VITAL STATISTICS

Capital: Kinshasa Population: 78 million Language(s): French, Lingala, Kikongo, Swahili, Tshiluba, plus regional dialects Time: GMT+1 International dialling code: +243 Visas: Required by UK nationals. Most tour operators will get this for you; on this trip they are bought at the Rwanda/drc border in Bukavu and cost $100 (£75). Money: CDF (Congolese France), currently CDF2,092 to the UK£. US dollars ($) are also widely accepted.

When to go

■ Peak gorilla spotting – although not the driest time of the year, between September and December is when the gorillas live off the bamboos shoots that grow closer to the Kahuzi Biega NP forest lodge, making them much easier to spot. ■ Off-season – for the rest of the year, the gorillas live off leaves and fruit, which means that they have to travel deeper into the forest. This makes them harder to spot and makes doing so less likely.

Health & safety

While the FCO advises against all travel to much of eastern DRC, trips run by tour operators to the area around Bukavu and Kahuzi Biega NP are more common now, though the official advice for this region is still to avoid ‘all but essential’ travel. Be up to date with all your jabs, and you will also need to show a yellow fever certificate. Malaria is endemic, so take prophylaxis.

Further reading & information

Congo (Bradt, 2012) – good coverage and background on the DRC and its near neighbour Congo-brazzaville