Our pick
3-Day Bwindi Gorilla Trekking Safari, Dav Safaris
A private guide collects you from your hotel in Kampala or Entebbe, or from the airport. Then comes a long first day in a 4x4, about 7 hours with a lunch stop, to a lodge on the southern side of Bwindi near Rushaga. That afternoon there is time for the Batwa trail, a walk with the forest's first people.
The second morning starts with a briefing at the park office, where rangers split visitors into small groups, one per gorilla family. You walk with trackers and a picnic lunch until the family is found, then spend an hour with them before the drive on to Lake Bunyonyi.
Day three is a canoe ride on the lake if you want it, then the long road back to Entebbe or Kampala with a stop at the equator. The listing puts the gorilla permit, two nights' lodging and meals in the price.
- Duration
- 3 days, 2 nights
- Park
- Bwindi Impenetrable, southern sector near Rushaga
- Group
- Private, with your own driver-guide
- Route
- Entebbe or Kampala, Bwindi, Lake Bunyonyi, back via the equator
- Pickup
- Any hotel in or around Kampala and Entebbe
- Included
- Gorilla permit, 2 nights' lodging, meals, 4x4
- Limits
- Not for back or heart problems or limited mobility; age 15 and up to trek
- Cancellation
- Free up to 24 hours before
How the trip runs, step by step
This is the order the listing gives. Where the gorilla family has moved overnight changes how long day two takes.
Day 1, the road west
- Pickup in Entebbe or Kampala, then about 7 hours by 4x4 with a lunch stop
- The Batwa trail near the park, then dinner and a night at a lodge near Rushaga
Day 2, into Bwindi
- Early briefing with the rangers, then the trek with a picnic lunch
- One hour with a gorilla family, then the drive to Lake Bunyonyi
- Day 3: a canoe ride, then back to Entebbe or Kampala via the equator
What the price covers
The fare pays for the permit, the beds and the car with its driver. Your flights and the tips are yours.
Included
- The gorilla permit
- Two nights' accommodation and meals
- Private 4x4 with a driver-guide
- Hotel or airport pickup
Not included
- International flights
- Tips for the guide, rangers and porters
- Your Uganda visa
- Personal expenses and drinks
Between us, before you go
Pack gardening gloves and long sleeves, since the trail goes through nettles and thorny vines. Keep some cash in small notes for a porter at the gate, who will carry your bag and pull you up the steep bits.
The same trip costs less on GetYourGuide, where it is new and has no reviews yet. Check both buttons before you pay, and look at how hard the trek can get if hills worry you.
Why it beats the cheaper trips
Evidence and ease. More than 200 Viator reviews add up to a 5.0, which no other gorilla trip in Uganda comes close to on either site. And because the permit sits inside the price, there is no second payment to chase. How the permit works explains why that matters.
What you give up is time in the forest. You spend far more hours in the car than with the gorillas, and the lodge is a stopover, not a destination.
Who we would not send on it
Travelers already in Rwanda, who will save two days on the Kigali day trip. Anyone who wants chimpanzees too, since the 5-day trip adds Kibale. And anyone under 15, because the park does not let them trek at all.
Book it if
You fly into Entebbe, have three days and want one trusted company to handle the permit, the lodge and the road. It suits first-timers and solo travelers, and couples who would rather not plan a single detail.
Skip it if
- Want it cheaper? Try Eco Adventure Safaris, from ~$1,860
- Based in Kigali? Take the one-day trip to Mgahinga
- Chimps too? Book the 5-day gorillas and chimps trip
- Worried about the climb? Read our fitness guide first
Ready for Bwindi?
The trip is on Viator (5.0 from 200+ reviews) and on GetYourGuide, where it is new. Viator lets you cancel for free up to 24 hours before; ask the operator early how they hold your permit date.
