Mgahinga gorillas National Park is one of the few places in the world where you can see the endangered mountain gorillas. Volcanoes national park in Rwanda is another place where these primates can be found for trekking. While at Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda you can choose to trek gorillas from volcanoes national park found in Rwanda. Though here are reasons why we think you should cross the borders and go to Mgahinga of Uganda instead of Volcanoes.
We have considered different factors and come to conclusion that it is economically viable to go Mgahinga for gorilla trekking over volcanoes even though visiting Mgahinga requires you to cross the border. Here are our expert views.
Permit prices-gorilla trekking at Mgahinga over volcanoes
Going for gorilla trekking requires you to have acquired a permit from the authorized bodies. This is done to protect these endangered species as one of the conservation efforts in place. However different countries charge different prices. This is one reason why we advise you to do gorilla trekking at Mgahinga instead of Volcanoes.
Uganda gorilla permit goes for 800 dollars, and they can be reserved at Uganda wildlife authority. Mgahinga is one of the two parks in Uganda where you can see gorillas. Other being Bwindi impenetrable national park. Both found in western Uganda near Congo borders. Therefore, going for gorilla trekking at Mgahinga, the gorilla permit will cost you 800 dollars due to the park being in Uganda
On the other hand, Rwanda gorilla permit will go at 1,500 dollars. The permits for Rwanda gorilla trekking are reserved at Rwanda Development board. Gorillas in Rwanda are found at Volcanoes national park located in Virunga ranges. This is the same location where Mgahinga is found still on the Congo borders
Considering the prices of trekking permits for both parks you will find that there is 700 dollars difference in favour of Mgahinga National Park. Which will help you to save over 40% of your savings on permit cost by choosing Mgahinga
A chance to visit 2 countries with one visa
Kigali is Rwanda’s capital city while Mgahinga is found in southwest Uganda. On top of that, once you are in Rwanda on tourism visa, you will not be required to have another visa to cross to Uganda. Therefore, booking Mgahinga as your destination for gorilla trekking from Kigali, Rwanda come with the chance of visiting two east African country on one tour visa. Where else will you get this chance? Just choose Mgahinga for this added advantage.
The distance from Kigali-gorilla trekking at Mgahinga over volcanoes
The distance from Kigali to Volcanoes national park is approximately 105 kilometres. This makes a 2 to 3 hours’ drive to the park for from Kigali.
Whereas the distance from Kigali to Mgahinga national park is approximately 122 kilometres. This makes it a 2-to-3-hour drive journey from Kigali to the park. Almost the same amount of time needed to drive to volcanoes
Number of gorilla trekkers per day-gorilla trekking at Mgahinga over volcanoes
Volcanoes national park has 12 gorilla families open for tourism. Every family is allowed a maximum of 8 people (trekkers) a day. This means on a peak day the park receives 96 trekkers per day and that will make your adventure so congested.
On the other hand, Mgahinga has only one habituated gorilla family that is open for tourism. The same rule of 8 people per gorilla group still applies. This means a maximum of only 8 trekkers can visit Mgahinga national park.
Therefore, visiting Mgahinga will give you space to have a clear view and enjoying your adventure with limited competition for space as the park will be sparsely populated.
Terrains-gorilla trekking at Mgahinga over volcanoes
Unlike Bwindi national park which is a forest reserve with the congested terrain, both Mgahinga and Volcanoes national parks have a clear terrain will clear trails. This gives a clear view of gorillas and other primate that are found within both parks. This will leave you with a breathtaking experience of these parks
Conclusion
Both volcanoes and Mgahinga are good destination for gorilla safari. However economically you should consider going to Mgahinga over Volcanoes as it will enable you to save over 50 % of your gorilla safari budget. You will als be getting a better experience including visiting two countries on the same visa while spending almost the same time on your memorable adventure safari.
