Treks to see mountain gorillas have undeniable become the world’s most done tourist adventure these days, a dream come true and a top bucket list for a high number of travelers to East and Central Africa.
Every day, hundreds of travelers check into gorilla destinations for a close encounter with endangered gorillas that were once at the verge of extinction, thanks to the conservation efforts by wildlife conservation organisations, governments, wildlife rangers and communities that stay near mountain gorilla parks.
For visitors who have booked a gorilla safari and trekked gorillas in the wild, mountain gorilla trekking is a life changing and magical experience that no traveler should miss out. Mountain gorillas share over 90% of human genes, which make them our closest cousins.
The human like characters of mountain gorillas, seeing adult females nurse babies and silverback guard a family like human fathers in a home is incredible.
WHERE DO MOUNTAIN GORILLAS LIVE?
The endangered gorillas survive in Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable forest National Park and the Virunga conservation area comprised of Mgahinga gorilla, Volcanoes and Virunga gorilla national parks in Uganda, Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo.
According to the 2018 gorilla census, there are only about 1,063 mountain gorillas still existent on earth hence calling for the need for gorilla protection and conservation of gorilla natural habitat
Any one intending to do gorilla tours must therefore travel to any of the three countries to enjoy this memorable experience.
Mountain gorillas have been habituated (the process of training mountain gorillas to become used to tourists) into groups or families 20 in Uganda, 10 in Rwanda and 8 in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Each gorilla family is visited by a group of eight travelers for an hour.
MOUNTAIN GORILLA PERMITS, GORILLA PERMIT PRICES | GORILLA PERMITS AVAILABILITY – Uganda, Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo
As soon as you decide on your travel dates, ensure you contact Responsible Tourism Company – your local tour company begin the process of booking for a gorilla permit which will give you access to the gorilla national park. Most gorilla safaris include a gorilla permit as part of the overall cost of your gorilla tour package.
A 3 days gorilla tour in Uganda can cost around USD 1,350+ per person excluding air tickets and visas.
A gorilla permit is a must have for anyone visiting to see mountain gorillas. It’s a pass that allows visitors spend an hour with the endangered gorilla family in their natural habitat. In other words, any one without a gorilla permit will not be allowed to trek gorillas.
A single gorilla permit costs USD 1500 in Rwanda,
USD 600 to be increased to USD 700 starting with 1st July 2010 in Uganda
and USD 450 in Democratic Republic of Congo.
Gorilla tracking permit for of the three African gorilla nations mentioned are valid for 24hrs from the date of tracking
Gorilla tracking permit booking is recommended as early as 6 months in advance due to high demand for gorilla safaris in all the three African countries, especially if you intend to travel during the busy or peak seasons of June, July and August.
It is advisable to use a local tour operator to book for you a permit particularly during the peak season to avoid any unnecessary inconveniences.
During low season tourist months of March and November, tourism authorities offer discounted Rwanda Gorilla permits and discounted Uganda gorilla permits for nationals and East African citizens, for foreign residents of these East African nations to visit the gorilla national parks and track gorillas.
The promotion of discounted gorilla permits is one of the strategies governments adopt for the survival of the industry in their countries
For customized mountain gorilla safaris or booking gorilla trekking permit in Uganda, Rwanda or DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo, RESPONSIBLE TOURISM COMPANY is your ultimate and reliable tour operator.
HOW TO PREPARE FOR A GORILLA TREK IN UGANDA, RWANDA AND CONGO
Proper and timely planning is essential for a successful gorilla trek in Uganda, gorilla trek in Rwanda and guided gorilla trek in Democratic Republic of Congo.
Contact RESPONSIBLE TOURISM COMPANY team or your desired local tour company as early as 6 months before the trekking date to confirm the availability of gorilla permits on your desired date.
80 percent deposit for the permit is required to reserve your gorilla trip. Reserving a permit is a first assurance that you will trek and see mountain gorillas without any disturbance. More still, endeavor to do physical exercises to ensure you are physically fit. Gorilla trekking is undeniably a strenuous adventure, which involve hiking up and down hill sometimes with slippery muddy forest grounds. The fitness exercises you need to prepare for gorilla trekking include among others:
- Walking
- Stretching
- Gyming
- Hiking
- Jogging
- Take the stairs
- Watch your diet
These will put you into shape lessening difficulties in gorilla trekking.
WHAT TO EXPECT ON A GORILLA TREKKING TOUR
Well, you must be mentally and physically prepared for the gorilla trekking adventure. Trekking to meet gorillas is an exhausting but thrilling adventure. Expect to hike up and down hill through thick and bushy jungle forests. On average, it takes 3 hours to reach the mountain gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda.
