Gorilla trekking Uganda price
Gorilla trekking Uganda price
Gorilla trekking Uganda price : Gorilla trekking is the most popular activity carried out in Uganda. It is an activity where visitors move into the dense tropical rain forests in search of the habituated gorilla families and once found spend one hour with them in their natural habitat. Gorilla trekking in Uganda is carried out in two destinations namely Mgahinga gorilla national park and Bwindi impenetrable national park which harbors the highest number of mountain gorillas.
Gorilla trekking price in Uganda is cheaper compared to other gorilla destinations like Volcanoes national park in Rwanda and the prices are determined by various factors including transportation to and from the gorilla destination, price of a gorilla trekking permit, accommodation, length of your gorilla trekking safari, vehicle that will be used among others.
Break down of gorilla trekking Uganda price
Cost of a gorilla trekking permit
A gorilla trekking permit in Uganda costs $600 per person for foreign non-residents, $500 per person for foreign residents and UGX 250,000 per person for East African citizens. However Uganda increased the price of a gorilla trekking permit by $100 for foreign non-residents who will be paying $700 and foreign residents who will be paying $600 per person effective 1st July 2020. The price of a gorilla trekking permit is affordable compared to Volcanoes national park where a single gorilla trekking permit costs $1500 for all nationalities. When costing for our gorilla trekking safari, the permit is the first thing you should budget for.
A gorilla habituation permit costs $1500 per person for foreign non-residents, $1000 per person for foreign residents and UGX 750,000 per person for East African citizens. A gorilla habituation permit allows you to spend four hours with the mountain gorillas. Gorilla trekking and habituation permits in Uganda can therefore be acquired directly through Uganda Wildlife Authority or through a tour operator like Achieve Global Safaris.
Booking a gorilla trekking permit through a tour operator is however the best option because we will not only book for your gorilla trekking permit but also organize your entire gorilla trekking safari. Therefore you will contact us with the date, month, year and destination where you want to visit the mountain gorillas. We will check for permit availability and once the permits are available, you will be asked to make a deposit for the permit. Once you have made the deposit, you will be asked to send a scanned cop of your passport details which will be used to register for your permit. We will then acquire your gorilla trekking permit and send you a scanned copy of the receipt as confirmation.
Cost of transportation
When planning for a gorilla trekking safari in Uganda, transportation should be included and there are various transport means that you can use for example private, public, and air transport. When budgeting for private means of transport you will consider the vehicle, fuel, and the driver guide who will be driving you to and from the gorilla destination. achieve global safaris owns a fleet of 4WD safari vehicles and visitors who prefer land cruisers we can also hire them therefore feel free to contact us for transportation rates.
In case you want to use public means of transport on your gorilla trekking safari, you will contact us so that we acquire a gorilla trekking permit for you. Public means of transport is however not recommended because it’s tiresome, you might be overcharged and it doesn’t reach the park headquarters.
The third option of transportation is by air and when using this option you will contact us with so that we book for you a flight from Entebbe airport or Kajansi airfield to Kihihi airstrip or Kisoro airfield. In Uganda there are domestic airline companies such as Aerolink which operate scheduled and chartered flights daily therefore when costing for transportation, you will budget for the airplane ticket to the gorilla destination, the vehicle that will pick you from the airport to the park headquarters and the driver guide. You can contact us for flight bookings.
Cost of accommodation
There are various accommodation facilities in the gorilla destinations where you can stay on your gorilla trekking safari and they range from luxury, midrange and budget. When budgeting for accommodation you also consider the length of you gorilla trekking safari in Uganda and the minimum gorilla trekking safari is 2 days when coming from Kigali and 3 days when coming from Kampala. The luxury lodge prices range from $I80 per night going up wards, midrange lodges range from $130 per room and budget lodges range from $90 per room.
Cost of accommodation depends on the number of days spent in the room for example on your 3 days gorilla trekking safari, on the first day you will transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park with an overnight in the lodge, on the second day you will carry out gorilla trekking and have another overnight in the lodge and on the third day you will transfer back to Kampala therefore you will have spent two nights in the park. For more information about the accommodation rates contact Achieve Global Safaris.
Cost of a porter
Hiring a porter on your gorilla trekking safari is the best option because porters are people who offer help at a cost to visitors during gorilla trekking. Porters offer help in form of giving you a push and pull in steep terrain and also carrying your backpack. Hiring a porter costs about $15 and visitors who hire porters will be contributing to community development because some porters have families and others are school children.
Tipping cost
Tip is the money given by the visitor as a form of appreciation for the services offered. Tipping on your gorilla trekking guide can be given to your driver guide after the safari, porter, park guide, hotel/lodge. In Uganda it’s not mandatory to tip but out of courtesy.
Gorilla trekking is a thrilling and must do activity in Uganda in that gives you breathtaking and lifetime experiences on your safari therefore for more information about gorilla trekking Uganda prices you can contact our experienced tour consultants.