Gorilla tracking is one of the most popular and interesting tourist activity. In several countries where these species of gorillas are hosted, gorilla tourism has been developed to give visitors the chance to see these great apes in their natural habitat. The mountain gorillas are the most sought and these can be seen in only Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). No tourist is allowed to enter into the tropical rain forest to stay with them for an hour without a gorilla permit. Therefore it’s very essential in the process of gorilla tracking to book your gorilla permits early enough.

Rwanda gorilla permits can be booked at the Rwanda tourism Board Offices (ORTPN) found in Kigali (close to the PNV), while those of Uganda can be booked at the Uganda Wildlife Authority in Kampala. In most cases if you buy a packaged gorilla tour from a tour operator, a gorilla permit is always included in the price and the tour operator will do all the logistics involved in attaining these tickets.

Booking Rwanda Gorilla Permits

Below is a simple procedure on how to book your gorilla permit, however this applies to both countries.

• In case you’re are interested in a gorilla safari, Contact us at info@volcanoesrwanda.com , please let us know your travel dates and also specify the dates you want to see these endangered mountain gorillas, we shall arrange and book your gorilla permit on that specific day.
• By the time we receive that information, we will let you know if the days you want to track gorillas, permits are existing and tentatively book them for you.
• In case the permits are confirmed available, we will then send you our bank details to send the money for the gorilla permits
• It will take about 14-16 hours from your bank to receive that money at our bank and pays for your permits, but don’t forget to add 20 usd$ for the bank wire transfer charges. After paying we shall send you a scanned copy from the Uganda wildlife Authority to confirm gorilla permit payment.
• You will be obligatory to send us your passport details including your full names, passport number and nationality to record your gorilla permits. After getting the gorilla permit for you, we send you scanned copies of your gorilla permit through an email.

it’s advisable to book your gorilla permit earlier before your tracking dates as gorilla permits are sold on first come first served basis, the earlier you secure your gorilla permit the better to avoid disappointments at least 2-5 months. Rwanda gorilla permits are sold at a fee of $ 750 per person per tracking and this includes the park entry fee plus the ranger guides and gorilla tracking is done in volcanoes national park, and the park is located in Ruhengeri Musanze district and can reached in just about 2-3 hours’ drive.

Booking Gorilla Permits for Uganda

The same procedures applies when booking Uganda gorilla permits. Uganda gorilla permits are bought at the Uganda wildlife Authority (UWA) located in Kamwokya within Kampala. They are sold at a fee of $ 600 per person per tracking and the fee includes the park entry fee as well as the ranger guides.

Uganda gorilla permits fees are subjected to seasons. During the high seasons gorilla permits are sold at US$800 per person while during the low seasons (April –May and November) sometimes UWA reduces the price to US$350 per person including the park entry fee both Bwindi national park and and Mgahinga gorilla national park.