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Safari guideVolcanoes · Bwindi · Mgahinga2026–27 permits

Gorillas cost $1,500 or $800. The hour is the same.

Rwanda and Uganda both sell one hour with a habituated mountain gorilla family, in groups of eight, from age 15. What changes is the permit price, the hike and the drive to get there.

By Seabound JourneysUpdated October 26, 2026Fares and terms change; confirm on your departure
$1,500Rwanda permit, per person, per trek (RDB)
$800Uganda permit at the standard rate (UWA)
15minimum age to trek in both countries
1 hourwith the family once you reach it
01

Six facts that shape a gorilla trip

You’ve seen the photos and you’re pricing it out. Start with these, because every one of them sets a limit on the trip.

Permit$800–$1,500Per person, per trek: $800 in Uganda at the standard rate, $1,500 in Rwanda.
With the gorillasOne hourBoth countries. Uganda’s habituation experience allows up to four.
Group8 peopleThe cap per gorilla family visit, in Rwanda and in Uganda.
Age15 and upNo exceptions on any trip we checked.
The hike30 min to 7 hrsRwanda: 30 minutes to four-plus hours. Bwindi: two to seven, by UWA’s description.
AdvisoriesUganda Level 4Rwanda is Level 3. Check travel.state.gov before you pay a deposit.
The route, stop by stopTauck · Mountain Gorilla Safari: Tanzania, Zanzibar & Rwanda, 13 days (2027)
  1. Arusha1 nightThe start, before the drive into Tanzania’s northern parks.
  2. Tarangire2 nightsThe first two nights of game drives.
  3. Karatu & Ngorongoro1 nightThe base for the crater day.
  4. Serengeti3 nightsThe longest stop of the safari half.
  5. Stone Town, Zanzibar2 nightsAn Indian Ocean break before the flight to Rwanda.
  6. Kigali1 nightRwanda’s capital, a night before heading north.
  7. Virunga2 nightsOne&Only Gorilla’s Nest, and a one-hour visit with a gorilla family, a guide and a personal porter.

Tauck’s UK site lists this trip at £16,690 per person including on-tour flights, with June, August and September 2027 departures and no more than 24 guests. Ask us for the US fare.

02

Rwanda or Uganda: the same gorillas, a different trip

Most first-timers ask which country is better. A better question is which constraint you have: money or time.

Rwanda3 edges
vs
Uganda3 edges
Permit
$1,500, all year, for international visitors
$800 standard; $600 in April, May and November
Where
Volcanoes National Park, ten habituated families
Bwindi (four sectors) and Mgahinga (one family)
Hike length
About 30 minutes to four hours or more
Two to seven hours, by UWA’s description
Getting there
G Adventures drives up from Kigali on day 2, after a morning in the city
Rushaga is about 4–5 hours by road from Kigali, via the Cyanika border
Longer visit
No four-hour option
Habituation experience: up to four hours, four visitors
Other primates
Golden monkeys in the same park; chimps in Nyungwe
Chimps in Kibale, Kalinzu and Kyambura Gorge
State Department
Level 3, Reconsider travel
Level 4, Do not travel

The hour itself barely differs. Rwanda keeps you 7 meters back; Uganda’s rule is 10 meters, according to a Uganda operator citing UWA. Both cap groups at eight and turn away anyone with a cold.

The real trade is money against hours. Two Rwanda treks cost $3,000 a person in permits alone. Two in Uganda cost $1,600, and the drive and the hike take longer.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo also has mountain gorillas, in Virunga National Park. Read the State Department advisory before you consider it: on October 26, 2026 it rated the DRC Level 4, Do not travel, and named North Kivu, the province Virunga sits in. We don’t book it.

03

The permit is the price of entry, and the rules come with it

On a group tour the permit is usually in the fare. It’s still the single biggest line, and the rules attached to it are the ones that catch people out.

Published permit prices, per person (foreign non-resident)
Uganda habituation, bought from Jan 1, 2027$1,800
Rwanda gorilla trek$1,500
Uganda habituation, bought in 2026$1,500
Uganda gorilla trek$800
Uganda gorilla trek, April, May or November$600
Kibale chimp trek, from Jan 1, 2027$300
Kibale chimp trek, 2026$250
Rwanda golden monkey trekabout $100

Rwanda: RDB’s booking portal. Uganda: UWA rates as reported in February 2026 by Uganda-based sources quoting UWA’s executive director; pricing goes by the date you buy the permit, not the date you trek. Golden monkeys: a 2026 park-fee table, not RDB.

Rwanda’s rules

RDB sells permits first come, first served, and needs every trekker’s passport details at payment. Wrong details mean no entry, even with a paid permit.

