Situated in the southwest of Uganda, Bwindi Gorilla Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that offers a variety of safari activities for tourists. The highly endangered mountain gorillas that inhabit the national park are said to have 98% human DNA, making them our closest living relatives. Due to the high mountain gorilla population in the world, Bwindi Gorilla Park has gained international recognition. After it was gazetted in 1991, the park currently accommodates 51 reptile species, 10 primates, 120 mammal species, 350 bird species, and mountain gorillas. The most popular activities in Bwindi Gorilla Park are mountain gorilla trekking and acclimatization, but other pursuits like birdwatching, cultural exchanges, and nature hikes are also available.
Activities to do in Bwindi Gorilla Park
The most popular tour activity in the four park sectors of Bwindi Gorilla Park is gorilla trekking. The 19 gorilla families in the park are the locations for gorilla trekking, which begins early in the morning. Trekking with gorillas begins at the sector headquarters, where trekkers are briefed by wardens on the guidelines for the activity. Trekkers are led into the jungle by armed ranger guides until they come face to face with the mountain gorillas. Trekking with mountain gorillas takes two to seven hours. Once the trekkers find the apes, they get an hour to spend with them, observe their daily routines, learn about their habits, and snap pictures.
Activities to do in Bwindi Gorilla Park
Gorilla habituation: This is an exceptional activity carried out only in Bwindi Gorilla Park. Gorilla habituation involves tourists searching for mountain gorillas and allowing them four hours to get used to human presence. In Bwindi Gorilla Park, one can undertake gorilla trekking in the Rushaga and Nkuringo sectors, which are home to the Bushaho and Bikingi gorilla families. Four trekkers, supported by researchers, conservationists, and armed ranger guides, complete the process of gorilla habituation.
The gorilla habituation program begins early in the morning at the sector offices with a briefing from park wardens who explain the guidelines and policies of the program. Armed ranger rangers then accompany the trekkers for the duration of the journey. Finding mountain gorillas involves walking through trekking routes and coming across various park animals, birds, and primates.
Depending on the type of trekking trail and the pace of the hikers, the gorilla habituation exercise might take anywhere from two to seven hours. Trekkers are allowed four hours to spend with the mountain gorillas after they have identified the semi-habituated family. During this time, they can take pictures, see the gorillas’ daily routines, including hunting, nesting, nursing, and climbing, and much more. It will be taught to trekkers how to acclimate mountain gorillas to human presence.
Birding is one of the tourism attractions at the Bwindi Gorilla National Park. Many birds visit the park, which is home to over 350 different bird species; the majority of these birds combine birdwatching with gorilla trekking. Armed range rangers lead the birding excursions, leading birders through several birding routes, particularly in the Buhoma and Ruhija sectors.
Engaging in bird watching activities at Bwindi Gorilla Park exposes visitors to a variety of birds, including African wood owl, shirt-tailed warbler, western green tinkerbird, hit hylia, strip-breasted sunbird, Rwenzori nightjar, black bee-eater, bar-tailed trogon, chestnut-throated apalis, grey cuckoo-shrike, dwarf honeyguide, regal sunbird, hit hylia, blue-headed sunbird, chapin’s flycatcher, and montane oriole, among other birds.
Visits to the Batwa community is yet another thrilling activity offered by the Bwindi Gorilla Park. The Batwa people were the original inhabitants of Bwindi Gorilla Park, but when they attempted to gazete Bwindi Gorilla Park in 1991, the government drove them out. Batwa people live at the borders of the forest park and to visit them you are led by the local guides.
When you visit the Batwa people, they show you around the forest and demonstrate various uses of the indigenous herbs, such as using bows and arrows to kill small animals and curing ailments. You will visit various community homesteads, socialize with the locals, participate in everyday activities, and harvest food.
Nature walks: The greatest way to experience the dense tropical forests of Bwindi Gorilla Park is through nature hikes. The Munyanga Waterfall Trail, the Ivy River Walk, the Rushura Trail, the Kashasha Trail, the Muzubijiro Loop Trail, and many more are among the several nature walk paths in Bwindi. Visitors to Bwindi Gorilla Park have the chance to witness some of the park’s mammals, primates, and birds on the nature walks.
When should I travel to the Bwindi Gorilla Park?
While Bwindi Gorilla Park is open to visitors year-round, some months are better than others for tourism. The greatest times to visit this park are during the drier months, which are June through September and December through February. These months are distinguished by little to no rainfall. The trekking routes are dry, the foliage is brief, providing good views of the Bwindi fauna, and the park’s roads are passable during the dry months.
During the rainy seasons of March through May and October through November, travelers can still visit the Bwindi Gorilla Park and take advantage of discounts on accommodation facilities. But during the rainy season, there is plenty of rainfall, which makes the hiking trails muddy and slippery, the tall vegetation which hinders clear views of the park’s animals, and the roads leading there are impassable.