When you forget your gorilla trekking date. What happens?

October 23, 2015

When you forget your gorilla trekking date. What happens?

Forgetting is human but when you forget your gorilla trekking date, what happens? When you book your gorilla trekking permit, there are records in the system that go with the gorilla permit when you book it. In case you contact Uganda Wildlife Authority or Rwanda Development Board before the date of trekking, these details are in the system and can be considered like the client’s name, date of trekking, company you book with gorilla trekking safari, and others. This information can be retrieved from the system.

When you travel to the park headquarters to check for the day when you hope to do gorilla trekking, your records may not be in the system as yet because it’s generated from headquarters in Kampala. If you are not sure about the date when you hope to do gorilla trekking but forgot the date, in Uganda you need to consider the area where your gorilla permit is booked to reserve accommodation.

Most Popular Safaris

Uganda gorilla trekking permits for Bwindi Impenetrable National park are booked according to area that is Buhoma area, Rushaga area, Ruhijah area, and Nkuringo area. Each of these areas is located far from another making the drive quite challenging especially when the weather changes. The severe wet seasons come with slippery roads, trees falling to block the roads, and others. These huddles make crossing from one area to another challenging.

In case you miss the briefing on the day of trekking, you may be disqualified from attending gorilla trekking. The gorilla trekking general guidelines are found on brochures and all over the internet but particular gorilla families have traits that are specifically given on the day of trekking. This is one reason why you must attend a briefing before any gorilla trekking adventure

When you present you gorilla trekking card in Uganda, this date can be retrieved from the strip when the card is passed in the card-reading machine

When Is The best Time For Booking Gorilla Trekking Safari

All year round you can book gorilla trekking safari but you must reserve your gorilla permit in advance first. One year to 6 months in advance of the gorilla trekking date is very safe because you can also be considered to buy the permits in installments as long as you remember to top up 90 days to the gorilla trekking date

The peak seasons that is June to September and December to January are most sought after by those wishing to do gorilla trekking. This is because the mountain gorillas are feeding closer to the ground and the life of other forest dwellers like birds, and butterflies is in high spirits too. During this season, the rains are less although with the Virunga area it rains any time without warning.

With the low season that is March to May and November, those wishing to close off the gorilla trekking families can easily do it this time. There are less tourists booked on most of the gorilla families so its easier to close off for exclusive gorilla trekking experience.

For filming crews and professional photographing of mountain gorillas in the wilderness, the low season has space for you to have the best locations. There are no people to obstruct you from capturing the best shots or positions or moments when the mountain gorillas are showcasing there day to day life.

During the peak season gorilla family allocation is done randomly considering the capability of participants’ age and others but with the low season you have a high chance of making a choice of what you wish to see

The low seasons may come with discounted prices in services like accommodation, vehicle hire, and driver guide fees which may give you chance to use high-end facilities on a limited budget.

How To Book Gorilla Trekking Permits

Identify the date when you wish to do gorilla trekking and the number of people included in your safari party.

When you send us an enquiry, our safari consultant checks availability status per your date and gets back to you. Incase its positive, we advise our clients to purchase there permits as soon as possible to avoid last minute panic when demand is high.

In Uganda, we advise our clients to note the area where your gorilla permits is booked so that accommodation to be reserved for the gorilla trekking safari must be close or with in this area. This is to avoid rising up early to drive long distance to another area and attend briefing. The way is hazardous at times, which may lead you to be disqualified from gorilla trekking.

For accommodation to book for Rwanda gorilla trekking, Kinigi area has a number facilities but you can also overnight in Kigali city but you need a very early morning drive to catch up with gorilla trekking briefing in Volcanoes National Park. The drive from Kigali city to Volcanoes National park is about 3 hours.

After booking the Uganda gorilla trekking permits, you are required to provide some personal details like your full names per your passport, nationality, date of birth, passport expiry date and others.

What Is the Cost Of Gorilla Trekking Tour

The gorilla permit cost of the universal price to consider during gorilla trekking safari because it is charged with all safari Packages. Whether luxury, mid-range or budget, gorilla trekking permit is is the same. In Uganda the gorilla permit costs $700 per person per day as of now while Rwanda gorilla permit cost is $1500 per person per day as of now.

Other factors to consider for the cost of gorilla trekking safari are.

Number of other activities to combine with gorilla trekking. Some of these activities include chimpanzee trekking, game drives, launch trips, birding, mountaineering and others. The more activities you combine with gorilla trekking, the higher the cost of safari package.

