Gorilla Permits cost and booking Information: you need gorilla permit for Volcanoes National or Bwindi Impenetrable National Park or Mgahinga National Park to trek mountain gorillas. Your tour operator can provide relevant gorilla permit booking information for Rwanda and Uganda to enable you plan your gorilla safari smoothly and in advance without any worries and hustle. Usually highly recommend all our clients to obtain gorilla permits in advance. We always advise at least 6 months in advance or prior to your visit. While booking a safari tour with a gorilla trekking inclusive, always pay your gorilla permit fee in advance to enable us to acquire it for you.

This will ease any inconveniency with your planned travel dates, as an advance booking has high higher chance of guarantee of availability on your requested travel dates. Gorilla trekking is 100 percent guaranteed when you acquire a permit. Uganda and Rwanda gorilla permits are very competitive and scarce most especially during peak seasons of June, July, August, September, December and February. Sometimes gorilla tracking permits get sold out four months in advance, so any traveler needs to book a gorilla permits 3-6 month in advance. Kindly follow our gorilla permit booking information for details.

What is a gorilla permit?

A gorilla permit is a document or card issued by ORTPN, Rwanda Development Board for gorilla trekking in Rwanda or Uganda Wildlife Authority for gorilla trekking in Uganda that allows any traveler above 15 years of age to trek mountain gorillas in any of the three habitats – Bwindi Impenetrable national Park (Uganda), Mgahinga National Park (Uganda) and Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda. A permit allows you to view gorillas for only one hour but the normal gorilla trekking itself can take a minimum of 30 minutes or up to six hours while looking for gorillas in the forest. On finding the gorillas, your given an hour to interact with them.

Our Gorilla Permit Booking Information is aimed at providing you details to prepare well for your gorilla safari, so as to enable you book in time that sending entire money for your safari late, and you find that there is no availability of the permits.

Can I trek without a permit?

This I am mythical, you cannot trek without a permit in any park, a permit is like a ticket to a football match to allow you entry, you have to present a permit, on our Rwanda eco company & Safaris, our guide take hold of the permits and ground handling, as a client you only wait for the briefing and trekking. You cannot trek without a valid gorilla trekking permit.

How much does gorilla permit cost?

A gorilla permit in Uganda costs USD $700 per person per day of the trekking which entitles you to an hour with the gorillas and USD1500.00 for gorilla habituation experience permits which goes for four hours with the gorillas. A single gorilla permit can only be used once (single day), by a single person and to trek Uganda gorillas in only two destinations, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park.

Buy your gorilla permits or secure your gorilla permit in Kampala (the capital of Uganda) at the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) headquarters by paying USD $700.00 per person for foreign nonresidents, USD600.00 for foreign residents with working permits and sh250,000 for East African Citizens. Rwanda Eco Company & Safaris organizes all-inclusive safaris to see gorillas including our popular 3-day budget gorilla safari to Bwindi & Volcanoes or 2 days gorilla trekking in Bwindi with a transfer from Kigali.

In Rwanda you can get permits through the Rwanda Development Board offices (ORTPN) in Kigali or Ruhengeri (near the PNV) after paying $1500.00 through a trusted tour operator

Is a gorilla permit reusable?

A gorilla permit is used, once and for good. The permit expires and the end of the trekking date. If trekking gorillas in Uganda, one need to mind about the gorilla permit you will be holding as it will determine the Region in which you will trek gorillas and the accommodation lodge. Unlike other mountain gorilla National Parks, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park has several sections and thus each section/region has its own gorilla families and accommodation properties.

Bwindi gorilla trekking regions include:

  • Buhoma in the North,
  • Ruhija in the East,
  • Rushaga in South
  • Nkuring in the South.

Please follow our Gorilla Permit Booking Information before confirming any accommodation property as this should be determined by the gorilla permit you will be holding. Each region has its own gorilla groups or families and for those interested in trekking given region should let your tour oprator know so that they act accordingly while booking your gorilla permit. The permit is later taken by the officials and kept, never to see it again.

Note that gorilla family allocation happens on the day of trekking where tourists are grouped depending on their physical abilities and interest. You will need to express your interest so that they allocate you a gorilla group that will help you achieve it. For more information and gorilla permit booking and allocation, do contact us at Rwanda Eco Company & Safaris.

Can gorilla permits of Uganda be used in Rwanda?

No gorilla permit is transferable across both countries. Ugandan permits are meant for Ugandan parks vice versa.

Can one arrive from either country or trek?

Yes, you can book your flight through Kigali – Rwanda and trek the next day in Uganda or vice versa so long as you have the East African visa. Many of our safaris do start from Kigali and transferred the same day to Bwindi for the next day trekking return to Kigali for city tour and flight back to your home country.

How to acquire gorilla permits

Please contact us with date/month and year when you want to trek gorillas in Uganda or Rwanda, we will check availability of gorilla permits and inform you. We will send you an invoice and once you have transferred you funds on to our account, we will pre purchase your permits and send you scanned copies. You may try this online, but you will not be successful as the gorilla permits are mostly sold to tour operator.

The tour operator is also able to monitor for you the availability, through receiving constant emails and information that the booking offices do communicate with the tour operator. To help us do this, you need to send us your passport details which are needed by Uganda Wildlife Authority and Rwanda Development Board offices (ORTPN) in order to print and issue your gorilla permits.

Can gorilla permits be refunded?

Once you have purchased the gorilla permit, your date of travel is confirmed, the gorilla permits are nonrefundable, and are sold on first come first serve basis. Now that you have all the Gorilla Permit Booking Information at your fingertips, we would like to interest you in some of our tailor-made gorilla trekking tour packages that many of our travelers have rated highly. Because hundreds of our travelers have rated our tours highly, we’re able to get you low rates on many high-end Lodges, transportation and getting a gorilla permit is so easy for our team.