Gorilla Trekking in Uganda: Permits, Cost and What the Day Is Really Like

The permit

A gorilla trekking permit in Uganda costs $800 per person for foreign non-residents, set by the Uganda Wildlife Authority. It covers one trek with one habituated family group and one hour in their presence. In Rwanda the equivalent permit is $1,500.

Permits are limited to eight visitors per gorilla family per day. In peak season, June to September and December to February, they sell out months ahead. Book six to twelve months out if your dates are fixed.

What the day actually involves

You report to the park headquarters early for a briefing and are assigned a family group according to fitness and, where possible, preference. Trackers will already have gone ahead at first light to locate the family from where they nested overnight.

Then you walk. It can take forty minutes or it can take six hours. The forest floor is steep, wet and tangled, there is rarely a path, and guides cut through vegetation as they go. It is genuinely demanding rather than merely a stroll, and altitude adds to it.

When you reach them, the hour begins. You will be asked to stay seven metres back, though the gorillas have not agreed to this and frequently walk closer. There is no barrier, no vehicle and very little sound beyond the forest. Most people find it difficult to describe afterwards.

How hard is it, honestly?

Reasonable general fitness is enough. You do not need to be an athlete, but you should be able to walk uphill on uneven ground for several hours. Porters are available at the trailhead for around $20 and are worth taking whether or not you need help carrying anything, since it puts money directly into the surrounding community.

Uganda or Rwanda?

• Cost: Uganda $800, Rwanda $1,500.
• Access: Rwanda is far quicker. Volcanoes National Park is two to three hours from Kigali. Bwindi is eight to ten hours from Entebbe by road, or a short internal flight.
• The trek: Bwindi is generally steeper and denser.
• The rest of the trip: Uganda gives you chimpanzees at Kibale, tree-climbing lions at Ishasha and the Kazinga Channel. Rwanda is a shorter, simpler trip.

For most travellers wanting more than gorillas alone, Uganda is better value and a richer itinerary. For those short on time and willing to pay for it, Rwanda is more efficient.

Practical notes

• Bring waterproofs, gaiters or long socks, and gardening gloves for grabbing vegetation.
• Minimum age is 15.
• You will not be allowed to trek with a cold or flu, since gorillas are susceptible to human respiratory illness.
• Two treks on consecutive days is the single best way to guarantee a good encounter, if the budget allows.