Uganda, Rwanda and Congo is home to the world’s largest population of mountain gorillas, making these countries popular destinations for Eco tourists hoping to catch a glimpse of these endangered animals. Every year, thousands of visitors come to Uganda and Rwanda to take part in gorilla trekking trips.

 These trips not only provide an up-close encounter with these magnificent creatures, but they also help to fund the conservation of mountain gorillas. In order to visit the mountain gorillas, every guest must have a permit.

Permits can be obtained through a tour operator or safari company who purchase them from the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) in Uganda and RDB in Rwanda. The cost of a gorilla permit is 800USD in Uganda and 1500USD in Rwanda. The gorilla tracking permits can only be purchased by Tour Operators who a registered by UTB in Uganda or RDB in Rwanda.

Gorilla Trekking

A gorilla permit is an authorization card that allows you to visit the mountain gorillas, be it in Uganda and Rwanda. With this permit per person, you pay to spend one hour in company of one family of mountain gorillas.

Gorlla permit in Rwanda at USD 1500

The fees for a gorilla permit are important because they limit the number of tourist access to the parks and also contribute to the conservation efforts of the gorillas. It doesn’t matter how long you take to see the gorillas, it’s still the same price and for one hour.

Gorilla habituation is the process of acclimatizing wild gorillas to the presence of humans. This is essential for gorilla tourism, as it allows guests to safely interact with these amazing animals. Gorilla habituation permits are more expensive than regular gorilla permits, as they allow guests to spend four hours with the gorillas, rather than just one.

Gorilla habituation in Uganda

You can be part of the extra time that is necessary in order to slowly get the gorillas used to human presence. This process is essential for the safety of both humans and gorillas, and it helps to ensure that gorilla tourism has minimal impact on gorilla populations. Gorilla habituation permits cost 1500USD in Uganda guaranteeing you 4 hours with the gorillas.

How much does a gorilla Permit Cost in Uganda?

A gorilla permit costs 800USD per person per trekking in the allocated sector (1 hour with the gorillas)
Gorilla Habituation permit costs 1500UD per trekking ( 4 hours with the gorillas)

Cost of Rwanda Gorilla Permit

A gorilla permit in Rwanda costs 1500USD per person. Rwanda provides luxury trekking options and high end accommodation options for those who intend to enjoy a luxury gorilla trek in Volcanoes National Park Rwanda. As you visit the gorillas of Rwanda, choose Bisate lodge, One & Only Gorillas Nest or Singita Kwitonda lodge.

Congo Gorilla Permit

The cheapest option for gorilla tracking is Congo because a gorilla trek permit in Congo costs 450USD perperson per trek. You will have a chance to visit Virunga National Park Congo.

A government agency in Uganda, the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), issues gorilla permits. The UWA oversees tourism and wildlife conservation in the country. UWA permits cannot be purchased directly by the client, however the most convenient method is to work with a reputable tour company. In most cases, the price of a gorilla safari includes the purchase of a permit to see the endangered mountain gorillas. To guarantee availability, book at least six months in advance. In Rwanda, you can purchase a permit through Rwanda Development Board or any Rwanda safari company.

Uganda Wildlife Authority Head Quarters

Gorilla Permit Refund/ Cancellation

Please note that the gorilla permit fees are paid to the respective governments and if there is a cancellation, it’s the government to refund and not the tour operator

or Safari Company that purchased the permit. A travel agent can only refund if the government reimburses the tour company. Its therefore important to check your travel dates, flights etc before you can book your date for the gorilla trekking, chimpanzee tracking or golden monkey tracking or even the habituation.
Refund policy is as below in case you are not able to make it on the day of tracking.
1. In the event that you cancel and merely paid a deposit, you will not be entitled to any reimbursement.
2. If you cancel 3 months before your trekking date, you will receive up to 75% refund.
3. If you cancel 1 and 1/2 months before your trek, a 50% refund will be effected.
4. A month before will attract only 25% refund of the amount paid for the permit.
5. If you cancel within or just a week before, expect no refund.

A permit covers the complete trek with armed guides from the time you enter into the forest, see the gorillas and back to the trekking point. Other costs like accommodation, transport, porter, water, meals, etc are not included. It’s important to discuss with your tour operator if you will require a porter, trekking pole, rain jacket and other things to carry when coming for a gorilla safari in Uganda and Rwanda. You can also decide on which sector you would want to track with your tour operator.

