(Tour designed with anthropologists in the UK and Congo)
This is the tour that is falsely copied and floating around on the internet in iterations, perjured.
It is a complete lie that they guarantee voodoo wrestling etc. Also, Gungu Museum got destroyed in a fire, there are way less masks and things to be seen there https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g294187-d12172060-Reviews-Danico_Tours-Kinshasa.html
Careful of scammers purporting this for cheaper, as they didn’t deliver at all for the things in this itinerary.
Tribes of Congo and Customs of DRC Tour – the plains and savannahs people (non-jungle areas) of Congo.
Day 1. ARRIVAL IN KINSHASA
Arrival and pick-up at Kinshasa (N’djili) International Airport. Transfer to a hotel. Participate in a cooking class with a local family, learning to prepare traditional Kinshasa dishes while exchanging life stories over delicious food.
Day 2. Kinshasa Fetish Cult, Voodoo Wrestlers, and Congolese Sapeurs
The fetish wrestlers draw their power from witch doctors who live discreetly in Kinshasa’s popular quarters. After breakfast, visit two witch doctors’ temples: Lisaponge Temple (located in Delvaux, Ngaliema) and Salomon Temple (Selembao, 20 to 30 minutes’ drive from Lisaponge), potentially including Malema Temple (in Matete). Meet wrestlers at the temples before their fights. After lunch, encounter the sapeurs—Congolese dandies known for their flamboyant fashion—and set up a photo session with them. Later, attend the fetish wrestling matches, known locally as “catch fetish,” a unique blend of traditional voodoo and professional wrestling. Witness their colorful pre-fight parades and a minimum of six fights (involving 12 wrestlers). Overnight at a hotel.
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Day 3. Kinshasa — Kisantu: Tata Gonga Sect
Travel early to Kisantu to visit the sect of the prophet Tata Gonda. This community represents a fusion of African spirituality and Christianity. Founded by the late prophet Tata Gonda in Central Congo, the sect lives in total autarchy, with several hundred followers from Congo and Angola adhering to his spiritual teachings. Their mission is to combat an unjust and sinful world through continuous prayer and an austere, monastic lifestyle. Living self-sufficiently, they maintain vegetable gardens, a fish farm, and a river for drinking water, alongside prayer facilities and dormitories. If permitted, visit their secluded headquarters. Return to Kinshasa in the afternoon for dinner at a traditional restaurant. Overnight at a hotel.
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Day 4. Kinshasa — Kenge: Yaka Tribe
Drive to Kenge after breakfast, drop off luggage at the hotel, and walk for an hour to the sacred village of the Yaka people. The Yaka, originally part of the Luba Empire, broke away approximately 200 years ago and established their own settlements in the region. Known for their rich artistic traditions, they are skilled carvers of masks and statues used in initiation rites and healing ceremonies. The Royal Family will welcome you with a traditional masked dance and a blood sacrifice ritual, offering insight into their monarchical system within today’s republic. Sample local specialties before returning to Kenge for the night at a hotel.
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Days 5 — 8. Kenge — Gungu: Pende Tribe
Drive after breakfast to Gungu, the capital of the Pende Kingdom, home to one of Africa’s most visually striking tribes. The Pende, who migrated to this region centuries ago, are renowned for their elaborate mask-making and dance traditions, which play a central role in their cultural and spiritual life. Over three days, witness a variety of mask dances, rituals, and ceremonies, including the Mukanda rite of passage for young boys—a cornerstone of Pende identity involving circumcision and weeks of seclusion to teach cultural values. Explore neighboring villages to encounter lesser-known tribes such as the Kwese, Mbala, Mbundu, and Wongo:
- Kwese Tribe: The Kwese, a small ethnic group in the region, are known for their anthropomorphic masks with heart-shaped faces, used in circumcision ceremonies. Their art also includes prestigious objects like seats, slit drums, and palm wine cups, reflecting their craftsmanship despite limited sculptural output.
- Mbala Tribe: The Mbala, historically tied to the broader Congo Basin cultures, produce distinctive mother-and-child figures with elongated, wide, or lozenge-shaped faces, characterized by a rigid, powerful style unique to the region.
- Wongo Tribe: Numbering around 10,000, the Wongo live in the Kasai district and are known for their woodcarving, raffia weaving, and embroidery. Though not formally part of the Kuba cultural cluster, they share artistic similarities with their neighbors, organized under chiefs and secret societies.
Overnight at a hotel.
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Days 9 — 10. Gungu — Idiofa — Ilebo — Mushenge: Travel to Kuba Kingdom
Over two days, drive to the Kuba Kingdom, stopping en route to visit the Leele (near Idiofa) and Lunda (near Kobo and Kandale) tribes, both of whom maintain traditional lifestyles rarely seen by outsiders:
- Leele Tribe: The Leele, an indigenous group in the region, live closely tied to the forest and marshes. Men hunt, sculpt, and gather medicinal plants, while women manage crops and fishing. Led by a nymi (king) with limited authority, their villages are organized by age groups. Leele art includes carved drums, divination tools, statuettes, and face masks, reflecting their spiritual connection to nature.
- Lunda Tribe: The Lunda trace their origins to an empire founded by invaders from the Luba region in precolonial times. Once a powerful kingdom spanning parts of modern-day Congo, Angola, and Zambia, they are known for their centralized political structure and cultural influence on neighboring groups.
