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how to book Uganda gorilla permit is one of Africa’s most extraordinary wildlife experiences, connecting travellers with mountain gorillas in their natural forest habitat. To book a Uganda gorilla permit, choose your dates and sector first, check availability, then pay the full price through the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) or a licensed Ugandan tour operator. Only after that should you book a lodge in the same sector. A permit costs US$800 for foreign non-residents, or US$600 in April, May and November. It is issued in your name for one date and one sector. This guide walks through each step in the order that avoids the most common, and most expensive, mistakes.
For prices by residency, what the permit includes and the cancellation terms, see our main guide to the Uganda gorilla permit.
How to Book a Uganda Gorilla Permit Step by Step
Step 1: Choose your dates
Start with the window you can travel in, then work out the trek date within it. Do not plan to trek the day after a long-haul flight: allow at least one night in Entebbe and a travel day to the park. Treks run every day of the year.
The busiest months are June to September and December to February, when you should book three to six months ahead, or earlier for groups or a specific sector. In April, May and November, permits cost US$600 and a few weeks’ notice is often enough. Pick one or two backup dates in case your first choice is full.
Step 2: Choose the sector
Gorilla permits are sold for a specific sector of Bwindi, Buhoma, Ruhija, Rushaga or Nkuringo, or for Mgahinga. Every sector has the same price and the same one-hour visit, but they differ in terrain, access and lodges. Buhoma, in the north, is easiest to reach by air via Kihihi and has the widest lodge choice. Rushaga, in the south, has the most families and is closest to Kigali. Nkuringo is steep and dramatic, Ruhija is high and cool, and Mgahinga has one family that sometimes ranges into Rwanda.
Choose the sector that fits the rest of your route. Coming from Queen Elizabeth National Park, Buhoma is closest. Coming from Kigali or Lake Bunyonyi, the southern sectors make more sense. See our comparison of Bwindi’s gorilla families and sectors.
Step 3: Decide how to book
You can buy directly from UWA, through its online booking system or reservations office at its headquarters in Kamwokya, Kampala. This means paying only the permit price, but you must then arrange transport and lodging to match the date yourself. Most visitors book through a licensed Ugandan tour operator, who checks availability across sectors, buys the permit at face value and builds the trip around it.
Either way, the permit price is the same. Be wary of anyone offering “discounted” non-resident permits or asking you to pay for a permit into a personal account. Ask any operator to show the permit price separately in the quote and to send a copy of the permit once it is issued.
Step 4: Send your details and pay
Permits are personal, so you will need each trekker’s full name, nationality and passport number exactly as in the passport, plus age if anyone is young, since the minimum age is 15. UWA does not hold dates on a deposit: the date is secured only when the full permit price is paid. Operators often ask for a deposit on the whole trip, but they still have to pay UWA in full to secure the permit, so check that they have done so.
If you pay UWA directly by international bank transfer, allow several working days for the funds to arrive and include the booking reference. Card payment may be available through the online system or at the Kampala office.
Step 5: Receive and check the permit
Once payment clears, you or your operator receive the permit showing your name, date and sector. Check every detail. If you renew your passport before travelling, ask for the permit to be updated. Keep a printed and digital copy, and carry your passport on trek day, as rangers check identity at the briefing.
Step 6: Book your lodge and transport
Now book a lodge in or close to your permit’s sector. Bwindi’s sectors are far apart by road, and on trek morning you must be at the briefing by about 7:30 am, so a lodge in the wrong sector can mean a pre-dawn drive of two hours or more. Then book flights or road transfers to arrive at least the afternoon before your trek. Our guide to lodges near Bwindi lists options by sector.
Booking the Habituation Experience
The Gorilla Habituation Experience, about four hours with a family still being habituated, is booked the same way but on a separate, scarcer permit in the Rushaga sector. It costs US$1,500, rising to US$1,800 in 2027, and only four visitors go each day per family, so book it before anything else.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. You can book directly with the Uganda Wildlife Authority online or at its Kampala office, then arrange transport and lodging yourself.
Three to six months for June–September and December–February; a few weeks is often enough in April, May and November.
Each trekker’s full name, nationality and passport number as in the passport, and full payment of the permit price.
The permit. Then book a lodge in the same sector, because the sectors are hours apart by road.