The refund rule is unusually clear. If the gorillas move so far that you can’t track them all day, you get another chance or your money back. Track all day without contact and you get 75% back. Late arrival or a missed flight gets nothing.

Rwanda’s cheaper promotional rates are for Rwandans, East Africans and African residents only, and don’t apply June to October 2026. US visitors pay $1,500.

Uganda’s rules

Since March 1, 2026, UWA holds a permit only once it’s paid in full, a Uganda operator reports. The old seven-day unpaid hold is gone.

The low-season rate ($600 in April, May and November) comes with a catch: those permits can’t be rescheduled. Book them only if your dates are fixed.

The habituation experience runs only in Bwindi’s Rushaga sector, with up to four visitors and up to four hours with a family still getting used to people. It’s the longest legal look you can buy.

04

Count your treks, see the bill

One trek or three? Gorillas plus chimps? Try the combinations before an operator quotes you.

Permit math

What your treks cost before the tour does

Count the treks you want. Prices are the published permit rates per person; the porter and tip are our starting estimates, so change them.

Rwanda: RDB’s rate for international visitors. Uganda: UWA’s foreign non-resident rates; habituation and chimp prices go up for permits bought from January 1, 2027, and low-season permits can’t be rescheduled. Golden monkey price from a 2026 park-fee table, not RDB. Tours usually include the permits in the fare; check yours.

05

Trek morning in Volcanoes National Park

The trek day runs to a script set by the park. Only the walking varies.

7:00 am

Briefing at Kinigi

RDB briefs trekkers at its park offices in Kinigi. Groups of up to eight then head for the family they’ll visit.

Trailhead

Hire a porter

Porters carry your daypack and steady you on the slope, for what RDB calls a small charge.

On the trail

Thirty minutes, or four hours

It depends which family you’re assigned and where it is that day. RDB warns that the walk back can take as long.

With the family

One hour, seven meters

Low voices, no flash, no food or drink near the gorillas. Turn away to cough.

Afternoon

Back down, and rest

On G Adventures’ Rwanda and Uganda Gorilla & Chimp Adventure, day 3 is this trek and day 4 is a golden monkey trek in the same park.

You don’t pick the family, so you don’t pick the hike. The length is luck, not choice.

If a gorilla charges or vocalizes, RDB’s instruction is to stay still, look away and follow your guide. Your guide does the talking.

Pack gloves, a rain layer and boots you’ve already broken in. Our packing list covers the rest.

06

How fit you need to be, and what porters change

Most people who trek aren’t athletes. They’re people who trained for it, and hired a porter.

Operators rate this near the top of their scales. G Adventures puts its gorilla trips at 4, “Demanding,” and asks for excellent fitness. Tauck rates its Rwanda safari 4 for activity and pace, and Intrepid asks that you can walk up to four hours up and down hills.

Bwindi’s hikes run longer. Ruhija sits at about 2,350 meters, and Nkuringo has the steepest climbs, according to a Uganda operator. Rushaga has the most families.

A porter turns a hard day into a manageable one. Intrepid lists $20 per trek, paid in cash, and Asilia suggests a $5 to $15 tip on top. G Adventures suggests $2 to $4 a day for the gorilla guides.

RDB says porters also help with footing on the climb. Say yes even if your bag is light.

Are you ready to trek?

07

Chimps, golden monkeys and a second permit

Once you’ve flown this far, a second primate costs a fraction of the first. Here’s what each one costs and where it fits.

$250–$300per person, by purchase date

Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale, Uganda

Uganda’s main chimp forest. The permit is $250 if you buy in 2026 and $300 from January 1, 2027, or $200 in the April, May and November low season.

  • Kibale chimp habituation rises from $300 to $400 in 2027
  • Price goes by purchase date: buy 2027 permits before January 1 to pay $250
  • Book it in the same purchase as your gorilla permit
08

Dry months, rainy discounts

You can trek every month. The weather changes how muddy it gets, and in Uganda it changes the price.

Drya popular window

December to February

One of the two drier stretches, and a popular one.

  • Pairs with Serengeti calving in January and February
  • Full Uganda rate applies
  • Rwanda stays at $1,500

Season guidance from a Uganda operator’s 2026 trekking FAQ; discount months from UWA. Gorillas are there all year, and no month guarantees a better sighting.

09

Real gorilla trips, from a tent to One&Only

The permit costs the same whoever sells it. What you’re choosing is the bed, the group and what else the trip covers.