Please note that there are no discounted gorilla permits in Uganda and Rwanda as of 2022.  Uganda gorilla permit goes for 700USD and Rwanda gorilla permit goes for 1500USD.

There are also 8 gorilla habituation permits available each day in Bwindi forest located in 2 habituation gorilla families south of Bwindi forest. Mgahinga National Park is home to just 1 gorilla group offering a total of 8 permits daily.

There is a very high demand for gorilla trekking permits in the peak seasons, which are also the dry season covering month of December to February and June to October while the other months are not as competitive but are booked out all the same. It’s important to book your gorilla permit at least 10 months in advance so you are assured of your spot when booking your Uganda gorilla safari and be ready early.

All gorilla tour permits are issued from the UWA offices in Kampala which permits tourists to trek and see gorillas in their natural habitat. Trekking permits are only issues at the UWA head offices in Kampala and cannot be purchased from the forest headquarters.

As of 1st July 2022, all Uganda gorilla permits are to be sold at 800USD Per Permit in Bwindi national park and Mgahinga national park all year round without low season discounts.

According the announcement by the Uganda Wildlife Authority, foreign residents working in Uganda and the rest of East Africa will buy a gorilla permit for 700USD, 500USD respectively while the price for nationals and the rest of East Africa remained at 70USD equivalent of 300,000 Ugandan shillings covering Uganda, Kenya, Sudan, Tanzania and Burundi citizens looking to see gorillas in the wild.

Today, Uganda still offers the most affordable price of a gorilla permit with a very good chance to see mountain gorillas in the jungle. Since Rwanda increased the price of Rwanda gorilla trekking permits from 750USD to 1500USD, Uganda has been receiving lots of tourists inflow looking to visit the mountain gorillas in the wild as its much affordable and a sure deal.
The Uganda Wildlife authority has for the past 2 years tried to maintain the price of the gorilla permit for 800USD but with a great need to help the communities living near the park as they are key to successful gorilla conservation and preservation in Uganda.

In the past 2 years, Uganda as seen a rapid increase in the demand of gorilla permits with many tourists travelling from Rwanda crossing into Uganda for mountain gorillas trekking skipping the high price of Rwanda gorilla permits.

Communities Benefiting From Gorilla Tourism

The Batwa pygmies are the largest population living around Bwindi national park with some tribes of the Bakiga who largely depend on the park for their living. These tribes comprise of high populations with high birth rates and very low living standards. The Batwa pygmies formally lived inside the forest and depended on the forest for food and shelter and were resettled at the forest edge to create room for gorilla conservation. These communities are very fundamental to gorilla protection projects as they have vast information about the gorillas as they used to live with them.

Golden monkey tracking permits

Mgahinga national park cost 100USD from previous 90USD for all international tourists which foreign residents shall pay 90USD from 80USD.

Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale national park

The chimpanzee permit costs 250USD from previous 200USD for all international tourists while foreign east African residents are entitled to discount of 150USD from previous 100USD Per Permit. East Africa nationals of Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya and Tanzania and south Sudan shall be paying UGX 150,000 up from previous UGX 100,000.

• Chimpanzee habituation permit in Kibale national park too has been increased to 300USD from 250USD for non-resident foreign tourists and 250USD for foreign resident in East Africa. For East African nationals the chimpanzee habituation permits have been maintained at UGX200, 000 to allow more locals to explore the chimpanzee habituation experience.

Chimpanzee commercial filming fees have been increased from previous 630USD to 40% of the permit.

During the low seasons, there is a low turn up of tourists, mainly attributed to the heavy rains in Uganda from April to May and winter in Europe which makes fewer people to travel. To encourage tourists to travel during those seasons, the aspect of discounted gorilla permits was introduced. In most cases tourists are meant to believe that these discounted permits are only for rainy seasons when the trails are impassable, but the fact that Bwindi is in an area of high altitude, it rains anytime even when it is a dry season.so the worry of too much rain should not discourage potential gorilla trekkers from visiting the country in the low seasons for the remarkable activity. One advantage of trekking gorillas in the low season is the fact that there are few tourists, and you get a marvelous feeling that you have the entire jungle to yourself..

Therefore, for those that are tourists interested in trekking gorillas in Uganda and Rwanda. Contact a reputable safari company to help you book and organise your gorilla tracking or habituation safari.