the largest arboreal primate groups in Africa), L'Hoest's monkey, and grey-cheeked mangabey, plus over 300 bird species including several Albertine Rift endemics found nowhere else. Waterfall hikes to Kamiranzovu and guided tea-plantation walks at the forest edge round out a multi-day stay.

Nyungwe sits in Rwanda's far southwest, a genuine drive from both Kigali and Volcanoes National Park — most itineraries treat it as a dedicated addition of two to three days for travellers with enough time, rather than a stop that fits naturally alongside a short gorilla-focused trip.