The Great Apes

GORILLA & CHIMPANZEE TREKKING IN EAST AFRICA

Come face-to-face with Africa’s great apes in their forest, on their terms.

Tracking mountain gorillas in Rwanda or Uganda is one of the most powerful wildlife encounters on the continent. You hike through dense rainforest with experienced trackers, locate a habituated family, and spend one quiet, controlled hour in their presence.

Add chimpanzee trekking, and this becomes a layered primate journey — slower and grounded with gorillas, fast and vocal with chimps. Permits are limited. Access is regulated. This is deliberate, low-volume wildlife travel.

SPEAK TO AN EXPERT

UGANDA VS RWANDA - WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

Rwanda

Uganda

Main location

Volcanoes National Park

Bwindi Impenetrable Forest

Access

Easier access from Kigali (short transfers)

Longer drives, deeper wilderness feel

Terrain

Generally more open bamboo forest

Denser rainforest, steeper in parts

Permit cost

Higher

Lower

Experience style

More streamlined, luxury-focused

More rugged, immersive

Best for

Shorter trips, combining with Kenya/Tanzania

Guests wanting deeper forest atmosphere

More about Rwanda

More about Uganda

Both destinations strictly limit daily permits and group sizes (maximum 8 guests per gorilla family).
We secure all permits and handle logistics in advance

WHAT MAKES THIS EXPERIENCE DIFFERENT

This is not a game drive. There are no vehicles. No distance. No rush.

You move on foot with trackers who read the forest. When you reach the gorillas, the energy shifts, calm, curious, controlled. Chimpanzee trekking adds contrast. It’s faster. Louder. Less predictable. A strong addition in Kibale (Uganda) or Nyungwe (Rwanda).

For many travellers, this becomes the emotional high point of the entire safari.