Mountain gorilla trekking is the tour most people mean when they picture an African primate safari. You hike into the high-altitude forest of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda, Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda, or Virunga National Park in DRC, following trackers who locate the family by nests, dung and feeding signs left since dawn.
Once found, you get a fixed sixty minutes with the family, watching a silverback move through his own territory at his own pace. Trekking time to reach a family varies from thirty minutes to six hours depending on where they settled the night before, so this is a full-day commitment even though the encounter itself is short.
Good To Know
Duration: Half to full day
Difficulty: Moderate to strenuous
Permit / Fee: USD 400 to 1,500 depending on country
Minimum Age: 15 and older
Where: Uganda, Rwanda, DRC
Why does the permit price vary so much by country?
Each country’s wildlife authority sets its own price. DRC’s Virunga permit is the least expensive, Uganda sits in the middle, and Rwanda’s is the highest, partly to manage visitor volume. We help you weigh cost against trekking difficulty and travel logistics for each option.