Day: April 30, 2020

The inclusions and exclusions of a gorilla safari in Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo is a major concern for most if not travelers booking to trek mountain gorillas in Africa. During gorilla tour booking, travelers often ask the cost of a gorilla safari depending on the number of days for the trip and the people traveling. At times, the total sum of a gorilla safari looks and sounds huge especially for first-time travelers. Gorilla trekking is undeniably the most expensive which most people take to be a luxury adventure. African Apes Tours & Travel brings you the gorilla tour cost breakdown to answer all your questions. The gorilla safari inclusions and exclusions are:

Gorilla Safari Inclusions

• Mountain gorilla permits

Uganda gorila permit

You must buy a gorilla permit as a pass to see these endangered species. Gorilla permit prices vary from country to country with Rwanda offering the most expensive gorilla permits at $1500 each. In Uganda, a single gorilla permit costs $700 for foreign non-residents, $600 for foreign residents and UGX 250,000 for East African residents. Congo offers the cheapest gorilla permits costing $400 for all travelers. The permit costs include park entrance fees, park rangers fee, government taxes, and conservation fees all included.

• En route Meals

In case you are driving for long distances for example from Kampala to Bwindi Forest National Park, your gorilla tour cost will include enroute meals. Your driver-guide will stop you somewhere to have lunch and you will not be asked to pay any penny. You will have paid for all that. Any enroute meal to be paid for by a client must be indicated in the itinerary to ensure the smooth flow of the trip.

• Full-time English Speaking guide

Unless it’s a private tour, you must pay for your driver guide who leads you throughout the trip from the start to the end. The driver guide is the representative of the travel company you booked with and is assigned to a certain amount of money as an allowance for each day. Driver guides play a big role in providing you all the required answers to your questions about wildlife, plants, people, cultures, politics and everything you need to know on your trip. Your tour cost will, therefore, include the services of a driver-guide.

• Accommodation and meals

Luxury Room in Bwindi Forest

Your gorilla safari cost also includes accommodation services and meals. In other words, travelers do not pay extra fees for accommodation services and meals separate. The amount paid depends on the category of accommodation (budget, mid-range, and luxury) booked by a client. More so, accommodation fees include all room services, foods, and drinks except alcoholic beverages.

• Bottled drinking water

You cannot miss sipping on a cold drink on the sunny long day of driving. Most safari vehicles have fridges, which will be filled with bottled drinking water. Travelers are advised to ask for a bottle of water whenever they feel like cause they will have paid for that water. If the driver has no water in the car, travelers have a right to stop him/her and send him to buy water for them minus paying.

• Company Service fee

You must pay the travel agent/company for the services offered. From the time of inquiring to booking lodges, gorilla permits, and tailor-making for you a suitable safari package, a travel agent does this at a fee. Unlike gorilla permits, which have standard rates, travel company markups are different. Therefore once the safari quiet you were given is paid, the company should not ask any extra money from a client unless otherwise.

• All other activities indicated in the itinerary

Unless it’s a one-day gorilla trek, gorilla trekking is normally complemented with other safari activities such as cultural tours, bird watching and nature/forest walks among others. The cost for these activities included in the travel itinerary is inclusive of the gorilla safari cost. Travelers are therefore reminded not to pay any extra money for these activities in case they are asked to do by a driver-guide.

• Miscellaneous

You will be charged for any miscellaneous/emergencies on a trip. However, the cost of miscellaneous is always less

Gorilla Tour cost exclusions

Not everything expense you make on a gorilla safari is included in the tour cost. Some expenses are bot included in the safari costa and these include:
• International Flights
Your international flight fares will not be included in the gorilla safari cost. No company will pay for your return flights. Bear that in mind and reserve money for that incase your flight was no a return flight.
• Visa fees
• Alcoholic beverages
• Personal shopping
• Tipping
• Porters fee
• Extra activities not indicated in the itinerary
Generally, travelers are ought to know the inclusions and exclusions of gorilla tour costs in Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Contact African Apes Tours today, book your gorilla safari and enjoy this memorable experience.

