The Mayombe Forest in Congo-Brazzaville is part of the Mayombe area, a geographic region which consists of low mountains starting from the mouth of the Congo River in the Democratic Republic (Congo-Kinshasa) to the Kouilou-Niari River in the Republic of Congo (Congo-Brazzaville). The region is home to four countries: Congo-Brazzaville, Congo-Kinshasa, Gabon and Angola.
Mayombe is characterized by mountainous views with deep forests and many rivers such as the Shilongo, Lukula and Lubuzi. The highest peak is Mount Foungouti, which is 930 meters high, followed by Mount Bamba, reaching 810 meters, the other ones are in the 700’s.
There are two main seasons in Mayombe: the dry seasons from June until September and the rainy seasons from October until May. The climate is hote and humid and there is frequent fog.
We can find dense rainforest and savannah with many old trees such as limba and palm trees. Mayombe forest is a multi-storied forest with evergreen trees up to 60 m, narrow canopies and layers of smaller trees and shrubs and diversified layers of herbaceous and epiphytic plants.
There is a wide variety of fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. We can find chimpanzees, gorillas and several monkey species. Also present are elephants, buffaloes, bush pigs, pangolins and in the mouth of the Congo River we can find manatees.
The region is not known among tourists except for local expats. With its deep forests, wildlife presence, many rivers and long sandy beaches the region has a lot to offer to tourists. For this tour we start from Pointe-Noire, the second biggest city in the Republic of Congo. We will visit Gorges de Diosso, a beautiful nature site outside of the city, together with the wild coast where the mayombe forest meets the ocean. Afterwards we will take our private jungle train from the train station of Pointe-Noire through the rainforest. We will stay in a tree hut in the forest with a magnificent view of the rainforest. We will use our time to explore the forest, descend the river in rubber bands and get to know the village life.
Itinerary:
Day 1: Pointe-Noire - Gorges de Diosso and the wild coast
Explore the forest and the wild coast north of Pointe-Noire with your guide, return to Pointe-Noire for the night.
Day 2: Jungle Train
In the morning we’ll do the necessary formalities in Pointe-Noire and will ride through the rainforest in a slow pace with plenty of chances to make stops and take some unique pictures of the green mountains of the Mayombe Forest. You will be staying in a tree hut.
Day 3 and 4: Jungle exploration
Two full days in the Mayombe Forest in which we’ll explore the jungle by hiking and also descending the river by rubber bands.
Day 5: Back to Pointe-Noire by car
We’ll be picked up by car and drive back to Pointe-Noire where we’ll drop you off at your hotel in Pointe-Noire.
Includes:
- Accommodation in Mayombe Forest with meals included
- Train ride through the Mayombe Forest
- Transportation by private car (Toyota corolla or rav4) for the other days
- Professional local guideDoesn’t include:
- Accommodation in Pointe-Noire
- Meals outside the Mayombe Forest
- Drinks
- Tips and gratuities
- Visa
- Flights
"Hi Chris,
It was great! The airport hospitality is wonderful and was very appreciated. Waiting with us for hours to get our luggage on the entry, and taking us into the Vodacom place at the airport for a SIM card, and then giving us a drink and letting us wait in their office at the airport on the exit. They were great about getting our luggage through/on board, buying the go pass, and walking us over, and getting through. Thank you for arranging for the ease and stress-free part of that. Very professional and no funny business.Our guide Jeremie Ben was great. He graduated from academie des beaux arts so he made our visit there especially meaningful. It started to rain so we couldn't do the walking tour I hoped for. He also recommended and took us to the best Congolese restaurant in town, Chez Flor. Koen's recommendation for the best Lebanese restaurant was on the mark! We loved Le Palais. Niccolo said it was the highlight meal for him.The Bonobo Sanctuary was perfect - lucky for us the rainy season hadn't kicked in yet - there were deep trenches in the roads that only the expert driver and high 4-wheel drive could do. Our driver was great. We went to Lac de ma vallee too ! We were later told that it is packed on the week-ends, so we lucked out there too and had a lovely lunch and the place to ourselves with fun conversation.It rained on Wednesday, so traffic in Gombe was not so nice. The prime minister was in town so we didn't get to do the river walk I wanted to show Niccolo. But we still managed to buy fabric and have chocolate fondue at Nice Cream. I appreciated that later that afternoon they drove me to Ngiri Ngiri to see the young singers' rehearsal and the Opera Fellows we have been working with, and also the music school building developments. The driver and guide waited for me and got me back to MPH safely. That was very kind of them, I know it was not easy.Thank you again for wonderful trip arrangements !Best wishes,"- Joy Bechtler, Operanauts Princeton University and Orchestra Symphonic of Kinshasa Tour, Kinshasa and Princeton Orchestra Operanauts Tour
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