Lomami National Park, Rainforest national park in Tshopo and Maniema, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Lomami National Park is a protected area of tropical lowland rainforest in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, covering parts of Tshopo and Maniema provinces. Open patches of savanna appear in the south, and low hills mark the western edge, giving the park a varied terrain across its extent.
The park was officially designated in July 2016, becoming the ninth national park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was the result of years of surveys and advocacy by conservation teams working in the region since the early 2000s.
The Lengola, Mbole, Mituku, and Langa peoples live in villages around the park and depend on the forest for farming, fishing, and hunting. Visitors passing through nearby communities can see how daily life is closely tied to the rhythms of the river and the surrounding forest.
A visit to the park requires careful planning, as tourist infrastructure is very limited and many routes into the area are difficult to travel. Kindu, the provincial capital of Maniema, is the most common starting point for anyone heading into the park.
The Lomami River runs through the park and has acted as a natural barrier for so long that bonobo populations on either side have developed into genetically distinct groups. This makes the park one of the few places where the effect of a river on primate evolution can be observed directly in the field.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
