The Gorillas of Rwanda & Uganda

Meet your Travulous guide at your hotel or upon arrival at Kigali International Airport. Set off for Mount Gahinga Lodge and cross the border into Uganda.

As Uganda’s smallest park, Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is located at an altitude range of 2,227m to 4,127m. Home to one habituated gorilla group, the park was declared a game sanctuary in 1930 and gazetted as a national park in 1991.

After checking in at your accommodation, spend the remainder of the afternoon enjoying the property’s facilities, including the terrace which boasts stunning views of the Virunga Volcanoes. Listen to after-dinner talks by your Tour Leader, who lived and worked with Dian Fossey at the original Karisoke Research Center.

Meals: Lunch and dinner included, breakfast at own arrangement.

Overnight: Speak to us or browse the accommodation section below for inspiration. Your custom itinerary will contain full descriptions of your chosen properties.

Activities: Let's plan your safari! Contact us to learn about available activities.

After an early breakfast, we set off gorilla tracking accompanied by your Tour Leader. Although the hike can be physically demanding, the beauty of the forest and its inhabitants is a fascinating and very rewarding experience.

Gorilla tracking does not present a serious physical challenge to a reasonably fit adult, regardless of age, although the altitude and terrain can sometimes be demanding. Gorilla tracking in Mgahinga National Park can take from 1 to 3 hours, with the guides stopping frequently for people to rest. Once the gorilla family has been found, your visit with these great apes lasts for one magical hour.

After the trek, return to your accommodation for a late lunch and spend the rest of your afternoon at leisure.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Overnight: Speak to us or browse the accommodation section below for inspiration. Your custom itinerary will contain full descriptions of your chosen properties.

Activities: Let's plan your safari! Contact us to learn about available activities.

After breakfast, we visit the Gahinga Batwa Village to experience the culture and history of one of Africa’s oldest tribes.

Participate in a visit to their new village, community centre and the Batwa Heritage Trail. You will learn about their traditional life as hunter-gatherers in the forest and their use of medicinal plants. Enjoy seeing the Batwa Dance Group perform their traditional dance and visit the Batwa Vocational Center. 

Return to your accommodation for lunch, after which we drive back across the border into Rwanda and towards Musanze, the base for gorilla tracking at Volcanoes National Park.

Check in to your accommodation in time for dinner. Spend the evening relaxing at your accommodation.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner included.  

Overnight: Speak to us or browse the accommodation section below for inspiration. Your custom itinerary will contain full descriptions of your chosen properties.

Activities: Let's plan your safari! Contact us to learn about available activities.

After an early breakfast, we transfer to Volcanoes National Park headquarters for a briefing by park staff, before meeting the rangers who will guide you to your assigned gorilla family. With 12 fully habituated gorilla families living in the Volcanoes National Park, only 96 gorilla permits are issued to tourists per day. Advance booking is essential.

Gorilla tracking does not present a serious physical challenge to a reasonably fit adult, regardless of age, although the altitude and terrain can sometimes be demanding. Gorilla tracking can take from 2 to 6 hours, with the guides stopping frequently for people to rest.

After the trek, return to your accommodation for lunch and spend the rest of your afternoon at leisure, or take an optional tour of the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner included.  

Overnight: Speak to us or browse the accommodation section below for inspiration. Your custom itinerary will contain full descriptions of your chosen properties.

Activities: Let's plan your safari! Contact us to learn about available activities.

Today you can choose optional activities including participating in a second gorilla trek, going in search of golden monkeys who are endemic to the high-altitude forests of Volcanoes National Park, or visiting the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund.

You may also be interested in hiking to Dian Fossey's original Karisoke Research Camp in Volcanoes National Park, located between two volcanoes, Mt. Karisimbi and Mt. Bisoke. Dian's original camp set-up consisted of a tent, converted over time to small cabins. Today the cabins lie in ruins, but by listening to the stories of your Tour Leader, you will gain a good understanding for what it must have been like for Dian all those years ago, when setting up camp to study and protect the endangered mountain gorillas. You will also see Dian's grave, and that of her favourite gorilla Digit.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner included.  

Overnight: Speak to us or browse the accommodation section below for inspiration. Your custom itinerary will contain full descriptions of your chosen properties.

Activities: Let's plan your safari! Contact us to learn about available activities.

Enjoy breakfast at your accommodation before departing for Kigali International Airport and your onward travel arrangements.

Time permitting, consider visiting optional Kigali highlights including Caplaki Craft Village for some last-minute souvenir shopping, Umusambi Village which is a beautiful nature reserve home to over 50 endangered Grey Crowned Cranes, or Kigali Genocide Memorial which is a moving testimony to this country’s past.

Alternatively, consider extending this trip by adding one of our Extension Ideas (see below) to this program.

Meals: Breakfast included, lunch and dinner at own arrangement.