Uganda gorilla trekking operator track record — 847 confirmed treks in 2025
In 2025, our team confirmed gorilla trekking permits for 847 individual clients across all four sectors of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park. That number — equivalent to more than two gorilla treks confirmed every single day of the year — represents both a significant volume of operational experience and a very large sample of client feedback from which we have learned, refined, and improved the booking and experience delivery process over the course of the year. Here is how the process works, what makes it reliable, and why the volume of confirmed treks in 2025 translates directly into better service for the clients we are booking for in 2026.
How we secure permits: the Uganda Wildlife Authority relationship
The reliability of our permit confirmation process depends fundamentally on our relationship with Uganda Wildlife Authority’s permit management team and on the systems we have built to access permit availability information in real time. We know which dates and sectors are available before most clients ask, because we monitor availability continuously and update our internal availability calendar on a schedule that lets us respond to permit enquiries with specific, accurate information rather than generic statements about “likely availability.” When a client enquires about a specific date, we are checking against a current availability picture, not making estimates.
The confirmation guarantee
Once a client has paid their deposit and we have submitted the permit booking to Uganda Wildlife Authority, the permit is confirmed and that confirmation is in writing from UWA within hours on a business day. We forward the UWA confirmation to the client the same day, so at no point does the client have a confirmed booking with us but uncertainty about whether the permit itself has been issued. The paper trail — deposit receipt, booking submission confirmation, UWA permit confirmation — exists from the first payment, and we maintain and share all of it with clients who want it.
What 847 confirmed treks taught us
Running 847 gorilla trekking bookings in a single year produces a detailed picture of the things that can go wrong and how to prevent them. A client who gets a cold on their trek morning and cannot trek — we know to have contingency permit options ready and to liaise with UWA on rescheduling. A client whose internal flight is delayed on trek morning — we know the road transfer logistics that can still get them to the forest gate in time for a later start. A client who misread the sector location and showed up at the wrong park gate — we know the fastest routing between sectors and can mobilise a response. These edge cases, accumulated over hundreds of confirmed treks, have made our operational procedures more robust and our ability to solve problems faster than a team with less volume of experience.
Client satisfaction: what the 2025 reviews show
Of the 847 clients who trekked gorillas with us in 2025, over 94 percent provided post-trek feedback that rated the overall experience as “excellent” on a five-point scale. The most consistently praised elements were the permit booking process (praised for speed and clarity), the accommodation recommendations (praised for quality relative to price), and the ranger guides (praised consistently and enthusiastically by virtually every client who commented). The specific areas where we received constructive feedback — transport timing in certain seasons, communication during the trek morning — have been addressed in our 2026 operational procedures.
847 confirmed treks in 2025. More than 2 per day. Every single one with a confirmed UWA permit before the client flew to Uganda. That is the track record behind the booking process we are offering you. Contact our team to add your trek to the 2026 tally.
