Low season discounted gorilla and chimpanzee permits in Uganda.
Low season discounted gorilla and chimpanzee permits in Uganda: Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) has introduced the discounted gorilla trekking permits, offered during the low season months of April, May, and November. This update has been followed by a revised tariff that will be effective on 1st July 2026. The newly introduced low season permits are not bound to rescheduling
The prices for gorilla trekking have reduced from $800 to $600 foreign non-residents and from $700 to $500 for foreign residents. These discounted permits for Bwindi Impenetrable and Mgahinga National Parks are aimed at increasing visitor numbers during the rainy season of the mentioned months since the visitors are always few during these months. These rates are to take immediate effect while maintaining Uganda’s exceptional primate trekking experience, this has called for suspension of the 7-day reservation (which simply means; permits can no longer be held for 7 days without payment, requiring full payment on reserving).
The New Discounted Permit Prices for The Low Season.
The prices of the new discounted permit prices were aimed at increasing the visitors’ numbers during the wet/rainy season in Uganda. They only apply to the given months which are; April, May, and November which are the discounted months for the low season, they DONOT apply to any other months. Contact your tour operator or UWA helpline to be guided on how to book your low season permits.
Gorilla trekking permits were discounted to $600 for the foreign non residents and $500 for the foreign residents, making a reduction of $200 helping guests save up for other tourist activities.
Chimpanzee tracking was discounted to $200 for foreign residents and $150 for foreign residents
The Standard Permit Price for the Peak Season (Separate from the Low Season).
These permit prices apply to the normal seasons for purchasing gorilla permits which means aside from the given months of the low season which are April, May, and November, during the other months the price remains as usual.
Gorilla trekking permits are purchased at $800 for foreign non residents and $700 for foreign residents
Chimpanzee tracking permits are purchased at $250 for foreign non residents and $200 for foreign residents
How to book for the low season discounted permit prices?
Any trekking/tracking permit MUST be booked through a trusted and unfailing tour operator in that particular destination where you intend to make your visit. Booking a permit through a tour operator/company is highly recommended because it makes the whole process easier and less challenging. Booking with a local tour operator saves you the money and time involved to go through the tiring steps to secure a permit.
Booking permits for the low season in Uganda is easy if you contact Bujuku Eco Tour. We are a registered and licensed safari company/tour operator with offices based in Uganda. We don’t only stop at booking permits, but we also go extra mile to tailor your entire trip. While booking your permit is the beginning stagei8 of planning your remarkable adventure, on top of it, we can also reserve accommodation, transportation, and doing everything else for a successful trip. You can talk to the team at Bujuku Eco Tours and Travel to help you start the process via email or WhatsApp: +256785982744 or +256757203420.
Places To Go for Gorilla Trekking in Uganda
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Bwindi impenetrable national park is found in the southwestern part of Uganda in the districts of Kanungu, kabale and Kisoro. Bwindi is home to a total of 459 gorillas inhabiting the remaining worlds mountain gorillas. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park gives you a lifetime opportunity to have a close-up encounter with a group of the endangered mountain gorillas.
Different gorilla groups are open for tourism and these include; Buhoma, Nkuringo, Ruhija, and Rushaga. Gorilla trekking in Bwindi is only done once a day with a maximum number of 8 pax per session per gorilla group. This activity involves trekking deep the Bwindi forest looking for the gorilla family and spending only one hour with these great apes
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is situated in the southwestern corner of Uganda, within the Kisoro District. It sits on the border with Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The park is approximately 510 km from Kampala and sits at an altitude between 2,227 and 4,127 meters. This is the smallest national park in Uganda covering a total land area of 33.7 km2. It was gazetted in the year 1991 and is part of the Virunga massifs.
In Mgahinga national park, the Nyakagezi group is the only habituated gorilla group tourists should expect to visit. Just like in Bwindi, a maximum of 8 pax are allowed to trek the group with an experienced ranger guide. Visitors are assured of an up close of one-hour full hour after successfully locating the gorillas.
Places To Go for Chimpanzee Tracking in Uganda
Kibale National Park
Kibale national park is famous as the “Primate Capital of the world”. It is located in the western part of Uganda in the districts of Kamwenge and Kabarole. Kibale national park covers a total land area of 795 km2. The park has the highest density of primates in East Africa, with about 1,500 habituated chimpanzees available for tracking, along with 12 other primate species, including red colobus monkey, olive baboon, L’hoest monkey, black and white colobus monkey
Kyambura Gorge is known as the “Valley of Apes”. It is a 100-meter deep and 11-km long gorge found the in northeastern part of Queen Elizabeth National Park in Uganda. Famous for its exceptional lowered underground forest ecosystem, it is the only place in the park to go for chimpanzee tracking and offers birdwatching, nature walks, and breathtaking savanna scenery.
Kalinzu Forest Reserve is located in Bushenyi District in western Uganda near Queen Elizabeth National Park, it is one of the major eco-tourism destinations renowned for chimpanzee tracking. Kalinzu forest reserve covers an area of 147 km2, this biodiverse forest hosts over 400 tree species, 378 bird species, and 6 primate species, including the habituated chimpanzees.
Budongo Forest
Budongo Forest is a 435 km² tropical rainforest in Uganda, located on the escarpment northeast of Lake Albert within the Murchison Falls conservation area. As East Africa’s largest mahogany forest, it is well-known for hosting over 600 chimpanzees—with a habituated community for tracking—along with 360+ bird species, 24 mammals, and 290+ butterfly species.
Bugoma Forest
Bugoma Forest is a 41,144-hectare protected tropical rainforest in Hoima District western Uganda. The forest was gazetted in 1932. It is a critical biodiversity hotspot, home to over 580 chimpanzees, Ugandan mangabeys, and 225+ bird species. The forest is currently under threat from illegal logging, charcoal burning and, most significantly, large-scale sugar cane plantation encroachment.
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