Uganda gorilla trekking with chimpanzees in Kibale
Uganda lets you track mountain gorillas in Bwindi and chimpanzees in Kibale on one trip. Two of our five tours do both, at ~$2,350 over five days and ~$3,429 over eight. Below is how the two forests compare and what each trip includes.
Two apes, two different mornings
A gorilla visit and a chimp walk feel nothing alike. Mountain gorillas in Bwindi tend to sit and feed on the ground, so your hour with them is mostly quiet watching from one spot.
Chimpanzees in Kibale move fast and often high in the trees. You follow their calls and sometimes hurry to keep up, and the group may vanish into the canopy and reappear further on.
Seeing both gives you two sides of the great apes in one trip. Our guide to Bwindi and Mgahinga covers the gorilla parks; this page is about adding Kibale.
The trips that cover both
Two of our five tours build chimpanzees into the route. The table sets them beside our pick, which visits gorillas only, so you can see what the extra days buy.
| Tour | From | Days | Wildlife | Permits | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adventure In The Wild Safari | ~$2,350 | 5 | Gorillas in Bwindi, chimps in Kibale | Gorilla and chimp permits included | 5.0 from 26 (Viator) |
| Home To Africa, 8-day safari | ~$3,429 | 8 | Gorillas, chimps, rhinos at Ziwa, Murchison Falls | Gorilla and chimp permits included | 5.0 from 84 (Viator) |
| Dav Safaris (our pick) | ~$2,600 | 3 | Gorillas in Bwindi | Gorilla permit included | 5.0 from 200+ (Viator) |
All three are private trips sold on Viator. The two longer ones have far fewer reviews than our pick, which matters when you are trusting an operator with five or eight days.
The 5-day trip with both permits
Adventure In The Wild Safari's 5-day trip at ~$2,350 is the one on this site built around both apes. Its Viator listing names gorilla permits and chimpanzee permits as included, along with accommodation.
Pickup is at your hotel or the airport, and the operator asks for your flight details when you book. The listing leaves out the visa and international flights, so budget for those separately.
It rates 5.0 from 26 reviews on Viator. That is a strong score on a small base, so read what reviewers say about the driving and the lodges before you commit.
For gorillas and chimps on one booking
Adventure In The Wild Safari's five days, with both permits and accommodation in the price and pickup at your hotel or the airport. Visas and international flights are yours to arrange.
What the chimp permit buys in Kibale
Kibale Forest National Park is Uganda's main place for chimpanzee tracking. A chimp permit there costs $250, set by the UWA, and the fee can change, so check it before paying.
The walk lasts a few hours with a habituated chimpanzee community, meaning a group used to people following it. As with gorillas, a sighting is likely but never certain, and the animals decide where the morning goes.
On the 5-day trip both permits sit inside the price. Paid separately, the two would come to $1,050 per person, so hold that figure against the 3-day gorilla trips, which carry only the $800 permit.
The catch with five days
Kibale lies well north of Bwindi, and the trip starts from Kampala or Entebbe besides. Expect more days in the car than on a 3-day gorilla run, with long drives between the two forests.
The second catch is evidence. Twenty-six reviews is a thin record next to the 200+ behind our pick, so the score tells you less. If a proven operator matters most to you, a gorilla-only trip may serve you better.
Eight days with rhinos and a waterfall
Home To Africa Tours and Travel's 8-day safari at ~$3,429 adds more than chimps. It takes in rhino tracking at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary and a boat trip at Murchison Falls as well as Kibale and Bwindi.
Home To Africa lists all meals and accommodation, a 4x4 and an English-speaking driver-guide on a private trip. It holds 5.0 from 84 reviews on Viator.
Its inclusions name a gorilla trekking permit and a chimp tracking permit for each traveler, so nothing big is left to add beyond the visa and tips. This is also the highest price and the longest trip on the site.
Which one fits your trip
If you have five days and want both apes without fuss, Adventure In The Wild Safari is the direct answer. The tour 4 summary on the home page lists it next to the others.
If you can spare eight days for a full safari loop, Home To Africa covers far more ground. With only three or four days, a gorilla-only trip such as our pick is the calmer choice, and our cost guide compares all five prices.
Chimps are not the only way to stretch a gorilla trip. If one hour with a family sounds short, the four-hour habituation visit in Bwindi costs $1,500, and none of our five tours includes it.
Based in Rwanda instead, with little time? The day trip from Kigali to Mgahinga is the fastest gorilla option, though it leaves no room for chimps.
Planning both treks
Both walks start with a ranger and an early briefing. Expect similar rules about distance and illness in Kibale, and read our page on gorilla trekking rules to see why they exist.
The drier months, roughly June to August and December to February, make both trails easier underfoot. Gorilla permits sell out first then, so book a multi-park trip early, as our guide to the best time explains.
Pack once for both forests. Long sleeves and gloves help in either, and our packing list works for Kibale as well as Bwindi.