This is for all the safari lovers out there in the world, if gorilla trekking ever cross your mind, never look further than Rwanda within Volcanoes National Park. The visit to this park is a superb opportunity that highly rewards with up close habituation of the endangered species, thrills of several hikes in the rain forest. Keep in mind that all these can only be seen after booking your own gorilla permit as early as possible since many people are on a quest for them at same time , this is common during the peak seasons.
There are two ways of acquiring your gorilla permit to view the endangered apes in their favorite homes of the rain forests;
First way
Through RDB (Rwanda Development Board), this is the foremost organization handling tourism in Rwanda. Gorilla permits can be booked at the RDB Tourism and Conservation Reservation Office in person, by use of Telephone which is +252 57 65 14 or even via Email: reservation@rwandatourism.com.
A gorilla trekking permit in Rwanda costs $1,500 per person per day.
Second way
The other way to acquire a gorilla permit is through a travel agency like the use of tour operators, these are several with in Rwanda and they are reliable in all matters of serving you. It is very advisable to book your permit in time so as to allow yourself be off pressure for the gorillas. Since only 8 people are allowed per group to visit one given gorilla family in just one hour, it is a full picture to show you that competition is big for gorilla viewing and its best if you book your permit in time to be guaranteed of your favorite time to do the trekking in Rwanda.
It should be noted however, that only people with 16 years and above are the only ones to get a permit, that’s why it is important to go with your passport details at the park headquarters just to crosscheck with the permit to confirm that the permit belongs to you.
Visitors are expected to be at Kinigi Park Headquarters by 7am early morning, at least the latest should be 8:30 am to be briefed about everything in the trekking session. People who are found unfit or ill are not allowed to trek at this very point, and normally RDB refunds only 50% of the gorilla trekking fee to those who make it a point to move to the park.