Rwanda Gorilla Trekking

Gorilla trekking in Rwanda is an amazing, intimate encounter with magnificent animals in their natural habitat.

Rwanda Gorilla Trekking with Local Guides

Rwanda is one of only three countries in the world where you can see endangered mountain gorillas in the wild. Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park is one of the country’s most celebrated wildlife experiences, attracting visitors from around the world who hope to observe these remarkable primates in their natural habitat.

Accompanied by experienced local guides and trackers, you’ll hike through the forests of the Virunga Mountains in search of one of the habituated gorilla families that call the park home.

Each trek is unique, following fresh signs left by the gorillas as rangers locate their position each morning.

Every gorilla family is led by a dominant silverback, accompanied by females, juveniles, and playful infants. Spending an hour quietly observing their interactions is an unforgettable experience and offers a fascinating insight into the behaviour of one of our closest living relatives. (If you’re still at the planning stage, you may also want to explore our Uganda Gorilla Trekking Tours.)

Our Best Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Tours & Safari Trips

We offer a hand-picked selection of safaris in Rwanda that incorporate gorilla trekking as part of the itinerary.

The tours listed below include gorilla trekking in Rwanda and also offer other thrilling safari experiences that shouldn’t be missed.

7-Day Tailor-Made Holiday and Tour in Uganda via Rwanda

From$2,533

Trek gorillas in Bwindi & golden monkeys in Mgahinga on this Uganda safari. Kazinga boat trip, Queen Elizabeth NP & Lake Mburo. Fly via Kigali

9-Day Customized Uganda Holiday and Tour to See Gorillas

From$3,038

Looking for a Uganda safari holiday package? We got you covered. The highlights include; gorilla trekking, the big 5 safari. Explore with us.

15-Day Immersive Tour and Adventure in Uganda and Rwanda

From$5,387

Looking for a safari holiday in Uganda? Look no further. This package covers the best that Uganda can afford you including gorilla trekking.

18-Day Immersive Safari Experiences in Uganda and Rwanda

From$6,190

This Rwanda and Uganda tour package covers the best of these two destinations. Expect safari besides primates encounters. Join us and explore.

21-Day Immersive Safari and Holiday – Exploring Uganda

From$6,326

Discover Uganda, the Pearl of Africa, on an unforgettable safari featuring gorilla trekking, Big Five game drives, chimp tracking, and cultural encounters.

18-Day Immersive Scheduled Safari Experiences in Uganda and Rwanda

From$6,190

This Rwanda and Uganda tour package covers the best of these two destinations. Expect safari besides primates encounters. Join us and explore.

Customise Your Trip Now

A gorilla trek is a once-in-a-lifetime encounter — some travellers want the comfort of luxury lodges and a private guide, others want to pair it with authentic cultural experiences and the region’s hidden corners. At Home to Africa, we design every journey from the ground up around your interests, budget and pace, creating an experience that feels uniquely yours.

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Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Reviews

What Does a Rwanda Gorilla Safari Vacation Involve?

Gorilla trekking isn’t like your average safari, where you might take a game drive of two or three hours before settling beside a waterhole with a drink from a bar. Instead, during a Rwanda gorilla safari you will be walking for several hours (at a comfortable pace) along mountain paths and through sometimes thick foliage.

You therefore need to have a basic level of fitness while gorilla trekking in Rwanda. You’ll also be walking at altitudes of around 2500 meters, which puts additional strain on the body’s ability to take in oxygen. In dry weather, it can take you and your ranger-led team multiple hours to reach a particular family group, although encounters are known to occur after just 30 minutes in rare circumstances. Animals tend to occupy lower altitudes during the rains.

Where to Go on a Gorilla Trekking Safari in Rwanda?

Gorilla trekking in Rwanda is based in Volcanoes Nati onal Park, which sits on the country’s border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It runs continuously with national parks in the DRC. Between them, this area – the Virunga Mountains – is home to roughly half the entire population of mountain gorillas left on the planet. The remainder inhabit the southwest of Uganda.

There are close to 500 individual animals in total in the Virungas, split into ten family groups that have been habituated to the presence of humans. Silverback gorilla tours in Rwanda will have you enter the territory of one of these ten groups, with all the sights, sounds, and smells of the wild that come with it.

Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Experience

The staff at Volcanoes National Park have become consummate professionals and are proud of their work protecting the park’s gentle giants. You’ll set off on your Rwanda gorilla tour at a given time in the early morning or early afternoon with a ranger in groups of around eight people.

You’ll then have around an hour to watch the group from a short distance of around seven meters. This is deemed to be the point at which the mountain gorillas feel safe in the company of humans and also stops these highly endangered creatures from the risk of human diseases including both coronavirus and the common cold.

Porters on Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Trips

Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park offers a portering service. They will carry any day pack you may want to take on the hike, leaving your hands free for the path and any photography you may want to take during your African safari tours. Porters cost around $10, and help contribute money to local communities, reducing the temptation to poach wildlife.

When to Go on Gorilla Trekking Tours in Rwanda?

Although gorilla trekking in Rwanda is offered throughout the year, most people decide to visit during one of Rwanda’s two dry seasons. These last from December through to February and again from June until mid-September. Their start and end times vary slightly with each year, meaning the middle months of these periods provide the best chance of dry weather.

As we’ve already mentioned, planning a Rwanda gorilla trekking trip during the dry season will see you walking further distances, since the gorillas spend much of their time at higher altitudes. Because they are the most popular months of the year, tours can sell out months ahead of time. If you’ve got your heart set on a gorilla safari vacation in Rwanda in the coming year, it’s best to book as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

The alternative is to visit during Rwanda’s rainy seasons. They peak from April to May and again in November. You may not have to hike quite so far at these times of year, although trekking can be more difficult because of the wet conditions on the mountain paths.

What to Wear during a Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Tour?

Walking on unsurfaced and sometimes slippery paths with obstacles such as tree roots, a good pair of walking shoes or boots should be high on your list of must-haves when considering what to pack. Avoid wearing a new pair your feet aren’t used to, and try to stay away from unnatural colours such as bright whites, which stand out as ‘foreign’ in a jungle environment.

For clothing during a Rwanda gorilla safari, take long-sleeved pants and shirts rather than short-sleeved tops or short pants to stop unnecessary abrasions. Some people also like a have a pair of old gardening gloves to tackle rogue thorns and nettles. During both the dry and the wet seasons waterproof gear is also a good idea, but remember you’re in the tropics where such clothing can become very stuffy and uncomfortable.

Permits for Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Tours

To go on gorilla trekking tours in Rwanda on your vacation, you will require a permit. These vital pieces of paper are limited to keep visitors small in number, and can be particularly hard to obtain during popular times of year as a result. Only 96 permits can be issued in any one day.

Permits for gorilla trekking trips in Rwanda currently sit at $1500 per person per trek. Stay for a minimum of three days in either Akagera National Park or Nyungwe Forest National Park, and you’ll be entitled to a 30% discount.

However, you shouldn’t complain about these fees. They allow the country’s wildlife authorities to secure the future of these animals by mounting a 24-hour guard over them. It also means your guide will know precisely where a group is located when you’re trekking. Obtaining a permit is usually one of the services provided by your tour operator.

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