Gorilla Habituation Experience at Bwindi National Park

The gorilla habituation experience is an African wildlife safari adventure done at Bwindi National Park in Uganda. Uganda Wildlife Authority organizes the gorilla habituation experience. A select group of tourists interested in experiencing the habituation of gorillas can book a tour. The habituation experience entails a process that could take up to two years where gorillas are trained to interface with humans. The habituation tour takes a maximum of 4-hours compared to the regular gorilla trek that lasts one hour. The gorilla habituation experience is currently arranged at the Rushaga gate of Bwindi National Park.

There are about 1,000 mountain gorillas left in the wild, all found in the tropical forests of the Virunga mountains. Mountain gorillas are located in Uganda, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo). In DR Congo, the gorilla habitat is Virunga National Park and Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (which doubles as a UNESCO World Heritage Site) and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park are home to Uganda’s gorilla population.

The gorilla habituation experience in Bwindi National Park has to be booked in advance to secure a tracking permit. Therefore, it’s recommended to reserve the habituation permit through a tour company to ensure the permits can be guaranteed. A gorilla habituation permit for Bwindi National Park currently costs USD 1,500. A regular gorilla tracking adventure in Uganda costs USD 700 for a permit, excluding other costs such as transport and accommodation. A gorilla tracking permit in Rwanda costs USD 1,500.

Bamboo Ecotours organizes a range of gorilla tracking trips, including the 2-Day Gorilla Trek, 3-Day Gorilla Trek, and 4-Day Gorilla Trek combined with chimpanzee trekking at Kibale National Park or Kalinzu Forest Reserve. A gorilla trekking adventure from Kigali, Rwanda, can also be organized with scheduled trekking in Uganda. Kigali is about a 4-5hrs drive to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda. In some cases, a double gorilla trekking safari can be arranged for visitors interested in trekking gorillas more than once.

If interested in reserving a gorilla habituation permit or an ordinary gorilla trekking adventure at Bwindi Impenetrable National Park or Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, contact Bamboo Ecotours for more information.