The journey to Mushenge is long and bumpy, with overnight stays in basic Catholic missionary accommodations in Idiofa and Ilebo.
Accommodation included: Catholic missionaries, very basic conditions
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Days 11 — 12. Kuba Kingdom
Spend two days in the Kuba Kingdom, ruled by a king and steeped in a religion tied to nature spirits and ancestral rulers. The Kuba, established in the 17th century, are celebrated for their sophisticated artistry, including intricately carved masks, wooden figurines, and embroidered raffia cloth. Witness rituals, explore decorated buildings, and observe initiation demonstrations featuring their iconic masks and costumes. Learn about their textile-making process firsthand. Stay in very basic tents.
Accommodation included: tents, very basic conditions
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Days 13 — 14. Travel Back from Kuba Kingdom to Kananga and Flight to Kinshasa
Drive over two days to Kananga, staying overnight at a guesthouse. Take a domestic flight from Kananga to Kinshasa and spend the final night at a hotel.
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Day 15. Return Flight from Kinshasa
After breakfast, transfer to the airport for your return flight.
Meals included: breakfast
We can set up this itinerary, but only if we do it our way, as some of the things in the itinerary are completely unrealistic and this itinerary hasn’t been updated to reality on the ground. Please, know that the people who propose this trip above do not live or work in the DRC. None of their trips are organised with the authorities, they don’t have the right permits nor are their guides government-licensed. The people who propose this original trip have organised this with known scammers. They were stranded and had to pay for several activities from their own pocket. You can find these reports on tripadvisor and more.
If you do this trip, you have to do this right to be safe or even to see anything. We only work with the government and get your permits unless you want to get arrested/stuck/scammed/stranded in the middle of nowhere.
A few remarks:
1. Hotel Ixaros in Kinshasa is not in a safe neighborhood. Either choose Hilton if your clients have enough budget or we provide another safer budget-friendly option, which is in Gombe center.
2. There are no daily wrestling shows, we can meet the wrestlers, but if we want to see a fight, we’ll have to pay for that. Without a doubt, these people just wing it and ‘hope’ that there will be a show, and then will come up with an excuse. If you want to be sure that there is a wrestling match, we’ll have to organise this ourselves and this will be at least 5,000 usd to organise a real fight (we have done this before), or we can just have it cheaper without an audience and organise a fight without public.
3. Traffic in Kinshasa is horrible, on arrival at N’Djili it can take two hours to get your luggage and visa and it will take many hours to get to the hotel. It doesn’t make sense to add a cooking class. Better to organise dinner in town.
4. It is not a good idea to include food, as food on the road is basic and not always hygienic. If it’s you who offer this and the client gets sick, your agency will be responsible and get sued or asked to give back the money.
5. Flights often get delayed for one or two more days. In case of delay, you are to pay for new tickets plus any changes in the itinerary and in the worst case we won’t be able to get a refund for these tickets or lost activities. If the Friday flight gets cancelled, know that the next flight is on Sunday. It would make more sense to start in Kangana, if somehow the flight is delayed, we’ll speed up the tour overland.
6. Sapeurs are always notoriously late. It’s best to have them come to a location where we’ll eat.
7. Forget any of these driving times mentioned in the itinerary, Kinshasa now has the worst traffic on the planet. Even a 5 km distance can take three hours. Be mentally prepared.
8. Traffic in Bas-Congo to Kisantu etc has also become extremely congested. We’ll have to leave at 4 am. It’s most likely going to be impossible to drive back to Kinshasa the same day, or be prepared to be stuck for hours and arrive late at night.
9. Flight schedule:
- Kinshasa – Kanganga: Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday
- Kananga – Kinshasa: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Sunday
10. No basic hotel in Kananga, please, there are only one or two decent ones. Let’s avoid unnecessary problems and pay extra.
(Sample dates, but starting on a Saturday is advised.)
Sat 31/05: Kinshasa
– Arrival in Kinshasa, transfer to a safe hotel in Gombe city center. Evening exploration of the town.
Mon 01/06: Kinshasa
– Visit the wrestling temples (maybe choose just one), have a fight organised directly if there are no fights the same day. Late lunch in town, have the sapeurs come here. Dinner in town.
Tue 02/06: Flight to Kananga
– If time allows, visit the town center. Overnight in Kananga.
Wed 03/06 – Fri 06/06: Kananga – Mushenge: Kuba Kingdom
Sat 07/06 – 08/06: Mushenge – Ilebo – Idiofa – Kikwit
09/06 – 11/06: Kikwit – Gundu – Kenge
11/06: Kenge – Kinshasa with a stop at the old Mobutu Chinese Palace and satellites
12/06: Kinshasa – Tata Gonda
13/06: Kisantu – Kinshasa
14/06: Departure
Maximum 8 persons, price per person: from $5880 usd pp, shared accommodation with breakfast
Includes:
– Shared accommodation with breakfast
– 1 domestic ticket per person Kinshasa – Kananga
– Guiding, activities, entrance fees
– Transport with fanned Mercedes-Benz Van or Toyota Hyace with driver and fuel
To be fully paid by bank transfer only at least 30 days before the tour starts.
