Gorilla trekking is generally considered to be one of the most popular wildlife activities in the world. Each year, over 100,000 tourists visit Africa with the sole purpose of observing the primates in the wild. Most who complete the activity find it an experience of a life time. Imagine hiking deep inside Africa’s pristine forests for hours while also encountering birds, smaller primates, butterflies, forest antelopes and rare vegetation before hearing the grunt of a mighty silverback. An amazing experience indeed but in order to take part, you will need to acquire the expensive gorilla permit.
In Uganda, the permits now cost $700 while in Rwanda it is $1500 per person. In Congo, permits go for $450. Congo is special because she offers opportunities to spot 3 subspecies of gorillas. If you are planning to participate in the one-hour gorilla habituation experience in Uganda, it will cost you $1500. The high cost of gorilla permits has made gorilla trekking expensive compared to standard game drives, nature walks, boat cruises, cultural tours and most mountain hiking adventures.
Why is a gorilla permit so expensive? The cost of a gorilla permit is high because of four main reasons – gorillas are different, the need for gorilla conservation funding, the high demand for the activity and a need to limit numbers to avoid the destruction of gorilla habitat. Of all creatures in the world, the ones that closely behave and organize their families like humans is the gorilla. Watching a group of gorillas is like going back in time to observe how the very first humans lived. Why pay more to spot lions or wildebeest? Secondly, it is important to note that mountain gorillas are critically endangered. Conserving and protecting their natural habitat is an expensive venture. The government needs enough funds to build the necessary infrastructure, train and pay rangers to patrol the national parks. Thirdly, it is believed that one of the reasons Rwanda increased the price of permits was to limit and regulate the number of people who could visit the primates. By limiting the number of visitors who could access the parks, the government ends up with a manageable numbers of tourists hence avoiding overcrowding and the destruction of gorilla habitat. Only 8 people may track a particular gorilla group in a day. This helps avoid getting the primates agitated and too used to humans.
Last but not least, the popularity of the activity and high demand for permits has forced the governments of Uganda, Rwanda and Congo to continue increasing the price of permits. The Democratic Republic of Congo has 8 habituated mountain gorillas that are open to tourism, Rwanda has 10 and Uganda 17. This implies that on a normal day during the peak season, 64 people are tracking mountain gorillas in Congo while 80 would be doing the same in Rwanda. Uganda has over 150 tourists observing mountain gorillas every day if we are to also take into consideration those taking part in the gorilla habituation experience. You can read more about gorilla trekking in Rwanda Vs Uganda.
The Cost of Gorilla Trekking
Gorilla permit fees are not the only item to be taken into consideration while planning for gorilla trekking in Rwanda, Uganda or Congo. The overall cost of a gorilla tour can also include Visa fees, air tickets, vaccinations, accommodation, transport, driver fee, meals, tips, government taxes and the company profit. We cannot discuss the cost of a gorilla tour without also including unseen personal expenses (wines, cigarettes and souvenirs), medical and travel insurance. It is important to note that the cost of a gorilla safari also depends on whether you are targeting budget or luxury facilities.
The purpose of this article is to share with potential travelers the things they need to consider when planning for a gorilla tour so that they are aware of all the hidden costs. This article assumes that a traveler is planning to visit the countries specifically for gorilla trekking. If you are combing gorilla trekking and other activities (golden monkey trekking, chimpanzee tracking, game drives, cultural tours or mountain hiking), this article will still be very useful. Let’s discuss the different costs in more detail: –
Gorilla permit fees: A gorilla permit is a document or card that allows travelers to take part in the gorilla trekking experience. This card or document must be presented at the park offices along with a passport before being allowed to go tracking. As we already noted earlier, the cost of a gorilla permit differs among the three countries. In order to book a permit, one can either do so directly with the country’s tourism/wildlife authority or use the services of a good tour operator. In Uganda, the Uganda Wildlife Authority is responsible for issuing out permits. In Rwanda, it is the Rwanda Development Board while in the Democratic Republic of Congo, it is the Virunga Foundation. If you choose to book 
the permits yourself, then you need to go to their respective websites and send an inquiry or follow the specific link for permits. Most tourists use the services of a tour operator to book their permit as well as all other aspects of the trip. Booking with a tour operator is particularly important when there are no more permits available in the government systems. A tour operator may have or know where to get unused permits even when they appear unavailable. It is important to book a gorilla permit in advance especially if you are planning to travel during the peak season (June to August and December to March). If planning to travel in the high season, we recommend that you book your gorilla tour 6 months in advance. For the low seasons, booking 3 months in advance will do. You can read about gorilla permit discounts in Rwanda.
The standard gorilla trekking packing List: After the gorilla permits, you also need to take into consideration items on the gorilla trekking packing list. These items include sturdy hiking boots, long sleeved shirts, long trousers, rain jackets, a cap, insect repellent, a camera and a binocular among others. These items need to be bought and could be very expensive depending on the quality you want.
