Unmissable: mountain gorillas, volcanic peaks, and golden monkey treks. The dream. Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, located in southwestern Uganda, spans 13 square miles, making it the country’s smallest national park, yet it forms a vital part of the Virunga Massif, a 3,000-square-mile transboundary ecosystem shared with Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park and the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Virunga National Park. Established in 1991, it is renowned for its population of mountain gorillas, with one habituated family, and rare golden monkeys. The park hosts 39 mammal species, including forest elephants and buffalo, and 79 bird species, thriving in its bamboo forests, montane woodlands, and alpine zones across three Virunga volcanoes: Muhavura, Gahinga, and Sabyinyo. Conservation efforts focus on gorilla and golden monkey protection and community-based tourism with the Batwa people. Accommodation ranges from budget camps to upscale lodges, with the grunts of gorillas and songs of forest birds as a nightly serenade. The name “Mgahinga” derives from the Kinyarwanda word for Mount Gahinga, meaning “pile of stones,” reflecting its volcanic terrain. A compact yet captivating safari destination, Mgahinga offers intimate gorilla trekking and volcanic hikes in a misty, biodiverse wilderness.