The actual time to spend in the jungle before meeting gorillas also varies depending on where gorillas are located that day and their speed of movement. The thickness or lightness of the vegetation cover s also determines the speed of travelers movements.
ABOUT GORILLA TREKS
In all gorilla destinations (Uganda and Rwanda), Gorilla treks are categorized into short treks, medium treks and long treks depending on the ease and difficulty of finding a gorilla family. A 3 Days gorilla trek in Uganda, Rwanda or Democratic Republic of Congo is a perfect package for you to meet and has fun wit these endangered species. Some gorilla families live in low altitude areas and hence easy to trek while other live in hilly and high altitude areas hence hard to trek. The allocation of gorilla trek sin Uganda and Rwanda depends on the hiking ability of a traveler, age and interest. You and energetic travelers are usually given hard to trek gorilla families while the physically challenged and aged are given short gorilla treks.
WHAT TO PACK FOR GORILLA TREKKING
In addition to physical fitness, you must pack right essentials to help you in your gorilla tracking adventure. Having a fully equipped packing list to trek gorillas is one of the key features that guarantee a successful and stress free gorilla watching experience. Among the things that you should pack for gorilla trekking include:
- Hiking / walking boots: These ease movements through the muddy and slippery grounds of these jungle forests/. Hiking boots are available for hire at the gorilla park headquarters and come with your own walking shoes.
- Gardening gloves: These protect your hands from touching hard and stretches by stinging nettles. At some time, you will touch the ground for support and your hands will be save with the gloves
- Rain jacket: Rainfall in mountain gorilla forests is unpredictable. Actually rain is expected each day despite the season. Visitors must therefore be ready for rains everyday. Pack your rain jacket, be with it all times to be on a safer side.
- Ponchos/sweaters: whether raining or not, gorilla forests are generally cold. Endeavor to carry ponchos to keep you warm in the jungle forests.
- Sun glasses to protect your eyes from direct sun
- Headband or hat to protect your head
- Long stockings for your legs
- Long sleeved shirts/blouses to protect your arms
- Long pants tacked into stockings
- Insect repellants
- First aid kit for any emergency
- Energy giving snacks to keep you strong throughout hiking
- Pair of binoculars
- Extra batteries for your batteries
DO’S AND DON’TS OF GORILLA TREKKING
Gorilla trekking experience has the rules and regulations put by respective tourism government bodies of Uganda, Rwanda and Congo to ensure health, safety of mountain gorillas and travelers in the jungle. Travelers are introduced to the dos and don’ts of gorilla trekking during the pre-gorilla trekking briefing at the start of each trekking date. The rules and regulations of gorilla trekking include:
- Do not trek gorillas when sick: Gorillas are susceptible to human diseases
- Do not slit from your groups, walking alone in the jungle is not safe
- Speak at a low tone
- Keep a distance of seven meters a way from gorillas
- Do not use flash light cameras
- Do not look direct into the eyes of mountain gorillas
- Do not ouch or feed gorillas in any way
- Do not litter in gorilla parks
- Maximum group of eight people
- Turn off your back when sneezing o coughing
- Children below 15 years are not allowed to trek
- Do not run when a gorilla charge
HOW DIFFICULT IS GORILLA TREKKING?
The ease or difficult of gorilla trekking has been and is still a concern for most is not all travelers to Rwanda.
However, there is no actual answer for this question.
How easy or difficulty a trek to see gorillas varies between different travelers.
How difficult is gorilla trekking in Rwanda is one of the frequently asked gorilla trekking questions?
It’s not surprising that what seems difficult for one traveler turn out to be fun for the other one. So the whole experience is all about individual travelers’ expectations.
GORILLA PERMIT CANCELLATION PENALTIES AND POLICY IN UGANDA
It is preferable that each visitor who books a gorilla tracking permit should be able to utilize it.
However, where circumstances do not permit visitors to travel, the Uganda Wildlife Authority – the state-run conservation and tourism agency will not refund you any money, and the booking would be canceled from 0 to 8 days, to the day of tracking.
If the cancellation is between 4 to 45 days before the activity, a 25% refund will be given.
Should cancellation happen 46 to 90 days before gorilla trekking, a 50% will be made. If cancellation takes place 91 days beforehand, you receive a refund of 75%. The refunds only apply to those who paid 100% for the gorilla permit. If you had only made a deposit, you are not liable for any refund. In extremely rare cases where one fails to identify any gorilla, a complaint should be lodged with the Uganda Wildlife Authority reservation office or through local tour operator and a 75% refund will be implemented
In general, gorilla trekking remains the leading wildlife experience in the world. Book a gorilla safari to Uganda, Rwanda or Congo, meet face to face with the endangered mountain gorillas in the jungle and enjoy this magical gorilla encounter with Responsible Tourism Company – your local tour operator.
