Best Three Gorilla Tours Companies
Before choosing a gorilla tours company to organise your Uganda or Rwanda trek, keep in mind that it can all be done by you without them because the permits are issued and the guiding done by government tourism organisations in each country.
But if you don't want the logistical hassle of organising the permits, transportation to the gorilla national park, food and accommodation yourself then it's worth it to pay a little bit extra for a top gorilla tours operator to take care of all that for you. And if you are planning to visit other parts of the country in addition to spending time with the largest primate on earth, then a good gorilla trekking company becomes particularly important because they will organise that for you too. So how do you effectively choose between the large number of safari companies (there are over 57 registered with the Association of Uganda Tour Operators already) all vying for the opportunity to take you on the trek of a lifetime? You've got two options... - Follow these guidelines to selecting a good safari company which will help you sift through all the choices available and avoid the bad seeds.
- Use the top three list of gorilla tours operators that I have compiled below after using the guidelines, trip reports and reviews by past gorilla trek participants, forum postings and consensus in the travel industry.
- Volcanoes Safaris
This company owns accommodation close to all three mountain gorillas tour parks and they have been doing safaris in Uganda since 1997 and Rwanda since 2000. They cater to the deluxe end of the market and garner positive reviews from people who go on a gorilla trek with them.
- Great Lakes Safaris
A small company with a staff of 15 that believes the guide makes all the difference on a safari. Been in operation since 2001 after being founded by Amos Weseka. Good reviews about the company for gorilla safaris.
- African Pearl Safaris
Incorporated in 1992, this company owns a camp called Buhoma Homestead inside the Bwindi impenetrable National park to accommodate tourists. The company is managed by Azarias Baryaruha with a staff complement of ten and based in Kampala Uganda.
No two safari companies have exactly the same itinerary for their gorilla tour so it's pretty difficult to compare prices but what you can do is work out how much it would cost you to organise your own trek and compare that to their rates. The rates that I use as an example here are for a barebones (no luxuries, community run budget accommodation), independently organised one day gorilla safari in Uganda (you will obviously be in the country longer than one day but you can extrapolate the costs roughly). Prices are for the 2007/08 season, quoted in USD per person. The cost is very similar to Rwanda and will be approximately 500 (permit), 50 (taxi transport from Kampala), 30 (one night accommodation), 25 (food and drinks) giving a total of US$605.
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