3 days Gorilla tracking Safari to Uganda

If you are interested in a mountain gorilla safari in Uganda or Rwanda you are required to buy a gorilla permit well in advance of your trip. As only eight people are allowed to visit each gorilla group per day, the demand is high. Dark Hills Uganda is happy to book your gorilla trekking permits and organize your gorilla safari.

To buy your gorilla permit, you will need to provide us with your full names, nationality, passport number, preferred date of trekking and gorilla permit fee. 

Once you have confirmed the final itinerary with us, you will be asked to pay a deposit of 30%. Gorilla permits must be paid for in full at the time of booking. Note that availability of accommodation and permits is not guaranteed until officially confirmed by Dark Hills Uganda. Accommodation, permit and activity reservations will be made as soon as payment has been received on our account.

For your convenience, the balance payment of 70% should be settled before the start of your safari. We accept payment by VISA credit card (please include 5% service charge) and bank transfer in either dollars or Euros to our bank account in Uganda. Please note that all bank charges are at the expense of the client.

Single travelers are very welcome! However, to minimize your costs we would suggest joining a group. Although we can try and arrange this for you, we cannot guarantee we can find a group whose interests, budget and preferred route correspond to yours, especially during low season.

If you would like to stay in a single room please notify us well in advance and we will try to meet your request. Please bear in mind that single rooms are not common and it is more likely that you will be offered single occupancy of a double room. A single room supplement will apply.

You are unlikely to fall sick while you are in Uganda but do take all recommended preventive measures. If you take any regular medication, please bring it with you.

Take your Malaria medication as directed – before, during and possibly after – your visit to Uganda (depending on the Malaria prophylactic you take).

Although HIV/AIDS infection rates are lower than many countries in Africa, the prevalence of HIV/AIDS infection is certainly higher than in most Western countries. Tourists and visitors to Uganda sometimes engage in risky behavior that they wouldn’t engage in back home. Play safe. Please take your sexual health seriously.

Uganda travel advice: safety information for travelers to Uganda

A number of different vaccinations are recommended and/or required before entering Uganda. A certificate proving you have had the Yellow Fever vaccination is mandatory for entry into Uganda. Immunizations against DTP (Diphtheria, Tetanus and Polio) and Hepatitis A are recommended as well.

Besides bringing mosquito repellent, we also advise you to take malaria ‘prophylactics’ (prevention medication).

Only a few banks accept ATM cards or Visa credit cards for money withdrawal in Uganda. While you can withdraw a limited amount of cash per day from ATM machines in Kampala, there are very few opportunities to withdraw cash once you are on safari in Uganda.

Payment by credit card in Uganda can attract additional charges of between 5–10%, occasionally more. Do check with lodges and restaurants in advance, if you plan to pay by credit card.

We therefore advise you to bring cash and have money changed upon arrival in Kampala. US dollars, British pounds and Euros are easy to change. However, for some expenses, like the payment of a tourist visa at the airport/border, it is easier to have dollars available. It is often possible to pay for tourist activities with US dollars.

US dollars bills issued before 1999 are NOT accepted in Uganda. Exchanging low denomination dollar bills (anything less than a USD100 bill) attracts a lower exchange rate.

Internet cafés are found all around the country and are now even to be found in remote areas. Realize that internet speed is often very slow.

Most upmarket lodges provide wifi, but not all of them. Some mid-range lodges provide wifi as well.

If you bring your own laptop you can buy a 3 GB wireless internet stick from MTN. This Internet is relatively quick. The cost for this stick is about 50 US dollars per month (minimum 1 month). This stick can be bought in Entebbe, Jinja and Kampala and you need to bring your passport and a passport photo to sign up.

When you buy a MTN simcard (register with passport and passport photo) you can use the 3G or even 4G option to provide internet to your smartphone or tablet.

You are required to purchase a tourist visa before you enter Uganda. Tourist visas can be bought in advance via the embassy or consulate in your country or simply purchased upon arrival at Entebbe International Airport or at any overland border. Photos are not required and a single-entry tourist visa costs US$ 100 per person for up to 90 days stay in Uganda.

If you are planning to combine Uganda with a visit to Rwanda or Kenya it is recommendable to request for the East African Tourist Visa instead of a single-entry visa. This special visa costs US$100 per person and allows 90-days multiple entry to Uganda, Rwanda and Kenya. Regretfully, Tanzania is not (yet) a member of the East African community and therefore not part of this special visa arrangement.

You can charge your cameras, phones and other electric items in most hotels/ lodges. Not every hotel/lodge offers charging facilities in the rooms. If that is the case, they will offer charging options in the lobby or restaurant.

Some lodges Hotels run on either solar power or generator. Those lodges often don't have power all day, but only at specific hours in the morning and evening (when it's dark).

If you bring a couple of chargeable items you might consider bringing an extension with extra outlets, since the number of outlets is often limited. We advise to bring extra batteries for your camera, since some hotels don’t have power and power cuts might occur.

The minimum age for visiting the gorillas is 15 years. A certain level of fitness is required for the gorilla tracking, and you may not be allowed gorilla trekking if you fall sick.

In all gorilla destinations, tracking permits allow travelers a maximum of an hour with a habituated gorilla group. However, due to a few inconveniences like if you had a long trek to reach your gorilla family, your guide may allow you a few more minutes. Mountain gorillas are wild and they prefer being in their own company doing their wild activities like eating, playing and mating rather than being surrounded by humans for a long time. This is why the time is restricted to one hour.

Your curiosity and enthusiasm to track the mountain gorillas is the first engine that will keep you moving on. You must be willing to take on a hike in rough terrain and in any weather to see the gorillas in the wild. Even those who consider themselves very old and don’t think they are hikers or adventurous can also successfully visit the gorillas. This can be done through hiring personal assistants to carry your daypack also to assist you in difficult areas. Besides, the parks’ management also works tirelessly to help you trek the gorillas successfully regardless of all your setbacks. This is done in many ways including assigning you to park guides and rangers to make it as easy as possible to track and photograph the gorillas and also ensure your security while in the wild. Your contribution as a tracker to ensure a perfect and fantastic gorilla tracking experience is called up in what you need to carry for this trip including a pair of gloves and clothing that protects your arms and legs from thorns and nettles. You may also need to do a few workouts to ensure you have a good balance which is very helpful in gorilla tracking as trails may tend to e slippery at times.

Today Mountain gorilla tracking is only available in Uganda and Rwanda whereas tracking in the Democratic Republic of Congo is still on hold due to political instabilities that antagonized the security of Virunga national park, which was the other destination with mountain gorillas. Gorilla trekking can be done throughout the year though best experiences happen in the dry season between June and September and December to February. In Uganda, mountain gorilla tracking is more paramount in Bwindi Forest National Park with about 12 gorilla families that can be tracked. Mgahinga gorilla national park is Uganda’s second gorilla tracking destination with one gorilla family of Nyakagezi though the Park receives visiting gorilla families at intervals. Rwanda has got one mountain gorilla-tacking destination in Volcanoes national park, which is also part of the Virunga Conservation Area.