How to book Bwindi gorilla trekking permits
All gorilla safari preparations in the prehistoric Bwindi Impenetrable National Park begin with the booking of a gorilla trekking permit. All gorilla permits in Uganda are sold and governed by the Uganda Wildlife Authority. In a location devoid of tourists, Bwindi Forest offers an astounding array of natural treasures.
For expedited administrative services, all Bwindi Gorilla permits are reserved based on the park’s divisions. The Buhoma region in the north, the Ruhija region in the east, and the Rushaga and Nkuringo regions in the south are the four gorilla trekking locations in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
This is why you should find out which area your gorilla permit is scheduled in before making any reservations for lodging during the gorilla safari. About 327 square kilometers of pure woodland make up Bwindi’s impenetrable national park, which is difficult to go through in a hurry. Due to potential obstacles like slick roads, fog, complete darkness, flat tires, etc., the journey from one place to another is somewhat drawn out and unsettling. If you don’t attend the briefing, you can miss the gorilla trekking day.
Let’s first define a gorilla permit card before moving on to the specifics of how to reserve a gorilla trekking permit for Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
What is a card for a gorilla trekking permit?
A gorilla permission card is a reusable plastic card with a black stripe on the reverse that stores and retrieves your passport information on the day of the gorilla trek. The Uganda Wildlife Authority is the exclusive owner of this gorilla trekking permit card.
How Do I Go About Scheduling a Bwindi Gorilla Permit?
Decide on a date for your gorilla trekking safari, either formally or informally. It’s great to know how many gorilla permits you want to reserve.
Speak with the Uganda Wildlife Authority directly or an authorized travel agency such as katland Safari. Keep in mind that the Uganda Wildlife Authority reservation office’s phone lines are frequently busy, so you’ll need to be patient.
Our safari adviser looks up availability from the Uganda Wildlife Authority gorilla permit list after receiving your inquiry.
When gorilla permits are available, we encourage customers to get them in advance to prevent last-minute requests when they sell out. During the peak months of June, July, August, September, December, and January, the majority of gorilla permits are sold out in advance.
For comfortable gorilla safari preparation, it is best to reserve your gorilla permit at least six months to a year in advance.
You must send us your passport information, including your entire name as it appears on the document, nationality, birthdate, and passport expiration date, before you can pick up your Uganda gorilla permission card.
What is the price of a permit to trek with gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park?
A Uganda gorilla trekking permit currently costs $800 per person per trek, $700 per person each trek, and 300000shs for residents of East Africa.
Purchasing a mountain gorilla permit helps ensure the mountain gorillas have a sustainable existence. By the 1980s, American primatologist Dian Fossey and his team conducted a population census and found that there were approximately 300 mountain gorillas left in the world, putting these primates in danger of extinction.
By participating in gorilla trekking, you may help the fund that sustains the conservation effort for mountain gorillas.
What does the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park Gorilla Trekking Permit include and exclude?
The price of each gorilla trekking permit covers park admission costs, nationality, birthdate, ranger guide services, assistance for the local community, gorilla conservation, and a certificate at the conclusion of the journey.
The price of a gorilla permit for Bwindi Impenetrable National Park does not include transportation to gorilla trekking sites, lodging during a gorilla safari, tips, snacks to eat on the trek, or a packed lunch.
Your ideal African primate vacation with the mountain gorillas can be realized with katland Safaris. We have developed business relationships with a wide range of lodging establishments of all price ranges in our field. Depending on the length of your Uganda safari, we may help you create an itinerary that fits your needs and priorities.
When Can I Reserve Bwindi Impenetrable National Park Gorilla Permits?
It is comfortable to book your gorilla permit at least six months to a year in advance, but you can do it as early as three months before the day of the gorilla trek. Permits to enter Bwindi Impenetrable National Park are available year-round, however gorilla permits are in high demand during the busiest times of the year and quickly sell out. A maximum of eight gorilla permits per day per hike are available, thus reservations are made on a first-come, first-served basis.
Because there is less demand for safaris during the low season, which runs from March to May and November, you may be able to get last-minute gorilla permits for Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
Can Gorilla Permits for Bwindi Impenetrable National Park be rescheduled?
You must first request permission in writing from the Uganda Wildlife Authority if you would like to change the date of your gorilla permit.
If you want to move your gorilla permit, you must have a new date in mind.
Request a new date for your gorilla permit in writing to the Uganda Wildlife Authority. If you have a valid cause, including it as an attachment. This serves as a fallback for your request to reschedule your gorilla permit.
Your gorilla permit is shifted to the new date according on availability when your request is approved.
Can I Receive My Money Back for My Bwindi Impenetrable National Park Gorilla Permit?
The Uganda Wildlife Authority’s refund policy applies to gorilla permit refunds. Your gorilla permit is considered void if you fail to show up on the day of the gorilla hike without providing the Uganda Wildlife Authority with supporting documentation of your whereabouts. The validity of each gorilla trekking permit is limited to the day of the hike.
In accordance with the Uganda Wildlife Authority’s refund policy, you must take care of this in advance if you must cancel your gorilla trekking expedition but would still prefer a return for your permit.
During a gorilla trek, what ensures that you will find the mountain gorillas?
