Best Time for Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda
Knowing the best time for gorilla trekking in Rwanda is one of the most relevant pieces of information to have before planning any gorilla tour to Rwanda. Visiting Rwanda to see mountain gorillas during the right time contributes a lot to your gorilla trekking experience. Rwanda is one of the three African countries that are home to mountain gorillas which is the only gorilla species that only survive in its natural habitat.
Mountain gorillas in Rwanda are only found in Volcanoes National Park with 10 habituated gorilla families for gorilla safaris. To see any of these families, travellers need to travel to Rwanda and participate in trekking through the forest to meet a family of the habituated gorillas. The long and short dry season is most preferably the best time for gorilla trekking in this land of a thousand hills. However, gorilla trekking in Rwanda is open all year round. The long dry season: The long dry season in Rwanda runs between June and September. This is also the peak season when many tourists visit the country for gorilla tours and therefore making early bookings is very important. During this time, the rains are less and apparently getting to the park and hiking the trails is much easier as the hiking trails are not muddy and slippery. Also during this period, there are fewer chances of rain which makes the gorilla trekking experience easier and memorable. Undertaking a Rwanda gorilla trekking safari during the long dry season offers the best experience and therefore reason enough for tourists to book their permits and make a percentage payment early enough at least 3 months in advance. Permit bookings can best be done through a Rwanda tour operator since this makes the process less complicated and easier. The short dry season: The short dry season in Rwanda is from December to February and is also considered a good time for trekking the endangered mountain gorillas in Volcanoes National Park. During this time, the park tends to be less crowded compared to the long dry season. In this season, the trails are also easy to access and also great for birding safaris since migratory birds are present during this time. The long and short dry seasons are preferably the best time to go gorilla trekking in Rwanda. However, gorilla tours in Rwanda are available all year round. The rainy season which is between April to May and October to November is usually not preferred for gorilla trekking. However, this is also the low season with few tourists visiting the park and therefore an opportunity to easily get permits even with last minute bookings. The other advantage of trekking gorillas in the rainy season is that many of the accommodation facilities offer discounted rates to travellers which makes it a perfect safari time for budget travellers. A gorilla trekking permit in Rwanda costs US$ 1500 for each traveller above the age of 15. However, between June to December 2020, Rwanda gorilla trekking tour permits have been discounted to US$ 200 for Rwandans and East African citizens residing in Rwanda and US$ 500 for foreign residents.Jewel Safaris offers well customized short and long gorilla trekking safaris, therefore book a tour with us and have very affordable yet memorable experiences. For more primate tracking experiences, chimpanzee trekking in Rwanda’s Nyungwe Forest National Park offers more memorable primate experiences. Mountain gorilla experiences can also be experienced on Uganda gorilla safaris or during gorilla trekking in Congo with cheaper gorilla permits compared to that of Rwanda. For wildlife experiences, take a unique Tanzania wildlife safari or Kenya safaris and visit the vast national parks in these countries that host millions of wildlife.