A country · 40 places · 11 regions
Democratic Republic of the Congo, all of it.
40 curated places across 11 regions — photographed, mapped, and noted with the season each is best in.
The 4 biggest regions — Kinshasa, Kongo Central, South Kivu and Haut-Katanga Province — read below as chapters, with 7 more waiting past them.
Chapter I · Kinshasa · 10 places
Kinshasa
The world's only sanctuary for orphaned bonobos, set in forest on the edge of Kinshasa. It rehabilitates rescued apes and works to return them to protected areas in the wild.
via Wikimedia CommonsChapter II · Kongo Central · 6 places
Kongo Central
A 65-meter waterfall on the Inkisi River surrounded by rainforest, popular as a weekend escape from Kinshasa a few hours' drive away. Viewpoints and a riverside lodge overlook the falls, and short forest trails lead down to the spray-soaked base.
✦ November to May, when the river carries the most water · $$
Chapter III · South Kivu · 5 places
South Kivu
Kahuzi-Biega National Park, in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo near Lake Kivu, protects a vast expanse of primary tropical forest dominated by two dormant volcanoes, Kahuzi and Biega, from which it takes its name. Ranging from dense lowland rainforest to high-altitude bamboo and montane vegetation, the park supports a diverse and abundant fauna. It is above all a last refuge for the eastern lowland (Grauer's) gorilla, the largest of the gorilla subspecies, whose numbers here have become critically reduced. Elephants, chimpanzees and many endemic birds and plants share the forest, which forms an important reservoir of Central African biodiversity. The mountainous terrain, waterfalls and misty peaks give the park a striking beauty. Inscribed by UNESCO in 1980 and later listed as World Heritage in Danger, Kahuzi-Biega remains a globally significant but fragile stronghold for one of the planet's most endangered great apes.
via Wikimedia CommonsChapter IV · Haut-Katanga Province · 3 places
Haut-Katanga Province
One of Africa's largest and least-visited parks spans the Kibara plateau, miombo woodland, and the lake-studded Kamalondo Depression. Zebras, savanna elephants, and endemic fish survive here, and conservation teams are slowly reopening the park to intrepid travelers.
✦ May to September, the southern dry season
Regions of Democratic Republic of the Congo
Every place in Democratic Republic of the Congo
