Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park Rwanda

Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park Rwanda

Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park Rwanda / Rwanda gorilla trekking : Volcanoes national park in Rwanda is one of the best destinations for gorilla trekking in Africa due to its location. Gorilla trekking is an incredible activity in Rwanda where visitors move into the dense rain forest in search of the habituated gorilla families and once found spend one hour with them in their natural habitat. Gorilla trekking is the major activity carried out in Africa and apart from Volcanoes national park, gorilla trekking is carried out in other destinations like Bwindi impenetrable national park and Mgahinga gorilla national park in Uganda, Virunga national park and Kahuzi Biega national park in Democratic Republic of Congo.

Volcanoes national park is also called Parc Des Volcans in French and Pariki Y’Igihugu Y’Ibirunga in Kinyarwanda. The national park is located in northwestern part of Rwanda in a small village called Musanze. It was gazetted into a national park in 1929, covers an area of 160 square kilometers and also harbors various biodiversity including the 5 Virunga mountains namely Mount Bisoke, Mount Sabyinyo, Mount Gahinga, Mount Muhabura and mount Karisimbi, primates like the endangered mountain gorillas, golden monkeys baboons, black and white colobus monkeys, bird species, animals like the bush pigs, buffaloes, giant forest hogs, duikers, bushbucks among others.

Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park

Volcanoes national park is a home of over 14 habituated gorilla families which are available for trekking daily. Trekking the endangered mountain gorillas in the park starts in the morning with a briefing at the park headquarters about the expectations, rules and regulations to follow during trekking. after the briefing you will be grouped into 8 people to trek each habituated family and grouping is done depending on your physical fitness and age because trekking in the park is challenging in that you will hike up to steep volcanoes through the bamboo therefore visitors who are not physically fit are allocated a gorilla group that is near.

Gorilla trekking in volcanoes national park takes about 2 to 6 hours in the jungle depending on the location of the mountain gorillas and once found you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural habitat as you have breathtaking moments with the gorillas learning about their behaviors, habits, lifestyle, taking plenty of photos with a flash less camera and recording the moments.

Cost of a gorilla trekking permit in Rwanda

A gorilla trekking permit is a document that is issued by Rwanda Development Board to any visitor above the age of fifteen years allowing him or her to visit a habituated gorilla family in Volcanoes national park and spend one hour in the presence of the gorillas.

A gorilla trekking permit in volcanoes national park costs $1500 for all nationalities. Rwanda is the only gorilla destination in Africa with the highest gorilla trekking permit compared to Uganda where a gorilla trekking permit costs $600 for foreign non-residents, $500 for foreign residents and UGX 250,000 for East African citizens and Democratic Republic of Congo where a gorilla trekking permit costs $400. Rwanda increased its gorilla trekking permit in May 2017 so as to sustainably conserve the endangered mountain gorillas, to make Volcanoes national park a luxury gorilla trekking destination and to improve on the standards of living for the people around the park.

How to book a gorilla trekking permit in Rwanda

Booking a gorilla trekking permit is very easy and there are two options that you can use to book a permit for example booking directly through Rwanda Development Board a tourism body in Rwanda by contacting the offices via email or telephone calls. Another option is booking via a trusted tour operator like Achieve Global Safaris. Booking via a tour company is the best option to use because we will save you the hustle of acquiring a permit and also plan for your entire safari which includes transportation, meals, accommodation among others.

When booking through Achieve Global Safaris, you will contact us with the date, month and year when you want to engage in gorilla trekking, we will check for availability of the permit and once the permits are available you will be asked to make a deposit on the gorilla trekking permit. Once the deposit has been made, you will be asked to send a scanned copy of your passport which will be used in registering for your permit. We will therefore acquire a gorilla trekking permit for you and send a scanned copy as confirmation.

When to book a gorilla trekking permit in Rwanda

A gorilla trekking permit in volcanoes national park should be booked 3 to 4 months in advance before the trekking date because they are competitive and usually get sold out especially during the peak season in the months of June, July, August, September, December, January and February. Therefore in order to avoid disappointments at the last minute you are advised to book a gorilla trekking permit in advance.

What to pack for your gorilla trekking safari in volcanoes national park

Gorilla trekking permit, this is the main essential item to pack when going for a gorilla trekking permit in the park because without a gorilla trekking permit you will not be able to visit any habituated gorilla family.
Hiking shoes, the shoes should reach the ankles and comfortable to use while trekking in the muddy jungle
Garden gloves, these will protect your hands from germs and also from getting hurt because during trekking you might touch thorny plants in the forest for support.
Long sleeved shirt and trousers, these will keep you warm while trekking in the jungle especially morning hours
Waterproof rain jacket, this will protect you from rainfall in case it rains while you are trekking in the jungle
Insect repellent, the insect repellent will protect your body from biting insects such as tsetse flies, mosquitos among others.
Energy snacks, due to the fact that gorilla trekking takes about 2 to 6 hours it’s advisable to carry packed lunch and drinking water so as to get energy while trekking
Camera, this is another important essential to pack in that it will be used to take photos during the one hour with the gorillas and also record the moments to show people at home.
Backpack, this is a bag that is used to carry all your essentials including
Walking stick, this will help you during trekking in steep and slippery grounds.

Rules and regulations for gorilla trekking in Rwanda

You should keep your voices down while in the presence of the gorillas
Keep 7 meter distance away from the mountain gorillas
Stay in your group during trekking so as not to get lost in the jungle
Do not drink, eat or smoke while in the presence of the mountain gorillas
Gorilla trekking in volcanoes national park only allows a maximum of 8 people so as to minimize behavioral disturbance of the gorillas and also minimize the risk of spreading disease to the mountain gorillas
Do not leave rubbish in the park
Do not touch the mountain gorillas because they are wild animals
Do not use cameras with flash lights when taking photos
In case you are not feeling well, you should not participate in gorilla trekking because the gorillas are vulnerable to human diseases
Visitors are given a maximum of one hour in the presence of the gorilla family
In case a gorilla charges, do not look directly into the gorilla eyes or attempt to run away but rather crouch down slowly and get away.

Best time to go for gorilla trekking

Gorilla trekking in volcanoes national park can be done anytime throughout the year though the best period is during the dry season in the months of June to September and December to February. The dry season is also known as the peak season and during this period there is less rainfall in the park therefore the gorilla trekking trails will be dry and passable compared to the wet/rainy season when the trails are muddy and slippery.

Other activities to engage in while in volcanoes national park

There are other interesting activities in volcanoes national park that you can engage in after gorilla trekking such as golden monkey trekking, visiting Dian Fossey grave, visiting Musanze caves, birding, hiking the Virunga volcanoes, having a cultural encounter as you visit Ibyiwacu cultural village among others.

How to get to volcanoes national park

Volcanoes national park is located in northwestern part of Rwanda 105 kilometers from Kigali international airport therefore visitors to the park will fly to Kigali international airport and then connect by road to Volcanoes national park which takes about 2 hours’ drive.

You can also use public means of transport though not advised by boarding a bus from Kigali airport to Musanze town and then hire a private taxi to the park headquarters because there are no public means of transport from Musanze to Kinigi park headquarters.

Volcanoes national park can also be accessed from Bwindi impenetrable national park or Mgahinga gorilla national park in Uganda. Visitors connecting from Uganda will pass via Katuna border in Kabale or Cyanika border in Kisoro to the park headquarters which takes about 3 to 4 hours’ drive.