Which part of Africa is Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
In the southwestern region of Uganda, near the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo, lies Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. The park’s administrative districts are Kisoro and Kanungu. Parkgoers may see the Albertine Rift from their vantage point. Over its 321 square kilometers, the park is home to a diverse flora that includes both lowland woods and highland vegetation. With an estimated age of over 25,000 years, the park is thought by experts to be among the oldest woods in Africa.
Bwindi was designated as a National Park in 1991 and later in 1994 it was named a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site. Bwindi is the birthplace of five significant rivers that empty into Lake Edward; the park itself is a mosaic of rugged hills and valleys. More than 400 plant species call Bwindi Impenetrable National area home. The area is also home to 150 animals, including many primates, such as the world-famous gorillas, chimpanzees, baboons, forest elephants, and antelopes.More than 348 bird species call Bwindi home, including 23 that are unique to the Albertine Rift.
The park is believed to be home to over 400 gorillas, or over half of the world’s total population. Out of these, 19 groups have adapted to human presence, a phenomenon called mountain gorilla tracking. This unique experience is limited to just three countries: Uganda, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. At its highest point, Rwamunyonyi Hill, the park has an area between 1,190 and 2,607 meters (3,904 and 8,553 feet) above sea level.
The Batwa are thought to be the original inhabitants of Bwindi. They were a diminutive people known as pygmies who subsisted mostly on hunting, gathering fruits and nuts, and gathering medicinal plants from the forest. They were forced to leave the forest and settle around the forest’s boundaries when the park was gazetted as a national historic site.
Depending on your budget, Katland Safaris may arrange a trip to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest for you to undertake gorilla tracking. Below are some of our most popular excursions to Bwindi Forest, National Park. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us so that we can create a personalized tour that takes into account your interests, budget, and available time; we also carefully customize all of our tours to meet the demands of our customers.
The Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park: What to See and Do?
Gorilla tracking is the main attraction in Bwindi. But that’s not all! This park offers a one-of-a-kind gorilla habituation experience that you won’t find anywhere else in Africa.
Gorillas in the Bwindi Forest World Heritage Site
Tracking mountain gorillas requires a combination of trekking and forest wandering. Going on a gorilla trekking adventure typically begins with a morning briefing at the park headquarters in Bwindi Forest. From there, you’ll hike or walk into the forest, following the track that the mountain gorillas travel. Once you find them, you’ll only get to spend an hour with them. A certificate will be handed to you when you return.
A valid gorilla permit, purchased from the Uganda Wildlife Authority, is necessary for a successful gorilla trek in Bwindi Forest National Park. The cost of the permit is USD800 for foreign non-residents, USD700 for foreign residents, and 300,000 Uganda shillings for East African citizens. The permit must be obtained for the date of the trek that the trekker desires. On the day of the trip, you’ll go to the park headquarters for a rundown of the rules and regulations that you’ll need to observe while hiking through the thick rain forest on the mountain slopes.
Skilled guides and park rangers will be there to help you out, too. The lifelong experience of seeing mountain gorillas in their natural environment is well worth the travel through thick vegetation and strenuous climbs. Immerse yourself in the everyday life of these incredible apes as you get within 7–5 meters of them, participating in their activities and sharing in their experiences. Following your hour-long encounter with the gorillas, you will be required to return to the beginning of the journey in order to collect your certificate of completion.
Bwindi Forest National Park Gorilla Habituation Experience
The only site where gorillas may be habituated right now is in Bwindi Forest National Park. To discover semi-habituated mountain gorillas, you will still have to walk or hike through Bwindi Forest; after you find them, you will spend four hours with them, just as on a regular journey.
As part of this adventure, you’ll get to spend time with habituated gorilla groups and help them adjust to human presence, a process that may take up to three years. For $1,500, you may spend four hours in the company of mountain gorillas with a gorilla habituation permit. In Bwindi National Park, you may only witness these mountain gorillas if you are one of the lucky four.
Cultural immersion at Bwindi Forest National Park with the Batwa people
The Batwa Pygmies formerly called Bwindi Forest home, and seeing their culture firsthand is a must on every gorilla safari in Uganda. To protect the apes and monkeys that are in risk of extinction, it was decided that they should be relocated. While learning about the Batwa people’s traditional forest lifestyle, you’ll get a taste of their distinctive cuisine, dancing, and way of life during the cultural encounter.
Along the path, you’ll see Batwa people going about their daily lives in the forest, engaging in activities like hunting, harvesting fruit, collecting honey, and conducting ceremonies. By paying a charge, visitors to these Batwa routes may show their appreciation for the culture while also helping the local people. Contributions to organizations serving women and children are much valued, and even purchasing souvenirs helps the local economy.
Birdwatching at the National Park of Bwindi Forest
The forest is home to more than 350 kinds of birds, making bird viewing one of the must-do activities in Bwindi. We will devote the whole day to birdwatching in Mubwindi marsh, the ideal spot for birding in Bwindi forest. The most ideal spot to see some of the most elusive rift endemics—such as the stunning Regal Sunbird, the rare and endangered Archer’s Robin-Chat—is along the 4-kilometer walk leading to Mubwindi Swamp.
