WHAT ABOUT GORILLA TREKKING BRIEFING

Gorilla trekking briefing in Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) offers insight into what you expect on your actual gorilla trek. It is the first thing to be done at park headquarters before you set off to search for mountain gorillas or the Eastern lowland gorillas in the wild. Gorilla trekking briefing lets you to know the set gorilla trekking guidelines or safety measures. It begins takes place between 7:00am and 8:00am.

Gorilla trekking safety measures that will be briefed to you include washing your hands prior to trekking mountain gorillas in any park of your choice, a maximum of 8 visitors is allowed to trek 1 habituated gorilla family, keep a distance of 7 meters away from mountain gorillas, only 1 hour is given to visitors to strike their imaginations with gorillas, keep your voices low at all times, bury all your wastes as directed by the park ranger guide, stay within your group that you left with after briefing, no smoking, eating or drinking in the presence of gorillas, leave the gorilla habitat the way you got it or better, no flashlight cameras are allowed when taking pictures of mountain gorillas-you can turn it off before taking photos, do not go to trek gorillas in case you are sick. Mountain gorillas share 98% of their DNA with humans which makes them very susceptible to human infectious diseases.

Where gorilla trekking briefing is conducted

Gorilla trekking briefing is conducted in respective gorilla park headquarters. In Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, briefing is done in Buhoma, Ruhija area, Nkuringo and Rushaga sector. In Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, it is done in Ntebeko Visitor Center. In Volcanoes National Park, briefing is conducted at Kinigi park headquarters and in the Virunga National Park at Kibati Patrol Station.

What else is done during briefing

After briefing, the park official will put you in a group of 8 trekkers. Each group will be assigned to one habituated family.

With a valid passport, it is on gorilla trekking briefing date that you will be verified.  Note, only persons above 15 years are allowed trek gorillas in Volcanoes National Park in Northwestern Rwanda, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Mgahinga National Park in Southwestern Uganda and Virunga National Park in Eastern DR Congo. 

HOW TO BOOK GORILLA PERMITS IN UGANDA 2020

Gorilla permits are a must-have to every trekker if he or she is to be allowed to trek mountain gorillas. They are issued by respective conservation organs where gorilla trekking is conducted. In Uganda-mountain gorilla trekking is done in Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in the southwest and Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) is an organ responsible issuing gorilla permits; in Rwanda, gorilla treks are done in Volcanoes National Park which is set in the Northern Province and Rwanda Development Board (RDB) is the agency responsible issuing gorilla permits and in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, treks to see mountain gorillas are done in the Virunga National Park and gorilla permits are issued by park authorities.

Persons above 15 years are considered eligible to purchase gorilla permits in Uganda Rwanda and DRC. Each gorilla permit lets you trek only one habituated family with only and Uganda alone is comprised of 21 habituated gorilla groups, Rwanda 10 gorilla families and DRC has 8 habituated families. Each gorilla family is trekked by 8 visitors and on finding mountain gorillas, you have only an hour of magical encounter.

How you can book a gorilla permit in Uganda

To book gorilla permits in Uganda, you can get in touch with a reliable tour operator or directly with reservation team at Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA). The procedure is the same as noted below. Get in touch with reservation team of a tour operator you plan to deal with or reservation team at UWA.

The tour operator you choose to deal with will cross check to find out availability of dates you intend to go trek mountain gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park or Mgahinga Gorilla National Park.

After, the reservation team will then get back to you.Your details should be submitted to tour operator or reservation team at UWA.

You will be required to book your permit early enough however, you will to make a deposit of 30 percent and the rest can be cleared within 91 days to actual gorilla trek.

Payments should be made through account details given to you by tour operator or reservation at UWA. Note, after payment or deposit the tour operator will be in position to secure or book for you the permit.

Reserving a gorilla permit through tour operator is simpler than doing it directly with UWA since the process is tedious. Doing it directly means, you do it yourself unlike dealing with our reservation team where we take charge to go through the entire process as you sit back home. On actual trek, we deliver your receipts/permit that you will present to park authorities before briefing. It should also be noted that 80% of all the gorilla permits are given to only members of Association of Uganda Tour Operators (AUTO) which gets you higher chance to find one if you booked in advance.

