It doesn’t get much more adventurous than this: a complete travel from Kisangani to Kinshasa by boat on the mighty Congo River and all this in a private tour in a comfortable boat. The Congo is probably the most mysterious and mythical country in all of Africa and is named after the mighty Congo River penetrating the deep jungles of the heart of Africa, meandering itself all the way to the Atlantic Ocean where we can find the lush mangroves surrounding the Congo River Mouth. This is truly one of the last great adventures in Africa and completely off the beaten path. It is a unique trip, an expedition really, like you’ve never had before and offers a completely different experience than any other African safari.
Our travel will start in Kisangani, where we will meet the fishermen of the Wagenia Falls, who are famous for their wooden structures they build on the Congo River to which they attach their baskets to capture big fish. We will stay with them on their island and be treated to their traditional dance. We will then continue our way to Yangambi, where we will visit the old Belgian research station from the colonial times, now being revived again with new funding. It’s a magnificent site, with a huge herbarium and library. After Yangambi, we will also get to visit tribes such as the Lokele which are famous for their drums through which they communicate from one village to another.
We will stop in towns such as Lokutu and Mobongo and interact with the local villagers and fishermen, so you’ll get a good idea what life around the river is all about. Most of the time we’ll be staying in tented camps and eating simple local meals.
Our travel will cross the Maringa-Lopori-Wamba Reserve and we will also stop in Bumba, before heading to Lisala, where we will visit one of the palaces built by Mobutu.
We will now make our way through the Ngiri Reserve, which is famous for its chimpanzees and bonobos. In Mbandaka we’ll take a city tour and get a taste of the local atmosphere and visit the mysterious sect of Nzambe Ya Bakoko, where we get an exclusive insight into their culture, including a real celebration. At the Lac Tumba reserve we head towards the Mabali Reserve where we will visit an old research center with beautiful colonial buildings, residences and labs in a beautiful green setting. We even find one of the pavilions where King Leopold 3 stayed. We also explore the lake and surrounding environments and are treated to beautiful views.
Then we dive into the bush in search of wild bonobos that are being tracked. We are the only agency to offer bonobo tracking in Congo. We will also have an evening of traditional dance with the Téké tribe. After the bonobos we go to Kinshasa, with a stop in Maluku. We advise everyone to take at least three buffer days in Kinshasa in case of any delays.
Have a look of a few of our videos:
A trip on the Congo River is very expensive: boat rental, fuel, permits, security, etc. We also make sure that all of our crew gets good, fair wages. We work closely with the ministry of tourism for this tour and coordinate everything with the governors of the provinces, the ANR and the local police departments. All these factors contribute to a high price tag. Do not believe blogs stating you can do this on a shoestring and be careful with any (fake) operators offering these tours for a cheap price. It would mean they don’t have any permits and would risk you ending up in jail .. if they even show up at all, that is.
The tour takes around two weeks. You will have to fly to Kinshasa, from where you’ll take a plane to Kisangani, all of which we can arrange for you. In Kinshasa you will have to take a few buffer days, just to be sure.
