The Top 5 Things to see and do in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park include; Gorilla Trekking Safaris – Golden Monkey Trekking – Batwa Cultural Tours – Volcano Climbing – And birdwatching.
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is one of Uganda’s smallest National Park located further south of the country and is home to 80 mountain Gorillas with only one (01) habituated gorilla group open for the traditional 01-hour gorilla trekking experience. Mgahinga gorilla trekking permits cost $800 each. Besides mountain gorilla Trekking, Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is the only place one can go for Golden Monkey trekking in Uganda – Golden Monkey permits in Mgahinga Park cost $60 per person.
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is also home to three (03) volcanoes; Muhabura, Sabinyo, and Gahinga which make for good hiking experiences along popular trails like Sabinyo Gorge Trail, Border trails, and the famous Batwa Trail – the trail of the pygmy people of the forest.
Things to see & do in Mgahinga National Park.
- Gorilla Trekking or tracking:
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park offers what we call the best Small group Gorilla trekking experience. There are 80 mountain gorillas in this park but just one (01) habituated mountain gorilla family Nyakagezi Gorilla Family – with nine (10) members led by silverback Mark. Gorilla Trekking In Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is the perfect replica of Gorilla Trekking in Volcanoes National Park although a lot cheaper than Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda. Mgahinga Gorilla permits cost $800 unlike Rwanda gorilla permits that cost USD1,500 – for the price of one (01) Rwanda Gorilla Permit, one can go on an all Inclusive 3 Day Budget Uganda Gorilla Safari
- Golden Monkey trekking or tracking
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is one of the two places (Volcanoes National Park & Mgahinga Gorilla National Park) in Africa where one can trek Golden Monkeys. Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is still considered the best place to trek golden Monkeys in Africa. Golden Uganda Golden Monkey permits cost $60 per person, unlike Rwanda Golden Monkey permits which cost USD100. Similar to mountain gorillas and chimpanzees, golden monkey families visited in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park undergo habituation – a 2+ year process of preparing them for trekking, and therefore will not shy away from humans – enjoy your photography.
- Batwa Forest Trail
The Batwa originally inhabited the present day Mgahinga Gorilla National Park not until 1991 when the forest was gazetted as a National Park leading to their expulsion from the forest. They have since adapted to living outside the park and have taken on a new lifestyle of agriculture, dancing, and art and craft to earn a living outside of their original home. The Batwa Forest trail helps you learn more about them and all proceeds from this walk go to building schools, medical facilities, and general wellbeing of the Batwa communities. The guides themselves are local Batwa Pygmies meaning they will give you an in-depth experience.
- Volcano Climbing or Hiking
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is made up of three (03) Volcanoes collectively known as the “Mufumbiro Mountains” a local phrase used to mean “mountains that cook”. The three (03) Virunga volcanos found in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park include; Muhabura, Sabinyo & Gahinga. All these can be hiked on a 02 – 05 Hour hiking experience – Minimal levels of fitness are recommended for all persons intending to hike any one of these volcanoes.
Some gorgeous trails not to Miss hiking while in Mgahinga include; the Sabinyo Gorge Trail, and the Congolese border trails. If you have some EXTRA days at Mgahinga Gorilla Park, please don’t miss visiting the Batwa on a locally guided Batwa Experiential hike that visits the famous Garama Cave – 342 Meters wide – once a hiding place or the Batwa during times of war.
- Bird watching or Twitching
The entire Virunga conservation area has well over 250 bird species recorded. Mgahinga Gorilla National Park owns a record of 115 bird species – making Mgahinga Park a worth a visit for persons keen on Birding In Uganda.
Bird watching In Mgahinga Gorilla National Park can be done all year round in the park; But the best time, however, is April to mid-May, and October to November. There are migratory birds in the park between November to April. Gorilla Trekking In Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is best done in the drier season (June – August) this, however, is also the peak season for tourism in Uganda so please make it a point to plan your gorilla trip well in advance to avoid missing out on gorilla Permits.
Getting to Mgahinga Gorilla National Park.
Whilst all the top things to see and do in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park have been mentioned, we think it is important for us to also talk about possible ways one can access this small gem of a park located in the southern corner of Uganda.
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is best accessed through Kigali; Fly into Kigali – drive 3 – 4 hours (including border crossing time) arriving at your Uganda Gorilla Safari accommodation in time for lunch (that’s if you leave Kigali at 7:30 am Rwanda’s – Central African time.
Other Alternative ways of getting to Mgahinga Gorilla National Park:
Fly into Uganda through Entebbe – stay overnight at a hotel in Entebbe – take an early local flight with Aero Link Uganda and fly to Kisoro where a Realm Africa Safaris™ representative will pick you up and transfer you to your Gorilla Safari accommodation in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park.
Driving from Entebbe to Mgahinga Gorilla National park is yet another way of getting to Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, however, the downside is that you will lose up to 10 hours driving between Entebbe and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park. We usually discourage this unless you have EXTRA days that allow for us to break the drive into two bits. Ideally, if you have the time, we like to drive from Entebbe to Lake Mburo National Park overnight and then start the second bit the next day. Driving from Entebbe to Lake Mburo National park requires 5 hours depending on traffic, and Lake Mburo National Park to Mgahinga require 4 – 5 hours.