In addition to the uncommon and locally distributed Grauer’s Scrub-Warbler, the swamp is home to the following: Dwarf Honeyguide, Stripe-breasted Tit, Ruwenzori Apalis, and African Hill Babbler. Some of the many species we have a chance of seeing here include Black Goshawk, Augur Buzzard, Crowned Hawk-Eagle, Handsome Francolin, Olive (Rameron) Pigeon, Bronze-winged Pigeon, Black-billed, Ruwenzori, and Ross’s Turacco, African, Barred Long-tailed, and African Emerald Cuckoos, Red-chested Owlet, Narina and Bar-tailed Trogons, Black and Cinnamon-chested Bee-eaters, Blue-throated Roller, White-headed Woodhoopoe, Gray-throated, Double-toothed, and Yellow-spotted Barbets, Western and Yellow-rumpedTinkerbird, Thick-billed and Dwarf Honeyguides, Rufous-necked Wryneck, Tullberg’s, Speckle-breasted, Elliot’s, and Olive Woodpeckers, African Broadbill, Rock Martin, Black Saw-wing, Gray and Petit’s Cuckoo-Shrike, Ansorge’s, Kakamega and Cabanis’ Greenbuls, Mountain Thrushes, Olive Thrushes, White-tailed Ant-Thrushes, Kivu Ground-Thrushes, White-eyed Slaty-Flycatchers, Yellow-eyed Black-Flycatchers, Sooty Flycatchers, Chapin’s Flycatchers, White-starred Robins, White-bellied and Archer’s Robin-Chats, Ruwenzori Batis, White-tailed, and African Blue-Flycatchers are among the many species of acacias found in the world.
Illadopses with pale breasts, gray chests, and mountain habitats A plethora of sunbirds, including the Ruwenzori Hill Babbler, Gray-headed, Regal, Green-throated, Blue-headed, Stuhlmann’s, Northern Double-collared, and Green-headed The following starlings: Sharpe’s, Slender-billed, Waller’s, Gray-green, many-colored, and Mackinnon’s Shrike, as well as Velvet-mantled Drongo and Lagden’s Bush-shrikes. Brown-capped, Black-billed, and Strange weavers; Jameson’s and Woodhouse’s ant-peckers; and Dusky and Red-faced crimson-wings.
Hiking trails in the Bwindi forest.
Visitors to Bwindi Forest National Park may take use of the nature walk routes that the Uganda Wildlife Authority set up for them. Depending on the visitor’s schedule, guided walks may begin at any time; participants will have the opportunity to see various tree types, forest birds, and marshes while on their journeys. For an exciting adventure, you’ll be led down several paths.
Interactions between Bwindi’s Culture and Community
For a long time, the Batwa people—also known as the pygmies—lived in Bwindi Forest National Park. However, in recent times, they were relocated to the nearby settlements in order to facilitate mountain gorilla conservation and tourism. From Kigali, you may take a road journey to Bwindi Forest National Park, where you can view the homes of the pygmies, the sites they frequented, and the methods they employed for hunting and gathering wild honey.
Their dances will be on display as they describe their successful transition out of the jungle and into everyday life. Along the forest’s periphery, you’ll find the remainder of the community, including schools and groups of women who sell food and crafts. If you have any spare change, please consider donating it to help the kids out with school supplies and clothing.
The Best Ways to Reach Bwindi Forest Wildlife Sanctuary
A four- or five-hour journey from Rwanda’s capital of Kigali will get you to Bwindi Forest National Park in Uganda, via the Chanika or Katuna borders. Departing from the airport or hotel in Kigali, you may have a city tour before crossing into the Kisoro area of Uganda, where you can stop for lunch and spend the night.
From Entebbe or Kampala, you may reach Bwindi Forest National Park via the Kampala–Mbarara–Kisoro route; the travel would take about 9–10 hours. Flights into Kisoro Airstrip take about two hours and depart from either Entebbe International Airport or Kajjansi Airstrip. Aerolink Uganda has daily scheduled flights, and charter flights from other airlines are also an option. To reach Bwindi Forest National Park, you may take a flight to Kihihi or Kisoro and then transfer to a vehicle.
Bwindi Forest National Park: Where to Stay?
You may find cheap, mid-range, and luxury accommodations in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. On the lower end of the price spectrum, you’ll find Rushaga Gorilla Havens Lodge, Trekkers Tavern Cottages, Ride 4 a woman, Buhoma Community Rest Camp, Buhoma Camp Lodge, and others; on the upper end, you’ll find Rushaga Gorilla Camp, Icumbi Lodge, Nkuringo Bwindi Gorilla Lodge, and Buhoma Havens Lodge, among others, with prices ranging from $100 to $300 per night per person; and finally, there are the more luxurious options; Prices for these and other five-star accommodations start at $300–$400 per person per night. Some of these possibilities are Buhoma Lodge, Bwindi Lodge, Mahogany Springs, Engagi Lodge, Gorilla Sanctuary Camp, Four Gorillas Lodge, and more.
What makes safaris to Bwindi Forest National Park with Katland the best option?
Safaris with Katland provide unforgettable adventures in Uganda, including Bwindi Forest National Park, and the surrounding East African area. We provide cheap packages and may even create custom tours if you contact us. Our ability to curate unforgettable experiences is a product of the cohesive team we’ve built over the years, which includes both youthful and dynamic employees, as well as seasoned and dedicated directors and managers who are native Ugandans. You may read about other people’s experiences on safari bookings and trip advisor, where Katland Safaris has a lot of positive ratings.