Travelers coming to visit mountain gorillas in Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo are requested to book for gorilla permits at least 6 months prior. The reason for early gorilla permit bookings is deal with the high demand for gorilla tours in Uganda, Rwanda, and Congo. For many years now, Gorilla trekking has proven to be the best wildlife experience, which brings the highest number of travelers to Africa. While making gorilla tour inquiries, travelers are asked to pay a 30% booking fee for a permit. Travelers are also reminded that all permits MUST be paid for to zero balance 90 days before to the trekking date. Travelers are advised to check some essential things before buying permits.

Cost of gorilla permits in Uganda
Lets begin by talking about the cost of gorilla permits in Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Rwanda offers the most expensive gorilla permit costing $1500 each. Uganda gorilla permits cost $700 for foreign residents, $600 for foreign residents and UGX 250,000 for East African residents. Congo gorilla permits cost $400 each, making it the suitable gorilla safari destination for budget travelers.

The things to consider before buying/booking gorilla permits in Uganda, Rwanda, and Congo include among others:

Confirm Accommodation availability
Before buying a gorilla permit, first confirm accommodation availability in the gorilla national park (Bwindi Forest, Mgahinga Gorilla, Volcanoes and Virunga National Parks) you would want to visit Lodge/camps or even hotels you book should be close to the gorilla trekking starting point. This saves you long hours of driving to and from the gorilla trekking starting point. When booking a gorilla tour to Bwindi, make sure there is accommodation in the respective sector. Bwindi Forest is divided into four sectors, Buhoma, Ruhija, Nkuringo and Rushaga in Northern, Eastern and southern regions respectively and so the gorilla families. Ensure to nook a gorilla family in a sector that has accommodation availability. Lodge services range from budget, luxury and midrange depending on the client’s budget. However, travelers are assured of first-class food and sleeping services in any accommodation they choose.

Check the difference in Weather Seasons
Also, consider the weather season in the period you wish to visit the mountain gorillas. There are mainly two weather seasons in the east and central Africa where mountain gorillas. To most travelers, a dry season between the months of June, July, August, September mid-October, December, January, and February is the best time to trek gorillas. Also, known as peak season, the dry season is associated with fewer rains, which make it easy to trek through the jungle forests for gorilla trekking. Alternatively visit during low season (March, April, May, and November). The heavy rains in the low season normally make it difficult to trek through the forests. However, the experience is best for adventurous travelers. There are fewer travelers during the low season, which guarantee gorilla permit availability even for last time bookings. Lodges and other service providers normally give discounted services, which is an added advantage or budget travelers.

Ease and difficulty of gorilla trekking
Consider the ease and difficulty of trekking a specific gorilla family before booking a gorilla permit. The best example here is in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park where mountain gorillas live in four sectors. Some gorillas are easy to find while others are difficult to trek. Depending on your physical and hiking ability, make sure you book a permit for a gorilla family that suits your abilities. Gorilla permits in Uganda are booked in the sector.

The total cost of the trip
When booking for a permit, first consider the whole cost of your gorilla tour. African Apes Holidays or any other travel operator will give you a final quote for the trip. This involves permit fee, accommodation, driver guide fee, accommodation and meals, bottled drinking water, additional activities in the itinerary and government taxes. In most cases, the total cost of a gorilla tour looks and sounds huge. The cost of a trip also depends on the number of days and number of people on a single trip. If you can afford the total cost of the trip, then go on and book a gorilla permit.

Add on activities
Also, consider the add on activities you can add on your gorilla trekking experience. A Uganda gorilla tour to Buhoma sector is done along with other many add on activities such as waterfall hiking and Batwa community tours. This makes your whole experience memorable. Its therefore advisable to book a gorilla permit in a sector that has added activities to make your experience more fun.

How to book gorilla permits in Uganda, Rwanda, and Congo
You can book for a gorilla permit directly through Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) or through African Apes Holidays your ultimate gorilla safari company in Africa.

