๐ Quick Facts About the Democratic Republic of the Congo ๐จ๐ฉ
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is one of the largest, most complex, and most intense countries in Africa. My visit focused entirely on eastern Congo: Bukavu, Kahuzi-Biega National Park, Lake Kivu, and Goma.
This is not a casual backpacking destination. Safety, permits, visas, and local contacts matter a lot here. But with the right planning, eastern Congo can also give you one of the most adventurous travel experiences anywhere in the world.
- ๐๏ธ CapitalKinshasa
- ๐ต CurrencyCongolese franc (CDF)
- ๐ฃ๏ธ LanguagesFrench, Swahili, Lingala, Kikongo, Tshiluba and many more
- ๐ก๏ธ ClimateTropical, with regional variation
- ๐ Plug typeType C, D and E ยท *Anker Universal Travel Adapter
- ๐ RegionCentral Africa
๐ How I Entered the DRC: Visa on Arrival From Rwanda
For most nationalities, getting a Congolese visa is notoriously difficult. If you try going through embassies traditionally, the process can become extremely complicated, time-consuming, and unpredictable.
Instead, I entered through eastern Congo using a visa-on-arrival arrangement at the Rwandan border. This was not an illegal workaround or border trick. It was a legitimate visa-on-arrival process with an actual Congolese entry stamp. The key is having a proper local contact or guide who can organize the authorization beforehand.
I crossed overland from Rwanda after flying domestically from Kigali to Kamembe near the Congolese border. At the border, my local guide met me and handled the arrival process before we entered the Democratic Republic of the Congo together.
For travelers who want to do the same route, eastern Congo from Rwanda is probably the easiest and most realistic way to visit the DRC.
๐ First Stop: Bukavu
The first stop inside the Congo was Bukavu. And Bukavu immediately overwhelms your senses.
The city feels alive in every possible way: endless traffic, loud markets, motorcycles everywhere, music playing, people carrying goods through crowded streets, street food stands, and constant movement.
You do not just see Bukavu. You feel it. It is chaotic, loud, messy, fascinating, and energetic all at the same time.
One thing I immediately loved was the food. I ate ugali together with cassava leaves, one of my favorite combinations in Central Africa. It became one of those comfort meals I kept eating repeatedly throughout the trip.
๐ฆ Gorilla Trekking in the DRC
After exploring Bukavu a bit, we continued deeper into the region toward Kahuzi-Biega National Park, where I would finally do something I had dreamed about for years: seeing gorillas in the wild.
The drive itself already felt adventurous. The roads around the park are rough and extremely bumpy in parts, and the scenery becomes greener and more lush the farther you move away from the city.
Once we arrived at the park headquarters, we first received a briefing from the rangers explaining the rules for interacting with the gorillas. One important thing: you must wear a mask near the gorillas.
Because gorillas are genetically very close to humans, they are vulnerable to human diseases, including common respiratory illnesses. The park takes this very seriously in order to protect the gorilla families living there.
๐ฟ Kahuzi-Biega National Park: Walking Into the Forest
After the briefing, the actual trekking began. And honestly, it felt like walking straight into an adventure movie.
We headed into the forest together with several armed park rangers carrying rifles, partly because the region itself can be unstable at times and partly for wildlife protection. The whole atmosphere felt incredibly exciting and adventurous.
The trek itself was surprisingly manageable for us. Sometimes visitors may need many hours before finding gorillas, but in our case, the rangers located them relatively quickly.
And then suddenly: there they were. Wild eastern lowland gorillas.
Seeing them in real life honestly felt surreal. The gorillas were incredibly calm and peaceful. We spent somewhere between half an hour and an hour observing them quietly inside the forest.
I even saw a tiny baby gorilla playing close to the adults, which was probably one of the sweetest wildlife moments I have ever experienced anywhere in the world.
At one point, one of the larger gorillas came surprisingly close to me. I definitely got a little nervous. But the rangers remained completely calm, and gorillas are naturally peaceful and non-aggressive โ unless you provoke them.