The cost of meals: If you are planning to use a tour operator, expect the overall cost of the gorilla tour to include meals. However, if you are doing all bookings by yourself, then you need to know that apart from the meals at the accommodation facility, you will also require meals while traveling or when 
outside the hotel. While traveling during the day you may need to make stops to take lunch before continuing with the journey or an activity. Gorilla trekking can take between two to six hours depending on the gorilla family you are assigned. You will need to request your hotel to pack for you lunch or snacks at a cost. A good meal costs between $10 to $40. The hotels provide drinking water and soft drinks freely but you will have to buy the wines or liquor if you are not a luxury traveler.
Transport costs: Most of the gorilla parks are located far away from the capitals and international airports. You will need to book or hire a vehicle for ground transportation. It’s best to hire a 4×4 safari vehicle because the roads inside the national parks are not of the highest quality. A car with fuel will cost you between $150 to $200 per day depending on the model. If you are booking your gorilla safari with a local tour operator, expect them to include the cost of the driver, vehicle and fuel in the tour price shared with you. It is important to note that if you are traveling as a group, the cost of transportation reduces considerably.
Because of the long distance from the airport to the national parks, some travelers prefer to also book internal flights. This applies to Uganda and Rwanda. Internal flights are convenient but expensive methods of transport. Some chartered flights may require a certain number of passengers before they can go to the remote national parks. They may charge you higher if you are the only one booked for the particular flight. Apart from the flight, you still need to arrange for ground transportation from the destination airstrip to your hotel. In Uganda, Aerolink organizes flights from Kajjansi airstrip or Entebbe airport to Kisoro or Kihihi airstrip. From the airstrip, the client is picked up by a ground vehicle to travel to the lodge or Bwindi and Mgahinga national park. In Rwanda, travelers, can book a charter flight from Kigali international airport to Ruhengeri province where the Volcanoes national park is located. If all these bookings are too confusing, then the best thing is to let a local tour operator do all the job.
Hotels and Lodges: Gorilla Trekking requires that you stay for a night or two in the particular country you would be visiting. You will there need to book a suitable hotel or lodge. In each of the gorilla trekking 
countries, tourism is well-developed and you will have no shortage of accommodation facilities to choose from. The accommodation facilities range from budget, mid-range to luxury. The luxury accommodation facilities offer high end facilities but charge higher ($350 to $2500 per night). Mid-range lodges go for between $100 to $250 while a budget lodge can cost as little as $40 a night. Although Budget accommodations provide basic services, they tend to be of good quality and self-contained because they target international travelers. A good tour company can help you select/book very good budget lodges based on their connections and experience.
Visa and border crossing fees: As we already noted earlier, visas are usually not included in the price of gorilla permits. Tour operators do not help with processing the Rwanda and Uganda Visa. You need to do that yourself at the airport, while crossing borders or by visiting the different country online visa platforms before arriving. Congo is different and your tour company has to assist you with proceeding the Congo Visa if you find their online system cumbersome. If you are planning to travel in more than one country, you can choose to apply for the East Africa Tourist Visa. This Visa allows you access to Uganda, Rwanda and Kenya. The East African tourist visa costs $100 while the normal Rwanda/Uganda Visa costs $50. The Congo visa costs $100 and will normally be included in the overall tour cost if you are planning to do gorilla trekking in Virunga National Park. If you choose to drive your own car, you may be required to pay up to $40 when crossing borders as a foreigner.
Allowance for the company Guide: If you are planning to use a tour company to organize gorilla trekking in bwindi or another destination, they will include the allowances of the company driver/Guide in the overall cost of the tour. The safari Guide/Driver is responsible for taking you to the national parks and ensuring that your trip is as comfortable as possible. They know everything about the national parks, routes and hotels. The safari drivers are usually well-educated, courteous, outgoing and professional. They will be the ones to share information about the country you would be visiting. Safari Guides are generally given a daily allowance of between $50 to $100.
Porter fees: Gorilla trekking can be very demanding especially if the gorilla group you are assigned live far away from the starting point. Hiking for long hours with a heavy bag or equipment can make you feel uncomfortable and you might find that you need to hire the services of a porter. Porters are usually very experienced in hiking long distances. They know the terrain, are hardened and can carry heavy bags without feeling any strain. A porter can be hired for a small fee of $15. Tour operators will not include personal porters in the overall cost of the tour. It will be you to select and pay the porter.
Tips for the safari driver, Park Ranger and other hospitality personnel: One of the things that make a gorilla safari memorable are the people who make things happen. The park Guides, porters and hotel staff will go out of their way to make your trip memorable even though they may not paid so well. You might be touched by their dedication and find yourself tipping them. Tips are not compulsory and should only be given when a service is exceptional. Tour operators do not include Tips and any gratuities in the overall price of the tour. It will be up to you to offer any tip.
Company profit and government taxes: For every good service, there are people to be paid. Tour operators will include a certain amount of money as profit after deducting all tour related expenses like staff salaries and government taxes. We hope that this article has been useful and that you now have an idea of what you will need to spend on for your gorilla trekking safari.
