Travel guide to gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park Rwanda.
Travel guide to gorilla trekking in Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park Gorilla trekking is the most popular and daring sport that draws a lot of tourists to Rwanda. In Volcanoes National Park, gorilla trekking entails walking through the tropical rainforest to find habituated mountain gorillas and spending an hour with them in their natural environment. Situated in Musanze town in the northwest of Rwanda, Volcanoes National Park shares borders with the Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda.
About twelve habituated gorilla groups can be found in Volcanoes National Park, and trekking begins very early in the morning after a briefing on the guidelines. Following the briefing, you will be split up into groups of eight, each of which will be assigned a habituated gorilla family to travel with and a knowledgeable vehicle guide who is familiar with the gorilla trekking routes.
Because mountain gorillas prefer to roam around in search of food, trekking with them at Volcanoes National Park can take anything from thirty minutes to six hours, depending on the gorillas’ location. You can see a range of bird species, several plant species, and other primate species while walking. You will have the opportunity to spend an hour with the mountain gorillas in their natural habitat after they have been located. This will allow you to observe their daily activities, such as feeding, nursing, grooming their young, and playing, as well as take pictures and videos to share with people back home after the safari.
The price of permits for gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park
Legal cards or paperwork known as gorilla trekking permits are given to tourists above the age of 15 so they can visit and spend an hour with the habituated gorilla family. For all nationalities, gorilla trekking permits in Volcanoes National Park cost $1,500 USD per person.
Through the Rwanda Development Board (RDB), a government agency responsible for Rwandan tourism, gorilla trekking permits in Volcanoes National Park can be directly reserved by calling or emailing the park’s headquarters.
You may also reserve gorilla trekking permits in Volcanoes National Park by contacting a reputable tour operator, for as Experiya Tour Company, and providing the date, month, and year you would want to see the mountain gorillas. After getting in touch with us, we will verify whether permits are available on the dates you have selected. If they are, you will be required to pay a deposit. We will buy permits on your behalf as soon as we receive the funds, and we will confirm with a scanned copy of the receipt.
In order to prevent last-minute disappointments, it is recommended that gorilla trekking permits in Volcanoes National Park be reserved three to six months prior to the trekking date. This is because permits are competitive and sell out quickly, particularly during the dry season, which runs from June to September and December to February.
When is the best time to trek gorillas in Volcanoes National Park?
Gorilla trekking at Volcanoes National Park is possible at any time of year, but the best time to go is in June, July, August, September, December, January, and February, which is also known as the peak season. In contrast to the rainy season, when routes are muddy and slippery, which makes hiking challenging, gorilla trekking trails will be dry and manageable during the dry season because the national park receives less or no rainfall.
What to bring to Volcanoes National Park for a gorilla trekking safari
For your gorilla trekking safari in Volcanoes National Park, you will need to bring a variety of items, such as a long-sleeved shirt and pants, garden gloves, insect repellent, hiking boots, rain jacket, warm sweater, energy snacks and drinking water, a flashlight, a hat, sunglasses, a camera, extra batteries, and binoculars.
How to travel to National Park of Volcanoes
Access to Volcanoes National Park, which is in northwest Uganda, is possible by road. It takes roughly two hours to drive from Kigali International Airport to the park headquarters.
Additional activities at the National Park of Volcanoes
After gorilla trekking, visitors can enjoy other fascinating activities at Volcanoes National Park, such as hiking with golden monkeys, climbing Mount Karisimbi and Bisoke, taking an Iby’iwacu cultural tour, interacting with locals, hiking Dian Fossey’s tomb, bird watching, and touring the Musanze caves.
Where to stay in Volcanoes National Park while on a gorilla trekking safari
During your gorilla trekking safari, you can stay at a variety of lodging options in Volcanoes National Park, such as the Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel, Tiloreza Volcanoes Eco Lodge, Virunga Inn Resort and Spa, One and Only Gorillas Nest lodge, Sabyinyo Silverback lodge, Faraja hotel, Best View hotel, Da Vinci gorilla lodge, Garden Place hotel, Gorilla Solution hotel, Mountain Gorilla View hotel, Gorillas Volcanoes hotel, Hotel Muhabura, Le Bambou Gorilla Village, Virunga Lodge, Villa Gorilla, Garr Hotel, Kinigi Guesthouse, La Palme hotel, Amakoro Songa lodge, Eagle View Lodge, My Hill Eco Lodge, Ruzizi Tented Camp, Kataza House, Urugano Virunga Palace, Karenge Bush Camp, Gorillas Volcanoes hotel, Garden Place hotel, Bisate lodge, and more.