TripDaysGorillas inGroupFromPer day
G Adventures Uganda Overland: Gorillas & Chimps (camping, 18–39)9Bwindiup to 22$3,299 ($2,474 on sale, Dec 23, 2026)~$275–$367
Intrepid Remarkable Rwanda & Gorillas of Uganda9Bwindiup to 12about $5,060~$562
Intrepid Gorillas & East Africa Safari (to Arusha)18Bwindiup to 16about $8,150~$453
Intrepid Premium Rwanda & Gorillas of Uganda6Bwindiup to 12$7,430 (2027–28 dates)~$1,238
G Adventures Rwanda & Uganda Gorilla & Chimp Adventure9Volcanoesup to 14No dates listed; ask—
G Adventures Signature: Rwanda’s Primate Kingdoms8Volcanoesup to 16$17,999 (Sep 18, 2027)~$2,250
Tauck Mountain Gorilla Safari: Tanzania, Zanzibar & Rwanda13Volcanoesup to 24£16,690 (UK site, 2027, incl. on-tour air)Ask for USD

From-prices per person, sharing, before international flights, from each operator’s own page in October 2026. Intrepid doesn’t label the year on two of its prices. Every trip listed includes a gorilla trek. Tauck’s page doesn’t say in so many words that the permit is in the fare, so confirm it, and ask whether any trip includes a second trek.

Two big names are missing on purpose. We found no Collette departure with a gorilla trek, and Globus sells it as an optional add-on in Uganda on its 2027 Kenya & Tanzania: The Safari Experience, with an extra $800 permit deposit at booking.

At the top end, Abercrombie & Kent builds private gorilla trips and lists Rwanda on its 22-day Africa: Across a Continent by Private Jet, from $169,500. Its recommended Rwanda lodges include Singita Kwitonda, Wilderness Sabyinyo and One&Only Gorilla’s Nest.

Matcher

Which gorilla trip fits you?

Four taps. We weigh budget, beds, what else you want to see and how long you have.

Budget per person, before flights
Where you want to sleep
What else is on the list
How long can you go
10

Visas, advisories and the one health rule

This is the section to read twice. The rules change, and right now the advisories matter.

Visas for US citizens

The East Africa Tourist Visa covers Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda for $100, valid 90 days. Apply through the country you’ll enter first, and don’t leave the three-country bloc, or it ends.

Doing one country? Rwanda issues visas on arrival, up to $50 for a single entry. Uganda wants an eVisa before you fly (about $50), and the State Department says travelers who skipped it have been refused entry. Tanzania isn’t in the bloc and charges US citizens $100.

Bring a passport with six months’ validity. The State Department’s Uganda page also says a yellow fever card is required; check CDC Travelers’ Health and your doctor for the current rule.

Advisories, as of October 26, 2026

Uganda: Level 4, Do not travel, issued June 4, 2026 when Ebola was spreading in Uganda and the DRC. Uganda declared its outbreak over on July 28, but the advisory hadn’t changed when we checked.

Rwanda: Level 3, Reconsider travel, with a do-not-travel zone within 10 kilometers of the DRC border. The State Department notes that Volcanoes National Park, Kinigi and Musanze sit outside it.

Before you buy permits, ask your insurer in writing whether your policy covers a country at Level 4. Our insurance purchase window guide covers when to buy.

Health

We don’t give medical advice. See CDC Travelers’ Health for Rwanda and Uganda and talk to your doctor well before you go. The one rule that’s ours to repeat: both parks turn away trekkers who are sick, to protect the gorillas.

11

Who should go now, and who should wait

Book it if

  • You can hike for hours at altitude, or you’ll train until you can
  • You’re 15 or older, and so is everyone in your party
  • Rwanda fits if time is short and $1,500 a trek is fine
  • Uganda fits if budget leads, or you want the four-hour habituation visit
  • You’re solo: G Adventures and Intrepid group trips are a simple way in, with a My Own Room upgrade on some G departures

Look elsewhere if

  • You’re traveling with children under 15
  • Walking on steep, muddy ground for hours isn’t realistic; no operator we checked publishes an alternative
  • Your insurance won’t cover a Level 4 country and Uganda is on your route
  • Your dates might move and you were counting on Uganda’s low-season permit
  • You want gorillas in the DRC; read the State Department’s Level 4 advisory first

Our take

Gorilla trekking is the rare trip where the government sets the price of the main event. The tour company only decides everything around it.

If money is tight, go Uganda and spend the savings on a better lodge or a chimp trek. If time is tight, go Rwanda: shorter drives, often shorter hikes, one hour with the same animals.

Either way, check the State Department level the day you book, and again before final payment.

12

Where to go from here: the rest of the safari map

Start hereAfrican safaris: where and whenCountry by country, season by season.Read the guide →BudgetWhat a safari really costsFour comfort levels, priced with real trips.Read the guide →Add the plainsTanzania safarisSerengeti, the crater and the migration.Read the guide →Add the MaraKenya safarisReserve or conservancy, and when to go.Read the guide →OperatorG AdventuresCamping to Signature, and how it prices.Read the guide →OperatorIntrepid TravelSmall groups, room sharing and the Premium line.Read the guide →

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13

What gorilla trekkers ask us first

How much is a gorilla permit in 2027?