โด๏ธ Overnight Ferry From Bukavu to Goma
After the trek, we returned through the lush landscapes surrounding Kahuzi-Biega, and later that evening back in Bukavu I watched football in a local bar while drinking Congolese beer and eating even more ugali.
I also tried local Congolese samosas served with an incredibly spicy chili sauce, which quickly became one of my favorite snacks there.
Then came one of the most unexpectedly pleasant parts of the trip: the overnight ferry from Bukavu to Goma across Lake Kivu.
When I first heard โovernight ferry in the Congo,โ I imagined absolute chaos: mosquitoes everywhere, no sleep, terrible conditions. But in reality, I was extremely pleasantly surprised.
The ferry was spacious, relatively comfortable, and surprisingly well organized. There were not proper beds, but there were large sofa-style seating areas where you could comfortably lie down and sleep.
I spent the evening drinking beers on the ferry, talking to other passengers, and watching the darkness over Lake Kivu while traveling overnight through eastern Congo.
๐๏ธ Arriving in Goma
The next morning, we arrived in Goma. And Goma immediately felt intense again.
Like Bukavu, it is another huge, bustling Congolese city filled with markets, motorcycles, noise, movement, and endless activity.
Later, we explored more of the city on the back of small motorcycle taxis, weaving through traffic and busy streets. We visited one of the newer university areas and also passed by one of the recently built churches in Goma.
The city overall felt very dynamic: busy, growing, crowded, full of movement and commerce.
๐ฅ Goma Market, Samosas and Congolese Street Food
One of the craziest places we visited in Goma was the enormous waterfront market near the city center. It was one of the most overwhelming and intense markets I had ever seen anywhere in the world.
As a blonde European guy, I stood out completely. Everywhere I walked, people approached me, asked questions, laughed, wanted conversations, and wondered what I was doing there.
But honestly, the atmosphere felt much more curious than threatening. People seemed confused and fascinated that a foreign tourist had decided to visit their city.
For breakfast at the market, I bought more Congolese samosas with hot sauce. They were unbelievably cheap, so cheap that I spontaneously decided to buy samosas for basically everyone standing nearby.
For maybe the equivalent of five euros total, the vendor started handing samosas out to everyone around us. The reaction from people there was genuinely warm and grateful, and the atmosphere became really fun.
- Ugali with cassava leaves became my favorite meal in eastern Congo.
- Congolese samosas with spicy chili sauce were one of my favorite snacks.
- The Goma waterfront market was intense, overwhelming, and unforgettable.
๐ Practical Planning Notes for Visiting Eastern Congo
My visit to the DRC was relatively short: Bukavu, gorilla trekking, the Lake Kivu overnight ferry, Goma, and then back to Rwanda. But even in just two days, the Congo left an enormous impression on me.
Safety and visa issues are real concerns travelers need to think about seriously. This is not the kind of trip where I would recommend just showing up and improvising everything on your own.
- Use a trusted local contact or guide.
- Confirm visa authorization before arriving at the border.
- Have proper travel insurance.
- Think seriously about malaria prevention and health precautions.
- Stay flexible, because logistics can change quickly.
Compared to Rwanda or Uganda, gorilla trekking in eastern Congo can be significantly cheaper.
๐ญ Final Thoughts on Visiting the DRC
Eastern Congo gave me some of the most raw, adventurous, and memorable travel experiences of my entire journey around the world.
It is intense. It is chaotic. It is adventurous. It is logistically difficult. But it is also one of those places that stays with you because everything feels so alive.
I still really want to visit Kinshasa one day as well, because Kinshasa is supposed to be one of the most energetic and musically vibrant cities in Africa. But that trip is definitely more complicated logistically and visa-wise than the eastern Congo route I did.
If you are looking for the most realistic and accessible way to visit the Democratic Republic of the Congo as a traveler, the eastern Rwanda-to-Congo gorilla route is probably your best option.