Congo, DRC & Angola Tour

Itinerary

Monday 2 December – Brazzaville (Congo)

• Arrival in Brazzaville, the capital of the Republic of Congo.
• OR: arrival from Libreville, Gabon, from our Gabon Highlights Tour.
• Overnight stay in Brazzaville.

Tuesday 3 December – Brazzaville – Kinshasa (DR Congo)

• Early morning departure to the ferry that will take us to Kinshasha, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (also known as DR Congo or DRC). While you can fly directly to Kinshasa, its much faster and easier to travel via Brazzaville.
• After customs we’ll start our city tour in Kinshasa.
• See the Rumble in the Jungle 20th of May Stadium (Tata-Raphael Stadium) from outside.
• Highlight: In the afternoon we’ll hang out with the sapeurs, today’s version of the well-known dandy’s. We’ll meet them, take time to learn about their culture, take photos and learn about their dances, songs and matching colorful dress.
• Overnight stay in Kinshasa.

Wednesday 4 December – Kinshasa

• Highlight: In the morning we’ll leave Kinshasa and head for the Lola Ya Bonobo Sanctuary. Here they keep bonobos that were rescued from local markets, doomed to be sold for bush meat. We’ll learn more about the bonobos and see how the locals try to give the bonobos their life back. 
• Statue of Patrice Lumumba, designed by North Koreans.
• Palace of the People, it’s the seat of the National Assembly and Senate of the DRC.
• Parc Ngaliema, including the old statues of King Leopold and Stanley.
• Overnight stay in Kinshasa.

Thursday 5 December – Kinshasa  

• Independence Square, one of the main squares of Kinshasa.
• Mausoleum of the Late President Kabila, including his statue design by North Koreans (see how it looks like Kim Il Sung’s statue)
• Highlight: In the afternoon we’ll go for an unique experience. We’ll have an introduction to spiritual cemeromy by Tata Ghonda and his compagnons in DRC.
• Overnight stay in Kinshasa.

Friday 6 December – Kinshasa – Brazzaville (Congo)

• In the morning we head for the boat back to Brazzaville.
• Border formalities on both sides of the Congo river.
• At 12:00 we head for a city tour to explore the capital Brazzaville.
• See the Nabemba Tower from outside. The highest building in the country has been quite controversial. It was heavily damaged during the Civil War and even today still has a lot of costs.
• St Anne Basilica, a beautiful catholic church in the center of the city.
• We will head for the Pierre Savorgnan de Brazzaville Memorial. The memorial is dedicated to an Italian explorer who founded Brazzaville.
• Highlight: Afternoon visit to the Brazzaville versions sapeurs. The sapeurs are the dandy’s of today’s Africa. Dressed up in fancy clothes they walk down the streets in order to be seen. Small differences can be seen with the ones in Kinshasa.
• Overnight stay in Brazzaville.

Saturday 7 December – Brazzaville – Lesio Luna 

• We leave the capital and North, towards the Lesio Luna Wildlife Park.
• Upon arrival, we’ll take a boat to venture around the jungle and wetlands. Along the way we may spot hippopotamus, forest buffalo, red river hog, and several types of duiker.
• Highlight: We visit the Silverback Gorillas, together with our guide we’ll try to see them and see how they are living in the park.
• After a late lunch we head back to Brazzaville after an intense day in the park.
• Overnight stay in Brazzaville.

Sunday 8 December – Brazzaville – Point Noire

• End of group A: airport drop off. Group B continues: West Congo & Cabinda Tour
• We hit the road to Pointe Noire, the industrial capital of the Republic of Congo and located at the Atlantic Ocean.
• Highlight: Along the way we stop at the Nkila Ntari Cave, it’s located in the jungle and the cave is dotted with cave paintings, stalactites and stalagmites.
• We continue our drive through the jungle towards the coast.
• Arrival in Pointe Noire, the economical hub of the Republic of Congo.
• Group C: arrival at your own convenience in Pointe Noire, airport pick up, meet the group at the hotel.
• Overnight stay in Pointe Noire.

Monday 9 December – Pointe Noire

• A relaxing day around Pointe Noire, located at the Atlantic Ocean.
• Highlight: We’ll visit the amazing Gorges of Diosso, also known as the Grand Canyon of Congo.
• Luango Museum, a local museum located in a beautiful building telling the cultural history of Congo.
• Walk around the town of Pointe Noire, we will check out the harbor and its close by beach.
• Congo is one of the few Central African countries which still has a (sort of) functioning railway system. We’ll check out the Colonial Railway Station of Pointe Noire, a true gem for railway fanatics.
• Overnight stay in Pointe Noire.

Tuesday 10 December – Pointe Noire – Cabinda (Angola)

• Morning departure to the least visited exclave of Africa – Cabinda, which is part of Angola. It has a unique blend as its surrounded by DRC and Congo, but has a strong influence from the mainland of Angola. 
• Highlight: Upon arrival we’ll start our city tour of Cabinda City.
• 1 May Park, the central park in Cabinda.
• Church of the Immaculate Conception, the main church of Cabinda City.
• Central market, here you can find the famous Cabinda Tree.
• Monument to the Treaty of Simulambuco. Monument to the Treaty of Simulambuco. The treaty was signed between Angola and Portugal in 1885, protecting the cultural heritage of Cabinda.
• Overnight stay in Cabinda.

Wednesday 11 December – Cabinda – Pointe Noire (Congo)

• After checking out of the hotel we drive out of town and check out a couple of small villages in Cabinda.
• Border crossing into the Republic of Congo.
• Highlight: Arrival in Pointe Noire were we head to the beach to cool off in the Atlantic Ocean from our adventure trip.
• Overnight stay in Pointe Noire.

Thursday 12 December – Pointe Noire

• Airport drop off. As the city is the business hup for Congo, it’s well connected to compared to the capital city.
• End of the tour.
• OR: continue to Juba for our South Sudan Tour.