There can be few more travelling experiences than meeting the brown-eyed gaze of the hugely endangered mountain gorilla. This is what makes gorilla tracking in Africa one of many people’s top ‘bucket list’ experiences. You may have to trek for up to 6-7 gruelling hours for the reward of a magical encounter with a 220kg ‘silverback’. But the ecstasy of the hour-long audience will match the anticipation. Uncontrolled hunting and the accelerating human encroachment into its habitat mean that the mountain gorilla is on the brink of extinction. However, due to conservation efforts, numbers are once again slowly increasing. Right now, there are about 700 individuals in the wild.

Where do the Mountain Gorillas live?

Roughly half live in Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and the rest in the volcanic Virunga Mountains. Gorilla families can move freely in the Virungas, crossing borders among Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda has been established to protect both the Virunga Mountains and their wildlife. Here, a handful of family groups have become habituated to limited human contact.

In the Volcanoes National Park, there are 7 habituated mountain gorilla groups, which are highly protected. This is one of the best places for gorilla tracking in the world. The number of gorilla tracking permits is strictly limited. Only eight people a day can visit each family and can stay for just one unforgettable hour. That means a maximum of 56 permits per day. The permits can be booked up to two years in advance, and we recommend booking as early as you can.

The gorilla tracking permits are expensive (currently $1500 per person in Rwanda and $700 in Uganda). The money intake gives our beautiful countries an economic reason to conserve this highly endangered primate. Armed trackers guard each group of gorillas 24/7.

Common questions about a Rwandan Gorilla safari

How much trekking is involved?

Each trekking group is allocated to a specific group of gorillas. This means your gorilla tracking experience will vary from 3 hours to up to 6 or 7 hours. (But they consider fitness when assigning walkers to specific groups. The fitter walkers will head to the furthest groups of gorillas. However, this is not an exact science, as you can imagine!) So you need to be prepared to walk for some hours in what can be muddy, wet conditions.

Level of fitness required

This is tough walking at altitude, so a fair amount of fitness is required. But it is not a route march, so the pace is not strenuous. However, the terrain and altitude will make it a relatively arduous experience. Generally speaking, the Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda offers a greater chance of seeing the gorillas without needing to trek for 6 hours.

Chances of seeing the gorillas

Nothing is guaranteed with any wildlife safari, and gorilla tracking is no different. Having said that, they do try to maximize your chances by sending out trackers early in the morning. With radio contact to both locate and then stay with the gorillas, so that hopefully your trekking guide will have a good sense of where he needs to get to when you set out. So nearly everyone sees the gorillas. If your budget allows, stay longer than one full day and purchase two permits for gorilla trekking. This will increase your chances.

What is the terrain like?

Gorillas preferred the habitat of bamboo forests and so getting to them usually involves a combination of steep muddy slopes, dense vegetation, slippery underfoot conditions after rain and high altitude.

Uganda or Rwanda?

This is the fifty-million-dollar question. Broadly speaking, gorilla tracking in Rwanda is easier than in Uganda. The Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in Rwanda is further from Kampala, and so it takes quite a bit of time to travel there. The treks are on average a little longer, and sometimes you start high and need to trek downwards to reach the gorillas. What goes down must come up, which means you are often hiking uphill later on in the day. Given the distance, we recommend allowing 3 nights/2 full days for gorilla trekking, but the permits are considerably less in Uganda ( but still a hefty $700 per permit price)

The Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda lies only 2 hours from Kigali, so it is easier to combine a short visit to Rwanda for gorilla tracking with a safari in Tanzania or Kenya, for example. Generally speaking, trekking is a little easier as there are some groups that tend to stay relatively close to the park headquarters. However, the permits are a truly eye-watering $1500 per permit. Allow 1 day/2 night or more if you have the budget.

For a more personal sense of what it’s like, ask one of our GoExplore safaris experts who have been lucky enough to track in both Rwanda and Uganda!