{"id":14,"date":"2026-09-25T13:36:45","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T13:36:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/malengtravel.net\/?page_id=14"},"modified":"2026-09-25T13:36:45","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T13:36:45","slug":"gorilla-information","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/malengtravel.net\/?page_id=14","title":{"rendered":"Gorilla Information"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Mountain gorillas were only discovered in 1902 by Captain Robert von Beringe, and gained global attention through Dian Fossey&#8217;s lifelong research \u2014 depicted in the film <em>Gorillas in the Mist<\/em>. Unlike chimpanzees and humans, gorillas are not territorial: each family roams a defined home range overlapping two or three other groups. The Virunga Massif \u2014 8 national parks, 4 forest reserves and 3 wildlife reserves spanning Uganda, Rwanda and DR Congo \u2014 is home to all the world&#8217;s mountain gorillas, Grauer&#8217;s gorillas and chimpanzees.<\/p>\n<h3>Gorilla Parks<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (Uganda):<\/strong> a UNESCO World Heritage Site with over 400 mountain gorillas, 350 bird species and 120 mammals.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Mgahinga Gorilla National Park (Uganda):<\/strong> home of the Nyakagezi group and endangered golden monkeys; culturally significant to the Batwa pygmies.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Volcanoes National Park (Rwanda):<\/strong> Dian Fossey&#8217;s research site and the annual Kwita Izina baby-naming ceremony.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Virunga National Park (DR Congo):<\/strong> Africa&#8217;s oldest national park.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Gorilla Permit Fees (Bwindi &amp; Mgahinga)<\/h3>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Visitor Category<\/th>\n<th>Tracking (1 hour)<\/th>\n<th>Habituation (4 hours)<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Foreign Non-Resident<\/td>\n<td>$800<\/td>\n<td>$1,500<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Foreign Resident<\/td>\n<td>$700<\/td>\n<td>$1,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Rest of Africa<\/td>\n<td>$500<\/td>\n<td>$1,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>East African Citizen<\/td>\n<td>UGX 300,000<\/td>\n<td>UGX 750,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>Permits include park entrance, guide fee and community contribution.<\/p>\n<h3>Booking &amp; Payment<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Within 6 months: 100% payment required.<\/li>\n<li>Beyond 6 months: 50% deposit, balance due 90 days prior. Unpaid balances forfeit the booking.<\/li>\n<li>One free reschedule at least 14 days prior; further changes carry a 25% surcharge and must fall within 12 months of the original date.<\/li>\n<li>UWA refunds: 100% for illness confirmed by a warden or if gorillas cross to another country; 75% if there is no sighting after a full day of tracking.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Gorilla Etiquette &amp; Health Rules<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Maintain a 5-metre distance; no flash photography, pointing or sudden movements.<\/li>\n<li>Speak softly, stay in a tight group; no eating, drinking or smoking near gorillas.<\/li>\n<li>Masks are mandatory near gorillas to reduce disease risk.<\/li>\n<li>If charged: crouch, avoid eye contact, never run. Visits last one hour and can end early if gorillas are stressed.<\/li>\n<li>Feeling unwell? Stay behind \u2014 refunds or alternate visits are possible. Take out all trash.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Trek Practicalities<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Treks start at 8:00 a.m. sharp \u2014 late arrivals forfeit the permit and fee.<\/li>\n<li>Bring hiking boots, rain gear, hat, sunscreen and 1L of water; packed food is provided. Optional porter $30.<\/li>\n<li>Sedan chair option for guests with limited mobility \u2014 USD 300 per sedan, carried by trained porters.<\/li>\n<li>Stay near your designated gorilla family to minimise travel on tracking day.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em>10% of net profits from trek kits go to community projects and conservation. \u00a9 2025 Maleng Travel \u2014 Preserving Gorillas through Climate Friendly Travel.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a class=\"mt-btn mt-btn-dark\" href=\"\/wp-content\/themes\/maleng-travel\/assets\/docs\/gorilla-information-guide.pdf\" download>Download the full 2024\u20132026 Gorilla Guide (PDF)<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mountain gorillas were only discovered in 1902 by Captain Robert von Beringe, and gained global attention through Dian Fossey&#8217;s lifelong research \u2014 depicted in the film Gorillas in the Mist. Unlike chimpanzees and humans, gorillas are not territorial: each family roams a defined home range overlapping two or three other groups. The Virunga Massif \u2014 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-14","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/malengtravel.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/14","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/malengtravel.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/malengtravel.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/malengtravel.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/malengtravel.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/malengtravel.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/14\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/malengtravel.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}