Booking Rwanda gorilla trekking Safari holiday from Australia

Are you in Australia and planning to trek mountain gorillas in Rwanda? Here are step-by-step guidelines on how to book the Rwanda gorilla trekking safari holiday from Australia. There is no doubt that Rwanda is ranked number one when it comes to the activity of visiting mountain gorillas in their natural habitat. Rwanda is among three countries in the whole world where we have the few remaining individuals of mountain gorillas. Australia and Rwanda are far apart and sometimes, you need to search online to get a tour operator to assist you with booking a Gorilla trekking holiday to Rwanda from Australia.

Are you based in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, or Adelaide and you want to book your Rwanda gorilla tour from your home city? The answer is yes if you follow the below step-by-step guidelines.

Best practices of booking Rwanda gorilla safari holidays from Australia

As soon as you get an idea in your head that you need to plan a Rwanda gorilla trek from Australia, below are the things you should do to save time and money.

1. Search for a tour operator online
2. Find out how to book your gorilla permit
3. Find out flights from Australia to Rwanda
4. Best time to book your Rwanda gorilla trek from Australia
5. Best Lodge for your overnight stay while in Volcanoes National Park
6. How far is it to drive from the Airport to Volcanoes National Park

Uganda/Rwanda tour operator to assist you in Planning

Getting a tour operator to assist you in planning your safari holiday to visit mountain gorillas in Rwanda is easy when you search online. Many tour operators offer safaris to Rwanda to trek mountain gorillas and you will definitely be spoilt of choice of Local tour operators you will find if you search online. Further note that, an online search will bring as many results as possible but you need to make sure that the tour operator you finally zero on is genuine, credible, and licensed to conduct Safaris in Rwanda. It is this local tour operator that will assist with checking gorilla permit availability, reserving and securing them, organizing your accommodation plus all transport to and from Volcanoes National Park. There so many reasons why you should use a local tour operator. One of the reasons is that they are based in East Africa and as such contacting relevant offices such as the Rwanda Development board is easy. If it means walking to their offices, they will do it. By contacting Local tour Operators Like Encounter Africa Safaris, you are eliminating middlemen as well.

Qualities of a Good Local tour operator to handle your Rwanda safari holiday

Most Gorilla safaris from Australia to Rwanda to see habituated mountain gorillas are conducted by Tour operators in Rwanda and Uganda. As earlier noted, you will find so many of these online but below is how you can know who is genuine or not.

Is the selected Local Tour operator Licensed?

The said Tour operator must be Licensed by Uganda Tourism Board for Uganda tour operators and Rwanda Development board for Rwanda tour operators. If this tour Operator is based in Uganda, make sure that they are members of AUTO (Association of Uganda Tour Operators). By utilizing such tour operators, you will rest assured that you are dealing with credible tour operators recognized by respective governments of Uganda and Rwanda to conduct safaris in Rwanda for Australians. Feel free to send an email or call Rwanda Development board, AUTO or Uganda Tourism Board about the tour operator you are about to use and they will gladly provide you with information to that effect.

Checkout trip advisor and safari bookings reviews

A credible local tour operator can be judged by the nature of online trip advisor or safari booking reviews online. Take time to visit trip advisor pages of the selected tour operators and read through to establish if clients handled before were satisfied. These reviews will also show you if this tour operator is still active and conducting safaris to Rwanda from any town in Australia by looking at the latest reviews. Trip advisor reviews are opinions of independent travels who at one time used services or booked tours with the local tour operator in question. Find out if it is true that this company has been successfully executing Gorilla trips to Rwanda. Trip advisor reviews will show you how office staff handled inquiries as well as how activities were arranged and also levels of safari guides employed by such a company.

Trip advisor and safari bookings have an option of emailing or calling these clients that left reviews. To be sure, you can select some clients mostly from Australia who left reviews and write to them to ask for their opinion about the said company. By doing so, you will be sure that the company you are about to employ is genuine or not.

Booking your Rwanda gorilla trekking safari holiday from Australia through Encounter Africa safaris

Are you looking for a credible tour operator to handle your Gorilla tour to Rwanda to visit mountain gorillas in Volcanoes from any city in Australia? Encounter Africa safaris specialize in primate safaris to Uganda, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo, and wildlife safaris to Tanzania and Uganda. We have been doing this for the last 15 years and our records and trip advisor reviews speak for themselves. We provide the most relevant information about primate safaris including where to see mountain gorillas in Africa and Rwanda, how to book gorilla permits, information about the age limit for gorilla trekking, how to get to Volcanoes National Park and so much more. We have a team of office safari designers who will not only respond to your emails instantly but will provide timely and accurate information to assist you in planning your Rwanda gorilla trekking safari holiday from Australia. Our Rwanda safari guides are among the best in the region and will make sure that your gorilla trekking experience in Rwanda is worth the money.

Encounter Africa safaris is recognized by Rwanda Development Board to conduct safaris all around Rwanda. We are fully licensed by UTB and are members of AUTO. We are highly reviewed on trip advisor and safari booking so our record of organizing amazing Rwanda gorilla trekking experiences is unchallenged. We work closely with the Rwanda Development board meaning that booking your gorilla permits is easy.

