A group of western trekking tourists together with their local porters and guides descencing from the crater rim of Nyiragongo Volcano in Virunga National Park in January 2016.

© guenterguni/Getty Images/iStock


Perhaps DRC's most magnificent single sight, active volcano Nyiragongo soars above the city of Goma and the surrounding Virunga National Park and sends plumes of smoke into the sky, before becoming a flaming beacon visible for miles around after sundown. The trek to the top is an absolutely unmissable experience (when the park is open to visitors), with those who undertake the five-hour climb being rewarded with views into the volcano's explosive lava lake below.

When operations resume after the park's indefinite closure, access to the volcano is only via travel agencies in Goma who arrange the trip through the Virunga National Park.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Parc National des Virunga

15.95 MILES

DRC's magnificent calling card is Virunga, Africa's oldest national park and home to mountain gorillas, chimpanzees and the incredible, active Nyiragongo…

2. Senkwekwe Gorilla Orphanage

17.57 MILES

Provided you make it back from your gorilla track in a timely fashion, it should be possible to visit the world’s only mountain gorilla orphanage, which…

3. Main Market

19.91 MILES

If you have half an hour to spare, make a beeline for the main market, which lies right in the centre of town. It's small but atmospheric. Alongside fresh…

4. Gisenyi Public Beach

20.4 MILES

The strip of sand beneath the main town is a justifiably popular place to take a dip. That said, some travellers imagining Caribbean sands are…

5. Pfunda Tea Estate

21.32 MILES

During the rainy season, at the height of production, the Pfunda Tea Factory processes up to 90 tonnes of tea from the surrounding plantations daily…

6. Rubona Peninsula

22.21 MILES

Roughly 6km south of town (about RFr1000 by moto-taxi), along a lovely lakeshore road, the Rubona Peninsula is Lake Kivu at its finest. Hills rise steeply…

7. Gorilla Guardians Village

23.46 MILES

While most of the focus of Volcanoes National Park falls squarely onto the animals, this 'cultural village' puts the spotlight back onto the people…

8. Volcanoes National Park

25.08 MILES

Volcanoes National Park, which runs along the border with the DRC and Uganda, is home to the Rwandan section of the Virungas. Comprising five volcanoes,…