There is a 99% likelihood of finding the mountain gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. An adult male mountain gorilla weighs roughly 300 kg, making them large animals. Because of their immense stature, mountain gorillas are unable to move quickly through the forest.
For this reason, you begin your gorilla trekking day by following the train where the mountain gorilla was last spotted the day before. Usually, they don’t feed that far away.
You might get reimbursed roughly 75% of the price of your gorilla permit in Uganda if you spend the entire day gorilla trekking and are unable to find the mountain gorillas.
What is the minimum age to reserve a permit for Bwindi Impenetrable National Park?
The minimum age requirement for gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is 15 years of age or older. This is due to the volcanic terrain of the Bwindi forest, which features rocky hills whose slopes can serve as areas for the mountain gorillas to feed or relax.
Hiking these ridges and plateaus may not be quick for kids under fifteen.
Because of the frequent rains and the extensive network of rivers that could flood everywhere, the path to find the mountain gorillas can occasionally get slick. Youngsters under the age of fifteen might not be able to navigate these surfaces.
Because of their physical appearance, which can raise adrenaline levels, mountain gorillas may initially appear frightening. Someone might shout if they are unsteady. If children under the age of 15 are permitted to go gorilla trekking, this reaction is more likely to occur. Mountain gorillas may withdraw into the dense forest when there is disturbance because they are frightened of strange sounds and activities.
Which lodging options are available in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park for gorilla trekking?
You must first be aware of the location where your gorilla permit is booked in order to reserve lodging for gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The four sections of Bwindi Forest—Buhoma, Ruhija, Rushaga, and Nkuringo—each have their own accommodations.
Accommodations in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
The Buhoma region Accommodations include Volcanoes Lodge, Engage Lodge, Silverback Lodge, Mahogany Springs, Bwindi View Bandas, Gorilla Forest Camp, and Gorilla Resort.
Accommodations in the Nkuringo area: Gorilla Hill Eco Lodge, Clouds Lodge, and Nkuringo Safari Lodge
Accommodations in the Rushaga area include the Trekkers’ Tavern, Broadbill Camp, Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge, Nshongi Camp, and Rushaga Gorilla Safari Lodge.
Accommodations in the Ruhija vicinity include Chameleons’, Broad Bill Lodge, and Ruhija Gorilla Lodge.
How Can I Get to the Impenetrable National Park of Bwindi?
From Buhoma to Kabale, Kanungu, and Kampala
You travel 414 kilometers on the highway to Kabale, which takes five to six hours. You spend an additional four to five hours traveling 150 kilometers on a winding Murram road through Kanungu and Kanyantorogo. A 4×4 wheel drive vehicle is required.
Between Kampala, Ntungamo, Rukungiri, Kihihi, and Buhoma
It is the most direct route from Kampala or Entebbe airport, where you travel 390 kilometers to Rukungiri and then 82 kilometers to Buhoma along a Murram road.
From Buhoma via Ruhija to Kabale to Kampala
You require a 4×4 wheel drive car to go the 414 kilometers from Kampala to Kabale and then the 95 kilometers to Ruhija to Buhoma road, which is in bad shape.
Queen Elizabeth National Park From Kihihi to Buhoma
You can drive roughly 160 kilometers from the Mweya area to Buhoma and 64 kilometers from the Queen Elizabeth National Park’s Ishasha section.
How Secure Is It to Trek Gorillas in the Impenetrable National Park of Bwindi?
Gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is safe because all of the gorilla families that are available for reservations are acclimated to human presence. In order to acclimate a family of wild mountain gorillas to human presence without changing the natural environment, researchers and trackers utilize a technique called “gorilla habituation.”
Depending on how long the mountain gorillas take to adjust to human presence, the gorilla habituation process can take up to two years. This time frame is sufficient to eliminate any potential hostility that might develop between people and mountain gorillas.
Each gorilla trekking group is escorted by a well-trained team of rangers from the Uganda Wildlife Authority, one of whom is armed with a rifle and the other with a machete. These gadgets are used to time creepers and make room for tourists, or you can use a rifle to protect yourself if necessary.
What Rules Apply When Trekking with Gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park?
When you find the mountain gorillas, stay around 8 meters away from them. This will lessen the possibility of infecting the mountain gorillas.
Volunteer to stay behind if you are ill, especially if you have a contagious illness like the flu, a cough, or COVID-19. Human infections can seriously harm mountain gorillas.
Children must be at least 15 years old to participate in gorilla trekking.
Always have a ranger guide accompany you when you enter Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
Ask the ranger guide to dig a hole approximately 30 cm deep and cover it completely if you need to urinate.
It is prohibited to spit on plants or the ground since doing so could infect mountain gorillas and other forest inhabitants.
It is prohibited to provoke mountain gorillas because doing so could drive them into hiding, yet you are only permitted to spend an hour with them.
Avoid using a flashlight when shooting pictures since the mountain gorillas may become frightened by unexpected events in the outdoors.
To avoid tempting the mountain gorillas to take stuff from you, if you want to eat or smoke, do it away from them. They must not be dependent on human sustenance because they are wild creatures.
When you find the mountain gorillas, you have only one hour to wait.