Encounter Africa will book your Rwanda gorilla permit

The first thing to do when planning a gorilla safari tour to Rwanda from Melbourne, Sydney, or Perth is to secure your Rwanda gorilla permit. A gorilla permit is what gives you permission to see mountain gorillas in Rwanda. It is possible to book your Rwanda gorilla permit directly through the Rwanda development board but this sometimes wastes your time. When contacted, Encounter Africa safaris will assist you in checking the availability of gorilla permits, inform you, and then assist in securing them once payment is made to us. As evidence, we will send you scanned copies of gorilla permits for your records. For us to secure your gorilla permits, we will invoice you for the amount which can be paid by credit card or wire transfer. After payment, we request you to send us proof of payment so that we can use our credit to secure your gorilla permits. You can only be guaranteed trekking gorillas in Rwanda only if you secure your gorilla permit with payment. Gorilla permits in Rwanda are issued out on first come first serve with cash/payment.

A gorilla permit in Rwanda costs $1500 per person and this includes one hour with mountain gorillas in Volcanoes National Park, security while on the trek, park entrance fees for volcanoes National Park and services of a ranger guide who will be with you in the forest. This price looks expensive but it does not include transport to and from Volcanoes National Park as well as your overnight accommodation before and after your gorilla trek. Encounter Africa safaris will assist in arranging your accommodation and transport.

When you pay $1500 to visit mountain gorillas in Volcanoes National Park, you should know that you have directly contributed to the conservation of the endangered great apes in Rwanda. Part of this money is used to pay salaries of employees of the Rwanda Development board, Volcanoes National Park rangers and guides plus a fraction goes to community projects around Volcanoes National Park.

Organizing your overnight accommodation in Volcanoes National Park

After securing your Rwanda gorilla permit, the next planning step is to secure where you will stay in Kigali and Volcanoes National Park. Depending on your arrival time in Rwanda, you may be forced to spend a night in Capital city Kigali. As a requirement for Covid 19, everyone is supposed to book a night in Kigali where Covid 19 tests are done before being allowed to proceed to volcanoes National Park for gorilla trekking. There so many Lodges around Volcanoes National Park and depending on your budget, Encounter Africa safaris will assist you in selecting the best option for you. Tell us whether you are a luxury or budget travel and we will align you with a lodge that suites your interest and budget. Encounter Africa safaris has been working closely with Rwanda lodges and sometimes, these lodges extend some discounts which you will benefit from. Benefit from this by booking an all-inclusive Rwanda gorilla trekking holiday from Australia through Encounter Africa safaris.

Airport transfers and transport to Volcanoes National Park

You need transfers from the Airport to your overnight Hotel in Kigali and then transport from Kigali to and Volcanoes National Park before and after your gorilla trek. Encounter Africa safaris operate a fleet of Luxury Safari Land Cruisers and Safari Van to cater for High end and Budget travelers that contact us. All our vehicles are driven by well trained and professional safari guides knowledgeable in Rwanda’s flora, fauna and culture. Fuel is always included as well as drinking water.

Best time to book your Rwanda gorilla safari from Australia

Rwanda is the number one destination for gorilla trekking in the world, meaning that gorilla permits tend to sell out quickly. While Rwanda is the most expensive for the price of gorilla permits and accommodation, those who have trekked mountain gorillas here will tell you that it is worth it. Besides that, Rwanda is highly marketed and known all over the world which makes her attract many tourists. We, therefore, advise you to start planning your Rwanda gorilla safari holiday a year in advance. Make sure that your gorilla permit is secured most especially if you plan to visit in high season. While this is true, Encounter Africa safaris can assist you in booking your gorilla trek on short notice as long as services are still available. Are you looking for a last minutes gorilla safari holiday to enjoy time with habituated mountain gorillas in Volcanoes National Park, get on email and send us a message and we will be able to arrange it for you as long as we find availability of services including Rwanda gorilla permits.

Gorilla trekking age limit in Volcanoes National Park

Many families prefer travelling with their children and prefer doing all activities with them. It should be noted that children below the age of 15 are prohibited from visiting or trekking mountain gorillas in Volcanoes National Park. To enforce this, Rwanda development board always ensures that each person who book a gorilla permit to visit mountain gorillas in Volcanoes National Park must provide passport details to confirm if he/she is 15 years and above. If planning a Rwanda gorilla holiday from Australia, it is important to know that children below the age of 15 will not be allowed to join you for gorilla trekking. If you must come with your children to Rwanda, Encounter Africa safaris can arrange alternative activities for them while you go gorilla trekking in the forest. For proper planning, kindly contact us in advance for suggestions in relation to activities for children in Rwanda.

Options available for booking Rwanda gorilla safaris during Covid 19

Rwanda government has been so flexible when it comes to cancellations due to Covid 19. At the moment, if it so happens that one needs to cancel his or her tour, Rwanda development board is willing to reschedule gorilla permits to new dates to ensure that there is a win-win situation. If you book tours and gorilla permits through Encounter Africa safaris, we will ensure that your gorilla permits are rescheduled to future dates and money paid to Lodges kept as Credit. For more information about rescheduling Rwanda gorilla permits, please contact us.

About Volcanoes National Park

Volcanoes National Park is one of the four areas in Africa where mountain gorillas call home. It is in the Virunga ranges where it shares boarders with Mgahinga National Park on the Uganda side and Virunga National Park in The Democratic Republic of Congo. Volcanoes National Park houses 10 habituated mountain gorillas open for gorilla trekking daily. Each Gorilla family is visited by 8 people meaning that 80 gorilla permits are available daily for gorilla trekking. A gorilla permit to see mountain gorillas in Volcanoes National Park costs $1500 per person per trek and are issued out on first come first serve. Volcanoes National Park is about 2-3 hours from Kigali city making it easy to access it. While in Volcanoes National Park, you can as well decide to add on Golden monkey trekking on top of your gorilla trek.