How much are gorilla permits

The cost of gorilla permits differs from one gorilla destination to another. In Uganda, gorilla permits cost $600 per person-for foreign non-residents, $500-for foreign residents, shs 250000 for East African residents. It should be noted that starting 1^st July, 2020, each gorilla permit in Uganda will be obtainable at $700 for foreign non-residents, $600 for foreign residents and shs.250000 for the East African citizens. For visitors who may wish to spend more hours with mountain gorillas, Uganda also offers you a chance to embark on gorilla habituation experience and permits for this unique experience can be obtained at $1500 per person-for foreign non-residents, $1000-for foreign residents and shs 750000 for East African residents. Trekking gorillas in Uganda is only done in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga National Park where nearly half of all the 1063 mountain gorillas thrive.

WHY VISIT KIDEPO VALLEY NATIONAL PARK

There are a million reasons why you should consider Kidepo Valley National Park a must-visit destination on Uganda safari. Kidepo Valley National Park is set suitably in the extreme Northeastern Uganda in the semi-arid area. It was established in 1962 and it sits in an area of about 1442sq.kms featuring largely a vast savanna grassland, wetlands, valleys and dotted forest cover. A visit to Kidepo Valley National Park on Uganda safari gets you out of the usual destinations. In 2017, this park was ranked as the third best safari park in Africa by CNN. It is a magical safari destination to explore especially if you are interested in unusual wilderness experiences in Africa.

Reasons why you should visit Kidepo Valley National Park

Abundant wildlife

One of the reasons why you should visit Kidepo Valley National Park is to explore its diverse wildlife and unique flora. Kidepo Valley National Park is undoubtedly one of Uganda’s premier safari destinations. It is the best destination to visit in East Africa for game viewing given its huge concentration of wildlife. A game viewing safari in Kidepo National Park involves you exploring its diverse wildlife species including among others the African bush elephants, lions, leopards, buffaloes, giraffes, cheetahs, jackals, zebras, duikers, Jackson hartebeests, elands, mountain reed bucks, patas monkeys, Uganda kobs to mention but a few. It also prides itself as a home to distinct floral species including Borassus palms, sausage trees, acacia, savannas.

Kidepo’s diverse wildlife is best explored on a morning game drive, afternoon or even evening game drive. The key areas to embark on game viewing in Kidepo Valley National Park include the Narus Valley which is known its huge concentration of wildlife and the other is Kidepo Valley which is credited for its distinct landscape.

Birds

Interested in bird watching? Kidepo Valley National Park should be a must-visit safari destination when it comes to bird watching. This park boasts of its over 475 different bird species which makes it one of the premier birding destinations in Uganda. Birding in Kidepo Valley National Park is perfectly conducted along the Narus and Namamukweny Valleys as well as Apoka area. The different birds to identify on Uganda safari in Kidepo Valley National Park include among other Karamoja apalis, purple grenadier, purple heron, red throated bee-eaters, rufous chatterer, white bellied go away bird, pygmy falcon, rose ringed parakeet, greater kestrel, golden pipit, ostriches, Clapperton’s francolins, Abyssinian ground hornbill, Abyssinian rollers, pygmy falcon, Egyptian vulture, black breasted barbet, lammergeyer, Neophron. For migratory birds, Kidepo National Park is best to visit from November to April.

The unique culture

A visit to Kidepo Valley National Park isn’t only about exploring its diverse wildlife but also for you to experience the unique culture. About 2 tribes exist around Kidepo Valley National Park-the Karamojong and the IK people, each offering a distinct cultural experience to visitors on Uganda safari in Kidepo Valley National Park. Get to learn in depth about the different traditions and cultural practices as well as interact with the IK and Karamojong.

Exceptional landscape

Kidepo Valley National Park is popular for its picturesque landscape which makes it an exceptional destination. It boasts of its vast plains which offer visitors a chance to view diverse wildlife. Besides, visit the bubbling Kanangorok hot springs which denote a place of black stones simmers away. These hot springs are found close to the South Sudan border area and mostly credited for their healing power especially on skin diseases.

In summary, with the above reasons consider Kidepo Valley National Park a must-visit destination on your Uganda safari holiday.