Next, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park offers spectacular hiking and, if you are lucky, a chance to watch live lava flow into the sea.

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Guests were forced to check out of the Volcano House Hotel and Restaurant at the Volcanoes National Park on the Hawaii's Big Island.

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The Karisoke Research Center, operated by the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International and located in Volcanoes National Park, is the world's most important facility for studying the mountain gorilla.

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Gorilla day begins for me with a 4:30 a.m. wake-up call at the Serena Hotel, then a two-hour drive to the Volcanoes National Park, where gorillas live on the Rwanda-Congo-Uganda border.

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This is due to the efforts of conservationists such as those working in Volcanoes National Park, in northwest Rwanda, where Fossey established a research center which continues to run in her name today.

CNN: Up close with Rwanda's endangered mountain gorillas

The world's largest mountain gorilla population, thought to number less than 500 animals, is found in a mountainous region known as the Virungas, incorporating Volcanoes, Uganda's Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, and Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

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Neighbouring Los Nevados National Park features crystal mountain lakes and eight volcanoes, including two above 5, 000m.

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The Virunga National Park, a World Heritage site has eight volcanoes that spread across the Virunga mountain range, but only two are currently active.

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Then came New Zealand with Tongariro National Park in 1887, protecting the Tongariro, Ngauruhoe and Ruapehu volcanoes.

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