Safari journal

Everything here is written by the people who run the trips. Guides, drivers and planners who were in the park last week. We publish when there is something worth saying, which means fewer articles than a content calendar would produce and none of them written to fill a slot.

Most of it answers what guests actually ask us. When gorilla permits go on sale. What the Mara looks like in April. Whether a six year old will cope with a long day in a vehicle.

Trekkers on a steep forest trail in Bwindi

22 June 20268 minute read

How hard is gorilla trekking, really?

Uganda Wildlife Authority puts a gorilla trek at two to seven hours and describes the fitness required as moderate. The difficulty is the ground rather than the distance: steep, wet forest at altitude, at the trackers' pace, with no fixed turnaround point.

By The Mnyansio safari desk

Porters on a forest trail in the Virunga foothills

19 June 20267 minute read

Gorilla trekking with limited mobility

You can trek gorillas with limited mobility, but only Rwanda publishes a policy: Volcanoes National Park staff offer an arm to lean on, or a stretcher for wheelchair users. Uganda's sedan chair is not a UWA product and appears in no tariff, so a carried trek there is a private arrangement.

By The Mnyansio safari desk

A village on the edge of the gorilla forest

17 June 20267 minute read

Where your gorilla permit money actually goes

Rwanda's RDB states that 10% of gorilla permit revenue goes to community revenue-sharing. Uganda's UWA publishes no percentage — only that its USD 800 permit (USD 600 in April, May and November) covers the guide fee, park entrance for the day and a community development contribution.

By The Mnyansio safari desk

15 June 20268 minute read

The chimpanzee habituation experience in Kibale

Kibale's chimpanzee habituation experience is a USD 300 Uganda Wildlife Authority permit that buys up to four hours with a chimp community from a 6:30am start, rather than the single hour a standard USD 250 tracking permit allows. It rises to USD 400 on 1 January 2027.

By The Mnyansio safari desk

A golden monkey in the bamboo zone of the Virungas

13 June 20267 minute read

Golden monkey trekking in Mgahinga and Volcanoes

Golden monkey trekking is a guided walk to a habituated troop in the Virunga bamboo. Two parks sell it: Mgahinga in Uganda, where UWA charges foreign non-residents USD 60 for the permit, and Volcanoes in Rwanda, where RDB charges USD 100.

By The Mnyansio safari desk

A chimpanzee in the canopy of Kibale Forest

11 June 20268 minute read

Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale: what it costs and what you see

A Kibale chimpanzee permit costs USD 250 for foreign non-residents, USD 200 in April, May and November, and USD 300 from 1 January 2027. It includes park entrance, a guide and one hour with the chimps. UWA reports over 90% sighting success; low-season permits cannot be rescheduled.

By The Mnyansio safari desk

A ranger leading trekkers into the forest

8 June 20268 minute read

What actually happens on a gorilla trek, hour by hour

In Uganda you report to a park entry point for a briefing, track from 8:00am with UWA guides, walk anywhere from two to seven hours, then get a strict maximum of one hour with the gorillas in a group of no more than eight. Here is the whole day, in order.

By The Mnyansio safari desk

The forested ridges of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest

6 June 20267 minute read

The four sectors of Bwindi, and which one to trek from

No Bwindi sector is officially "best". Buhoma, Ruhija, Rushaga and Nkuringo are UWA's four designated entry points, the permit costs the same at all four, and UWA's brochure count puts most habituated groups at the two southern trailheads. Choose on groups, terrain and route.

By The Mnyansio safari desk

A young mountain gorilla with its family group

2 June 20267 minute read

The gorilla trekking age limit, and what to do if your child is younger

The minimum age for gorilla trekking is 15, in Uganda and Rwanda alike. It is a permit condition set by UWA and RDB, not a guide's call on the day. Uganda's chimpanzee minimum is unsettled: the 2024 UWA guidelines say 12, UWA's Kibale page says 16. If your child is under age, here is how to plan.

By The Mnyansio safari desk

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Safari journal

Articles tagged Uganda

How hard is gorilla trekking, really?

Gorilla trekking with limited mobility

Where your gorilla permit money actually goes

The chimpanzee habituation experience in Kibale

Golden monkey trekking in Mgahinga and Volcanoes

Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale: what it costs and what you see

What actually happens on a gorilla trek, hour by hour

The four sectors of Bwindi, and which one to trek from

The gorilla trekking age limit, and what to do if your child is younger

Reading this because you are actually going