Best places to go for gorilla trekking in 2024

The best places to go for gorilla trekking in 2024 are in Uganda and Rwanda. Mountain gorilla trekking in one of the best African tropical jungles is one of the activities that should not miss out on your 2024 bucket list.

However, when planning a gorilla trekking safari in 2024 ensure that your prime destination is safe. Gorilla trekking is such a beautiful adventure and choosing the best place or national park to trek is very important.

Currently, since the end of 2023 Congo has been unsafe for gorilla trekking due to security instability that was followed by the eruption of the Nyiragongo Volcano, therefore the Virunga National Park is not open yet for Congo gorilla trekking. Africa is home to the world’s only remaining mountain gorillas living in their natural habitats.

Where to go gorilla trekking in Uganda – Best places to go for gorilla trekking in 2024

Uganda has two (2) national parks or conservation areas within the dense tropical forests where mountain gorillas are conserved within their natural habitat. Both parks situated in the western part of Uganda have habituated gorilla groups that tourists can trek safely

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is located in southwestern Uganda. The park is part of the Impenetrable Bwindi Forest. It is located along the Congo border next to Virunga National Park, on the edge of the western Rift Valley. The jungle forests cover 331 square kilometers and contain both montane and lowland forest and are accessible only on foot.

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is home to almost 550 mountain gorillas which is almost half of the world’s remaining mountain gorillas.

About 19 gorilla families are fully habituated and can be trekked on Uganda gorilla tours. Minimum age of 15 is allowed to trek mountain gorillas in Bwindi and 8 people trek a single gorilla family.

Mgahinga Gorilla National Park

Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is Uganda’s smallest national park and home to mountain gorillas with 1 habituated gorilla family known as the Nyakagezi gorilla group.

The park is located in Southwestern Uganda. Tracking the Nyakagezi gorilla group is amazing with the fact that this group is big and social compared to many other habituated gorilla groups.

Volcanoes National Park – Best places to go for gorilla trekking in 2024

Volcanoes National Park well known as Parc National des Volcans is located in the north-western province of Rwanda in a small town known as Musanze.

The park harbors the endangered Mountain Gorillas of Rwanda that are always available for tourists who would love to carry out Rwanda gorilla tours. Volcanoes National Park borders Congo’s Virunga National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in south-western Uganda.

Volcanoes National Park has several habituated mountain gorillas and is known to be easier to trek than the Bwindi gorilla population.

Mountain gorillas of Rwanda are known to move for shorter distances and therefore this makes them easier to trek than those of Bwindi who move for longer distances and make trekking difficult.

To see the elusive mountain gorillas in these natural habitats, tourists have to go gorilla trekking/walking or hiking in the dense tropical rainforests.