How far in advance should I book my safari to Mgahinga national park?
How far in advance should I book my safari to Mgahinga national park?: Mgahinga national park continues to grow as a tourism destination every year. Ever since scientists discovered that mountain gorillas are close relatives to human beings lots of tourists want to encounter them. Travelers have added mountain gorilla trekking to their travel list with an aim of seeing the mountain gorillas with naked eyes and confirming that they are really close relatives to human beings.
Mountain gorillas can be seen in four national parks which are Mgahinga, Bwindi impenetrable forest, Virunga, and volcanoes. These national parks are found in Rwanda, DR Congo, and Uganda with thick vegetation cover which supports the life of mountain gorillas. Mgahinga national park is the smallest of all these national parks with a total area of 33.9 sq. km.
How far in advance should I book my safari to Mgahinga national park?
Mgahinga national park is located in the extreme southwestern corner of Uganda near Rwanda and DR Congo borders. The national park is home to mountain gorillas which are not seen all national parks apart from here and Bwindi impenetrable forest national park. Over 100 mountain gorilla species live in Mgahinga national park and 1 mountain gorilla family is up for trekking activities.
Nyakagezi is the only mountain gorilla family in Mgahinga national park with about 10 members. The mountain gorilla family is trekked by a maximum of 8 people according to the rules set by Uganda Wildlife Authority. If only 8 people can go gorilla trekking in Mgahinga national park it means 8 gorilla trekking permits are available.
Mgahinga national park is one of the most visited national parks in the mountain and tourists do visit the protected areas for mountain gorilla trekking and a few activities that take place in the park. With so many people visiting Mgahinga national park, today we are going to look at how far in advance should one book a gorilla safari?
Well, tourists who want to have a safari in Mgahinga national park must know that the park receives a maximum number of people for gorilla trekking almost every day. This calls for advance booking if you want to avoid last minute booking disappointments. Only 8 gorilla trekking permits means that the first 8 people will be lucky to get a chance of seeing mountain gorillas.
Tourists who want to have safaris in Mgahinga national park are advised to book 3 to 4 months or even more before the final day. 3 to 4 months or more there are chances of gorilla trekking permits to be still available however if you book at last minute, you will be so lucky if you find them available.
Early gorilla permit booking or a safari in Mgahinga national park is highly recommended more so if one wants to visit during the dry season/high season. During the high season, the park is full and gorilla permits do sell out quickly. Tourists can book their safaris in Mgahinga national park 2 months before the activity because permits don’t sell out so quickly since a few travelers are visiting the park due to bad weather conditions.
Early gorilla permit or safari booking in Mgahinga national park which is 3 to 4 months has a lot of benefits and below are the reasons you need to book a safari to Mgahinga Gorilla park.
To find gorilla permits still available
There are 8 gorilla trekking permits in Mgahinga national park on a daily basis. Uganda Wildlife Authority has only 8 gorilla permits for 1 mountain gorilla family in Mgahinga national park. This calls for early booking of the gorilla permits because if you delay you will find when they are all taken. 3 to 4 months before the final day, there are chances that the gorilla permits are not fully booked.
To get the best accommodation facilities of your choice and the price
Tourists who do advance safari bookings in Mgahinga national park do get an opportunity of finding the accommodation facilities of their choices still available. The local tour operators have best lodges they can book you on a safari but when you take long to book, the operator might find out the lodge rooms are sold out and you will be left with no choice but to look for space in other lodges.
Proper planning
Early safari booking in Mgahinga national park will enable tourists to do early planning for their safari. The travelers will have enough time to go shopping for different essentials needed on a safari in case they don’t have any. They will be having enough time to book their flight tickets in case they are outside the country and lastly, they will be able to get time and look at the different things they would have to do on a safari.
When is the best time to visit Mgahinga national park?
The dry season in June to September and December to February is the best period to have a safari in Mgahinga national park. This is because the weather is so good with little rainfall and plenty of sunshine. The vegetation is short with clear views of wildlife, trekking trails are dry and easier to navigate, and roads leading to the park from Kisoro are passable.
Tourists can still have safaris in Mgahinga national park in the rainy season from March to May and October to November because all activities are open. The rainy season is never the best for a safari however it does favor budget travelers who get discounted accommodation facilities and tour packages. The rainy season has plenty of rainfall that makes trekking trails muddy and slippery, vegetation is tall with unclear views of wildlife, and roads leading to the park are impassable.