Contact African Apes Tours & Travel for travel advice on gorilla trekking in Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Who is eligible to Trek gorillas

What’s the gorilla trekking age limit is one of the frequently asked questions by most people in gorilla tour booking. Are you traveling with kids for gorilla trekking in Uganda, Rwanda or Congo? First, confirm the true gorilla trekking age limit to avoid disappointments when the time to trek gorillas’ come. Families traveling to trek gorillas with children are always advised to first check and confirm the age limit for the kids before buying expensive gorilla permits which may not be allowed if the children is underage. In all gorilla national parks, the legal gorilla trekking age limit is 15 years. Anyone below 15 years is therefore not allowed to trek gorillas no matter what. 15 years was put as a standard gorilla trekking age limit given the fact that the child, not a minion Uganda, Rwanda and Congo. However in cases where a child is ye to celebrate his 15th birthday (left with few days to his/her birthday) he/she can be allowed to trek gorillas. Here the parent /guardian of the child writes and signs a consent letter taking full responsibility for anything that may happen to the child during gorilla tracking. The agreement letter is written and signed by a parent of the child to the respective park headquarters (Uganda wildlife Authority & Rwanda Development Board). In case something happens to the child while in the jungle, UWA or RDB has no case to answer. The parent/guardian of the child will be fully responsible for everything.

Reasons for Gorilla Trekking Age Limit

The age limit was put to ensure the safety of endangered gorillas and also for the minors who are likely to find challenges and risks in gorilla trekking. Among the major reasons for gorilla trekking age limit include:

Gorillas are endangered species

Mountain gorillas are endangered species, which were once on the verge of extinction. The whole world has 1004 mountain gorillas surviving in the rain forests of Uganda, Rwanda, and Congo. The endangered state of gorillas calls for age limit so as to limit the number of people visiting them.

Susceptible to human diseases

Mountain gorillas share 99.8% of human genes, which make them susceptible to human diseases especially communicable ones (flu and cough). In most cases, children below 14 years are found to have these sicknesses especially cough which can easily spread to endangered gorillas putting them at high risk. Also, young children may not able to keep the rules and regulations of gorilla trekking especially no touch the gorillas, keeping a seven-meter distance and speaking at a low tone.

Forested nature of gorilla national parks

Mountain gorillas live in dense forests of Bwindi impenetrable forest, Mgahinga Gorilla Park, Volcanoes and Virunga National Park. Trekking through these forests is not a walkway but rather a real adventure not for the faint-hearted. The children find it very hard to maneuver through these jungles with thorny bushes, slippery grounds, and thick bushes. Also, gorillas live in mountainous regions of higher altitudes. Hiking there may be a challenge to a child aged below 15 years causing difficulties in trekking. An under-aged child may make it to the gorillas hence a waste of gorilla permit bought expensively.

Playful behaviors of children

The playful behaviors of children below 15 years is yet another reason for the gorilla trekking age limit. At this stage, a child is full of life to play, shout and have fun anywhere at any time. He/she may therefore not adhere to the rules of gorilla trekking especially keeping calm. The playful behaviors of children play 15 years can disrupt the peace of gorillas forcing them to charge at clients hence destroying the whole gorilla trekking experience.

Who else is eligible to trek gorillas?

Besides age limit, other requirements for travelers trekking gorillas in Uganda, Rwanda and Congo include among others:

Valid gorilla permits

You must have a valid gorilla permit to be allowed to trek gorillas. Actually, a gorilla permit is a pass to see gorillas without which you won’t be allowed to trek these endangered species. The cost of gorilla permits in Uganda, Rwanda, and Congo varies as set by the respective government bodies. A single Rwanda gorilla permit costs $1500, while in Uganda it costs $600 to be increased to $700 with effect from 1st July 2020 while a Congo gorilla permit costs $450 which makes it the best gorilla tour destination for budget travelers. Gorilla permits booking is recommended at least 6 months in advance for timely planning.

Physical fitness

Mountain gorilla trekking require physically fit travelers able to hike up and downhills. Trekking time to see gorillas at a time can go for over 7 hours, which becomes a challenge for the physically unfit. Before confirming a gorilla trip, therefore, make sure you are physically fit and in good shape.

What about the elderly

Yes, seniors aged 60 years and above also have a chance and right to trek gorillas in Uganda, Rwanda, and Congo. African Apes Tours offers suitable gorilla safari packages for the seniors and elderly travelers enabling to enjoy the magical gorilla encounter before they die. Seniors are normally given short gorilla treks or else carried in a sedan chair.

Confirming the gorilla trekking age limit is very essential in every gorilla tour booking. If you are traveling as a family with children, make sure all children are aged 15 years and above before buying their gorilla permits. Contact African Apes Tours & Travel for more advice about gorilla trekking, what to carry, when to visit and the gorilla tour costs in Uganda, Rwanda or Congo.