In Rwanda, $1,500 per person per trek for international visitors, set by the Rwanda Development Board (RDB). In Uganda, $800 at the standard Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) rate, which UWA left unchanged for 2027, or $600 in its low-season months of April, May and November. Uganda’s four-hour habituation experience rises from $1,500 to $1,800 for permits bought from January 1, 2027.

Is gorilla trekking better in Rwanda or Uganda?

The hour with the gorillas follows the same basic rules in both. Rwanda costs more, but tours reach Volcanoes from Kigali in a day, and RDB says its hikes run from about 30 minutes to four hours or more. Uganda costs less, offers the habituation experience, and its Bwindi treks run longer, two to seven hours by UWA’s description. Pick Rwanda for time, Uganda for budget.

What is the minimum age for gorilla trekking?

15 in both Rwanda and Uganda. G Adventures and Intrepid both state 15 on their gorilla trips.

How fit do you need to be?

Fit enough to hike steep, muddy forest at altitude for several hours. G Adventures rates its gorilla trips 4, “Demanding,” Tauck rates its Rwanda safari 4 for activity and pace, and Intrepid asks that you can walk up to four hours up and down hills. Hiring a porter helps a lot.

How much do porters cost?

RDB says porters carry your daypack “for a small charge.” Intrepid lists $20 to hire one for its Uganda trek, paid in cash, plus an optional tip. Asilia, a safari camp company, suggests $5 to $15 as a porter tip.

What happens if we don’t find the gorillas?

Rwanda publishes the rule: if the group’s movement stops you tracking all day, you get another chance or a full refund, and if you track all day without making contact you get 75% back. There’s no refund for arriving late, a delayed flight or cancelling for any other reason.

Do I need a visa for Rwanda and Uganda?

Yes. The East Africa Tourist Visa covers Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda for $100, valid 90 days, and you apply through the country you enter first. On its own, Rwanda issues visas on arrival (up to $50 single entry) and Uganda requires an eVisa before you fly; the State Department says travelers who skipped it have been refused entry.

Is it safe to go gorilla trekking right now?

Check the State Department before you book. On October 26, 2026 it rated Uganda Level 4, Do Not Travel (issued June 4, 2026, during an Ebola outbreak that Uganda declared over on July 28), and Rwanda Level 3, Reconsider Travel, noting that Volcanoes National Park sits outside its high-risk border zone. Those levels can affect your insurance.

Sources · 28 links · checked October 2026
  1. Rwanda Development Board: Mountain gorilla tracking (fees, rules, refunds)
  2. KT Press: Rwanda extends promotional gorilla rates into 2026
  3. Frosch: Rwanda raises gorilla permits to $1,500 (2017)
  4. SafariFind: Rwanda national park fees 2026 (golden monkeys)
  5. Muzungu Blog Uganda: UWA low-season discounts and 2027 rates (Feb 28, 2026)
  6. Eclipse Travel: Uganda primate permit update
  7. African Safaris NZ: UWA 2024–2026 tariff
  8. Duma Explorer: Gorilla trekking FAQs 2026 (UWA rules and notices)
  9. Duma Explorer: The four Bwindi sectors
  10. SafariFind: Mgahinga gorilla trekking 2027
  11. US State Department: Uganda travel advisory (Level 4, June 4, 2026)
  12. US State Department: Rwanda travel advisory (Level 3, June 4, 2026)
  13. US State Department: Democratic Republic of the Congo travel advisory
  14. US State Department: Uganda entry requirements
  15. Responsible Tourism Company: Uganda’s 2026 Ebola outbreak declared over
  16. Uganda Immigration: East African Tourist Visa
  17. Rwanda Directorate General of Immigration: Visa on arrival
  18. Duma Explorer: East Africa visa guide (Uganda eVisa fee)
  19. CDC Travelers’ Health
  20. Tauck: Mountain Gorilla Safari, Tanzania, Zanzibar & Rwanda (2027)
  21. G Adventures: Uganda Overland, Gorillas & Chimps
  22. G Adventures: Rwanda and Uganda Gorilla & Chimp Adventure
  23. G Adventures: Signature, Rwanda’s Primate Kingdoms
  24. Intrepid: Remarkable Rwanda & Gorillas of Uganda
  25. Intrepid: Premium Rwanda & Gorillas of Uganda
  26. Intrepid: Gorillas & East Africa Safari
  27. Abercrombie & Kent: Rwanda safaris
  28. Travelweek: Globus expands Asia and Africa for 2027