Duration
Full day
Difficulty
challenging
Departure
08:30 AM Daily
Group Size
Small Group / Private
Best Months
June · September
Volcanoes National Park Gorilla Trek
A trek starts at the park office in the early morning with a briefing and a guide.
The Expedition Narrative
A trek starts at the park office in the early morning with a briefing and a guide. You walk through farmland and then bamboo and forest, on steep and often muddy paths, to find a gorilla family. When you find them, you spend one hour with them from a safe distance. The search can take from 2 to 8 hours, depending on where the family is.
Permits are limited and expensive [ADD: current RDB permit price]. Visitors must be at least 15 years old and healthy, with no cold or other illness, because gorillas can catch human illness. The walk can be hard and wet, and porters are available and recommended. Sightings are very likely but never guaranteed.
Daily Itinerary & Travel Movement
Your step-by-step journey from departure point to arrival and return.
Early start
You leave your lodge early for the park office. Times are approximate.
Briefing
A guide briefs you on the rules and assigns a gorilla family.
Walk through the fields
You start on a path through farmland to the forest edge.
Climb into the forest
You climb steep, often muddy paths through bamboo and forest. Porters are available.
Find the gorilla family
The search takes 2 to 8 hours, depending on where the family is.
One hour with the gorillas
You spend one hour with the family from a safe distance.
Walk back
You walk back down the same way.
Return to your lodge
You return to your lodge.
Activity Specifications & At-A-Glance
Volcanoes National Park
East Africa Reserve
challenging
Comfortable Pace
Full day
Roundtrip Experience
100% Protected
Flexible Reschedule
Who This Experience Is Best For
Carefully designed to be seamless, comfortable, and tailored to diverse travel styles.
Equipment & Services Provided
What's included
What Travelers Should Bring
Recommended personal clothing, gear, and essentials for maximum comfort and safety during your experience.
Timing, Schedule & Pickup Protocol
Scheduled daily departure: 08:30 AM Daily.
June to September and December to February are drier and easier for walking. Gorillas can be tracked all year. The wet months from March to May and October to November are muddier. Permits are limited, so book well ahead. Pickup time: we confirm it by WhatsApp the evening before.
Exact hotel or resort pickup time is confirmed the evening before departure by your local safari coordinator via WhatsApp and verified at your hotel front desk.
Complimentary pickup from Stone Town and major coastal beach resorts across Zanzibar and Tanzania.
Frequently Asked Questions & Guarantees
What is the weather cancellation & reschedule policy?expand_more
Are park fees, permits, and conservation levies included?expand_more
How does hotel or lodge pickup work?expand_more
Price on request
Choose your date and guests and send an enquiry. We reply with the price and availability.
Custom Safari Coordination?
Our local desks can connect this excursion seamlessly with your lodge and safari transfers.
Complementary Experiences in Tanzania & Zanzibar
Half day (about 4 hours)Michamvi PingweLunch at The Rock Restaurant
The Rock is a restaurant built on a rock in the sea at Michamvi Pingwe, on the east coast. You arrive by a short boat ride at high tide, or on foot across the sand at low tide, and sit down to a seafood lunch with the water all around you. The menu is built on seafood with Zanzibar ingredients and an Italian touch: grilled seafood platters, lobster, the fish of the day and a coconut tiramisu. The tide decides how you arrive, so we check it before we set the time. Tables need a reservation, and we make it for you. Meals are paid at the restaurant, and the prices are higher than in the beach cafes. Many guests follow the lunch with a walk on the quiet beach at Pingwe.
Full dayBwindi Impenetrable National ParkBwindi Gorilla Trek
A trek starts early with a briefing and a guide. You walk through thick forest on steep paths to find a gorilla family, which can take from a couple of hours to most of a day. When you find them, you spend one hour with them from a safe distance. Porters can carry your bag. The walk can be hard, wet and muddy. Visitors must be at least 15 years old and healthy, with no cold or flu, because gorillas can catch human illness. Permits are limited and cost a lot [ADD: current UWA permit price]. Sightings are very likely but never guaranteed.
Full day (about 9 hours)Maasai Mara National ReserveMasai Mara Game Drive
A game drive day in the Masai Mara starts at sunrise and returns to camp for a late breakfast, with a second drive in the late afternoon. Lions, cheetahs and leopards are seen on most days, along with elephants, giraffes and large herds of zebra on open grassland. From about July to October the migration herds cross the Mara River, and the crossing sites can draw many vehicles. Private conservancies next to the reserve have fewer vehicles but cost more. Sightings are never guaranteed.