Discounted low season gorilla trekking permits in Uganda serve the sole purpose of increasing tourism in the wet season. The low season in tourism terms is a period when the country receives a low turnout in the number of visitors coming into the country. Following a board meeting of the directors of the Uganda Wildlife Authority, a decision was made to introduce discounted low season gorilla trekking permits.
The discounted low season gorilla trekking permits in Uganda took effect on the 1st of March 2026. The discounted low season permits are supposed to run indefinitely until new changes in pricing are made. These permits are generally to run in the low season for tourism, which happens to be the wet season.
The wet season can sometimes be a challenging season for gorilla trekking in Uganda, given that it is an outdoor activity and takes place in a mountainous area. Nevertheless, gorilla trekking can be done in the wet season. The wet seasons in Uganda are characterized by long rainy days and short sunny days.
Ideally, the wet season is presented as a rainy season, since there are high chances of rainfall. However, it does not always rain in the wet season all the time, as there are sometimes patterns of dry weather. Therefore, the wet season is also an ideal time to encounter mountain gorillas in Uganda.
What is the price for discounted low season gorilla permits in Uganda?
For a while now, gorilla trekking in Uganda has been rated relatively expensive and only for a few financially able travellers. As this may be the case, the discounted low season gorilla trekking permits in Uganda favour those travellers who may not be able to afford the standard gorilla trekking permit costs. The pricing for these discounted permits varies by nationality and origin of the clients. This is shown below;
- Foreign non-resident – USD 600
- Foreign residents – USD 500
- Rest of Africa – USD 500
- Ugandan and East Africans – UGX 300,000
It is very important to note that the discount on gorilla trekking permits for the low season is only on the price for international clients, also known as foreign non-residents and foreign residents. The cost for the gorilla permits for Uganda or East Africans and those from the rest of Africa does not change. By reducing the price of a standard gorilla permit by over 20%, there is already a promising increase in visitors booking gorilla trekking permits for the low season.
How to purchase discounted low season gorilla permits in Uganda?
The process of purchasing discounted low season gorilla permits in Uganda is not any different from buying the standard gorilla permits. Purchasing discounted low season gorilla permits can only be done through the Uganda Wildlife Authority using a trusted local tour company like Standard Safaris.
All discounted low season gorilla permits are issued by the Uganda Wildlife Authority. The purpose of purchasing the low season gorilla permits through a tour company is to close any gaps in fraud. All eligible tour companies that purchase gorilla permits are registered with the Uganda Wildlife Authority and licensed by the Uganda Tourism Board. Their company license numbers can be requested by the clients before doing business with them.
After the clients have confirmed the trekking dates, they are checked for availability. Only 8 visitors are allowed to trek a single gorilla family per day, thus 8 available permits daily. Hence, finding a trekking date can also be tricky, but with the low season, availability is almost assured. The payment then follows after confirming the availability of the desired trekking dates of the clients. The tour operator then purchases the gorilla permit from UWA, and a scanned copy is sent to the client as confirmation of the purchase.
Why were discounted low season gorilla permits introduced in Uganda?
In the early months of 2026, Uganda, through its wildlife authority, introduced discounted low season gorilla permits. These permits were introduced for several reasons, including the following.
Boosting tourism in the low season
The low season in Uganda has for a while been overlooked, especially for gorilla trekking. This is mainly because of the challenging conditions dominated by wet weather. However, the price for the gorilla trekking permit is similar to that of the peak/high season, which is the dry season. This brought a debate about why trekking gorillas in challenging conditions can be done, yet not in more favorable conditions at the same price.
Therefore, this debate was settled with the introduction of discounted low season gorilla trekking permits. This new introduction of these gorilla permits has helped to boost tourism in the low season. This is because the discounted low season gorilla permits only operate in the low season, also known as the wet season.
Affordability of the gorilla permit
The cost of gorilla permits for standard gorilla trekking has been a bit high for some visitors. In a move to make gorilla trekking affordable for even budget travellers, the country introduced discounted gorilla trekking permits. These discounted gorilla trekking permits were introduced for affordability and allow financially average visitors to encounter mountain gorillas.
Trekking gorillas in the low season using discounted permits in Uganda takes place in the months of March, April, May, October, and November. The country hosts mountain gorillas in two gorilla destinations of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park.
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is the ultimate gorilla trekking destination in the world, hosting the largest gorilla population. About 460 gorillas are housed here, with approximately 50 gorilla families. Only about half of these gorilla families are habituated and available for trekking. The mountain gorillas are scattered across the four different gorilla sectors of Buhoma, Ruhija, Nkuringo, and Rushaga. Bwindi’s position as a gorilla destination earned it recognition as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1994, three years after its establishment.
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park follows behind Bwindi as a second home for the endangered mountain gorillas, with over 100 permits. Established in 1991, it is the smallest protected area in the country with just a land mass of about 33.9 square kilometers. However, what it lacks in size, it makes up for in adventure by adding other rare permits, the golden monkeys, to its collection of mountain gorillas.
