Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Permits: Costs, Availability & How to Book

A gorilla trekking permit is the single most important document in East African travel — and the most misunderstood. Here is exactly how Rwanda’s system works.

The Cost

Rwanda charges US$1,500 per person per trek in Volcanoes National Park. The fee funds ranger teams, veterinary care and a 10% revenue share with surrounding communities — a model credited with growing the mountain gorilla population to over 1,000 individuals.

Why Permits Sell Out

Only 96 permits exist per day — eight visitors for each of twelve habituated families. In high season (June–September and December–February) the calendar fills six to nine months ahead. We hold provisional bookings for our guests while itineraries are finalised, which is the practical advantage of booking through a licensed operator.

What a Trek Is Actually Like

Treks begin at 7am from the Kinigi park headquarters. Depending on where your assigned family slept, you walk between 30 minutes and 4 hours through bamboo and hagenia forest, then spend exactly one hour with the gorillas. Porters (US$10, money straight into the local village) carry your bag and genuinely help on the muddy slopes.

Rwanda or Uganda?

Uganda’s permits cost US$800 — but the trade-offs are real. We compare driving times, trek difficulty and lodge quality honestly in Uganda vs Rwanda gorilla trekking.

Making It a Journey

Most guests combine the trek with golden monkeys, Nyungwe’s chimpanzees or a classic savannah safari — see our Rwanda destination guide and the Masai Mara guide for the most popular pairing. For the full planning picture, start with our step-by-step safari planning guide.

Ready to lock in dates? Enquire now — permit availability changes weekly.