Top Luxury Activities to Explore in Bwindi
Visitors to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park enjoy delightful experiences and excellent services that exceed expectations. Top luxury activities to explore in Bwindi include gorilla trekking, gorilla habituation, bird watching, and Batwa cultural experiences. Bwindi, known for having the largest population of mountain gorillas in the world, is located in southwest Uganda within Bwindi Mgahinga Conservation Area. The park is easily accessible by road from Kigali or from Entebbe/Kampala in a single day. Alternatively, it can also be reached by plane from Kajjansi and Entebbe International Airport.
Luxury Activities to Explore in Bwindi
Gorilla trekking in Bwindi
Gorilla trekking is the leading adventure and authentic activity in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest that attracts visitors globally to come and witness the iconic mountain gorillas in their natural habitat. where 23 habituated gorillas are available for tourists. Gorilla trekking occurs in four areas: Nkuringo, Rushaga, Buhoma, and Ruhija. Visitors must have a gorilla permit from the Uganda Wildlife Authority to participate. Rangers provide a briefing on the rules and procedures before guiding trekkers into the jungle to find a specific mountain gorilla family. Locating the family can take 2-7 hours, depending on the group’s pace and location. Trekkers can also see other animals, like forest elephants, duikers, forest hogs, and other primates like blue, red-tailed, black and white colobus monkeys and bird watching. Once the gorillas are found, trekkers can spend one hour observing them and taking photos. Trekkers are allowed to spend one hour with them to observe their daily activities, social structures, take pictures, and discover more about their habits.
Bird watching
Bwindi offers over 350 bird species for bird watching, some of which are unique to the Bwindi Gorilla Park, while 23 are endemic to the Albertine region. Regal Sunbird, Rwenzori Batis, Black bee-eater, Handsome Francolin, Bar-tailed Trogon, Shelly’s Greenbul, African Wood Owl, Western Green Tinkerbird, African Broadbill, Kivu Ground Thrush, Dwarf honeyguide, Short-tailed warbler, Red-faced Woodland Warbler, Montane Oriole, Rwenzori Nightjar, Strange Weaver, Grey Cuckoo Shrike and Tit Hylia are just a few of the birds that can be seen in Bwindi gorilla park while birdwatching.
Gorilla Habituation in Bwindi
Gorilla habituation is one of the top luxury activities to explore in Bwindi, specifically in the Rushaga and Nkuringo areas. This 4-hour experience allows trekkers to spend more time with mountain gorillas. Gorilla habituation starts early in the morning with a briefing, and only four trekkers can join a semi-habituated gorilla family at a time, receiving guidelines on what to expect. Guided by armed ranger guides, trekkers, researchers, and conservationists search for their assigned gorilla group, which can take between two to seven hours. While looking for the gorillas, they might see other animals like primates and birds. Once a semi-habituated family is found, trekkers can spend four hours observing and interacting with them, taking photos and videos, and learning about their lives. This program helps acclimatize gorillas to human presence.
Batwa Cultural Experiences
Before the park was designated as a national park, the Batwa tribe lived in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Following their 1991 eviction from the Bwindi Forest, the Batwa people made the decision to relocate to the surrounding territories. The Batwa, commonly known as pygmies due to their physical appearance, spent most of their entire lives hunting and gathering fruits and honey from small animals in the dense forests of the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
Visiting the Batwa settlements will be led by the local guide, demonstrating to you how they used to live in the forest, hunt animals with bows and arrows, harvest fruits and honey, and collect honey. The Batwa people will take you to traditional healers commonly known as medicinal men who treat illnesses with herbs; you will witness how people live on various homesteads; you will visit gift shops; and the traditional dancers will entertain you.
A visit to the Batwa communities that are now around the park is led by a local guide who takes you around the park, showing you how they used to live in the forest, use bows and arrows to kill animals, collect honey and gather fruits. The Batwa people will take you to traditional healers who use plants to cure illnesses; you will visit different homesteads and see how people live their day-to-day life; you will visit gift shops and you will be entertained by the traditional dancers.
When to visit Bwindi Gorilla Park
After choosing Luxury activities to explore in Bwindi, consider the best time to visit the park. It can be visited all throughout the year because it’s always open. The park is good for visits in the dry season, which occurs from June to September and December to February. During the dry season, there is little or no rainfall, leaving the trekking trails dry, the vegetation is thin and scattered with clear views of the park animals and the roads leading to the park are in good condition.
During the wet season of March, May, and October to November, the park trails tend to be inaccessible with unclear views obstructed by the thick vegetation. All this brings about a scarcity of travellers, enabling visitors to enjoy big discounts on lodging facilities, thus referred to as the low season.
Accommodation choices in Bwindi
There are four sectors that offer exceptional accommodation options while engaging in luxury activities in Bwindi. These lodging options range from Luxury, mid-range to affordable options as well. These include:
Nkuringo sector
Lake Mulehe Gorilla Lodge, Clouds Mountain Gorilla Lodge, Virunga Campsite, Gorilla Heights Lodge, Bwindi Backpackers Lodge, Mutanda Eco Community Centre, Nshongi Camp, Crested Crane Bwindi Hotel and others.
Ruhija Sector
Gorilla Mist Camp, Agandi Lodge, Chameleon Hill Lodge, Ruhija Community Rest Camp, Bakiga Lodge, Gorilla Mist Camp, Broadbill Forest Camp, Ruhija Gorilla Friends Resort, Cuckoo Land Tented Lodge, Trekkers Tavern and Gift of Nature lodge to mention but a few.
Rushaga Sector
Lake Mulehe Gorilla Lodge, Four Gorillas Lodge, Rushaga Gorilla Camp, Bwindi Jungle Lodge, Gorilla Valley Lodge, Nsongi Camp, Rushaga Gorilla Resort, Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge, Eco Safari Lodge and Rushaga Gorilla Haven Lodge and others.
Buhoma sector
Buhoma Rest Camp, Engagi Lodge, Ride 4 Women Guest House, Sanctuary Gorilla Forest Camp, Bwindi Forest Lodge, Bwindi View Bandas, Haven Lodge, Mahogany Springs Lodge, Bwindi Forest Lodge, Silverback Lodge and Buhoma Lodge.