Number of days on safari also determine a lot on the total cost of gorilla trekking safaris that is the more days the higher the cost of gorilla trekking quotation. Most of the services included in the safari quotation are charged per day. The more days on safari the higher the safari quotation.

Timing of booking the gorilla trekking tours matters a lot on the gross quotation where by the peak season prices for all safari amenities are high because of high demand even from other safari activities like game drives, chimpanzee trekking, birding and others. The low seasons may call for discounted rates from service providers like accommodation, driver guides because few people are booking.

Number of people travelling with to do gorilla trekking safari where by the more paying people on safari the less the cost of safari per person. As solo traveler on gorilla trekking safari, you carry the entire burden of paying for the entire gorilla trekking package. When you share the cost with others’ you can share the cost of some safari amenities like driver guide fees, vehicle hire, gas and others.

The gorilla trekking times also matter the more times you trek the mountain gorillas, the higher the safari cost. Sometimes having just one hour in the presence of the mountain gorillas may not be enough so you need a second gorilla trekking date. The higher the cost of gorilla trekking.

What Is The Age limit For Gorilla Trekking Safari

The age limit for gorilla trekking permit booking is 15 years and above. This is because of a number of factors

The time taken to locate the mountain gorillas is unknown, which makes gorilla trekking uncertain. This is because of the uncontrolled movement of mountain gorillas in the wilderness. They meander in the forest searching for a meal for the day. This makes the time of returning from the wilderness hard to predict. A child below this age may not with stand the long hours of searching for the mountain gorillas.

The first glance at these gentle giants may stimulate some adrenaline which may not go well with the mountain gorillas that are suspicious of foreigners in there presence. This reaction may agitate the mountain gorillas causing them to move into hiding. Clients are advised not to show freight when in front of the mountain gorillas. A child below 15 years may find it hard to contain there nerves.

Trails leading to the mountain gorillas are slippery at times and on slopes which requires some level of fitness to get there. You need to have some fitness for this hike to the slopes where mountain gorillas are feeding or lounging. A child below this age may get tired of hiking and give up on the trek.

Sometimes the mountain gorillas tease there visitors which may not go well with a child below 15 years. This is because they keep testing the resilience of there visitors to there provocative moves. A child below this age may not be in position to withstand those moves. At times the mountain gorillas may want to touch there visitors or there gardgets.

Noise making when in the wilderness is forbidden but a child below 15 years may not stay long without communicating what is hurting them like hunger, insect bites and much more. Most forest dwellers including the mountain gorillas may not with stand unfamiliar noise.

How Safe Is Gorilla Trekking Safari

Mountain gorillas are serene primates despite their sheer size and huge body structure covered in bark fur and deep sunken eyes in the socket. The area where they live is so far safe in Uganda and Rwanda that is Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Mgahinga National park, and Volcanoes National Park.

You need to be safe yourself by taking caution

Do not travel with precious items like jewels on your Africa safari to do gorilla trekking. You may loose it in the wilderness yet the forest is too vast to trace anything pricy like that. At the lodge, declare the valuable items to the lodge manager so that they are kept in the safe in case the lodge has one.

Carry some cash on you to exchange into local currency and use to purchase what you need on ground so that you do not need to use foreign currency. Even credit cards are rarely used in Africa because of the lengthy procedure of acquiring money them from. Even when your card is used, ensure you leave no one you do not trust with your credit card details.

Stay closer to your gorilla trekking group in the wilderness so that you are not lost when the rest move. The ranger guide follows the pace of the slowest trekkers but you need to keep abreast with the rest .

Eating street food may not be safe but request your driver guide to take you to designated places where you may not get food poisoning

In case you have children on safari, be in the know where they may be any time so that they don’t get lost in case they meander away.

Move with your identification documents in case you are lost because there are no street labels in the wilderness or the even in major towns of most African countries. Remember your accommodation facility name too for easier tracing of where you have to go.

Bring the right gorilla trekking gears like safari boots that can with stand the wilderness and soggy trails. These are to protect you from jungle rough surfaces.

How Difficult Is Gorilla Trekking

The mountain gorilla habitat is generally volcanic with highland like plateaus, ridges and more. Sometimes the mountain gorillas spend there day on the slopes.

You have to be with some level of fitness to locate the mountain gorillas in this area. Even some times the mountain gorillas feed fur in the deeper ends of the park so you need to trace them.

The Virunga area is filled with tangled vegetation that drapes from the tree branches finding it quite challenging to go through them. The ranger guide has to use a machete to trace the mountain gorillas in these locations.

This however doesn’t mean a person who is having physical disability cannot trek the mountain gorillas. There are sedan chairs or stretchers for you to hire.