Congo River in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo
The ultimate Congo experience – a voyage on the mighty Congo River from the city of Lisala to Kisangani. The expedition takes in remote villages, some of the country’s important historical sights, rain forests and of course a chance to meet the local people.The Congo River, formerly known as the Zaire River during the dictatorship of Mobutu Sese Seko, is the second longest river in Africa, shorter only than the Nile, as well as the second largest river in the world by discharge volume, following only the Amazon. It is also the world's deepest recorded river, with measured depths in excess of 220 m. The Congo-Lualaba-Chambeshi River system has an overall length of 4,700 km, which makes it the world's ninth-longest river. The Chambeshi is a tributary of the Lualaba River, and Lualaba is the name of the Congo River upstream of Boyoma Falls, extending for 1,800 km.
Measured along with the Lualaba, the main tributary, the Congo River has a total length of 4,370 km. It is the only major river to cross the equator twice. The Congo Basin has a total area of about 4,000,000 km2, or 13% of the entire African landmass.
Experience the different sights and sounds of the real Africa as you travel through a land so few travellers have yet discovered. We travel using our river cruiser, an 18-meter long, wooden boat, equipped with two powerful outboard engines. The boat is further equipped with safety equipment, sanitary installation, a generator, lighting and freezers. It is operated by a licensed and experienced captain, a mechanic and a sailor. A cook and a tourist guide are present throughout. Evenings and nights are spent ashore, enabling cultural exchanges with the local population.
This is an incredible journey through one of the world’s least explored areas – for us this is the very essence of adventure, and we are proud to offer this iconic trip to our clients.
The second part of our voyage takes us upriver from Lisala to our final destination, the city of Kisangani. The journey is expected to take 10-nights and, as with the voyage to Lisala, each night will be spent ashore at or close to a village where we can buy fresh produce, prepare dinner and set-up our tented camp. Highlights include Bumba, where the Congo is at its widest, some 20 kilometres across, and covered with water hyacinths. Closer to Kisangani we travel through Yangambi, an important Biosphere Reserve which hosts 32,000 tree species. Wildlife in the reserve includes elephants, river hogs and monkeys.
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