Gorillas are found within ten countries in Africa.
Countries of Gorilla distribution
The Western gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) live in 8 countries: Nigeria, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea (Río Muni), Gabon, Republic of Congo and Angola (Cabinda).
The Eastern gorillas (Gorilla beringei) live in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in Uganda and Rwanda.
There are several destinations where gorillas are found. Gorillas are found in 10 countries;
- Uganda
- Rwanda
- Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly called Zaire)
- Republic of Congo (Brazaville)
- Angola
- Cameroon
- Equatorial Guinea
- Gabon
- Nigeria
With only around 1000 mountain gorillas left in the world, meeting them in their natural wild is one of the life time experiences that one should not miss. On your holiday in Africa, you can take up the opportunity to visit these magical creatures by booking a gorilla safari in one of the few countries where these apes live.
Rated among the best adventures in Africa, gorilla tracking is done in three main countries; Uganda hosting mountain gorillas Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga National Park, Rwanda hosting mountain gorillas in Volcanoes National Park and the Democratic Republic of Congo boasting of both mountain gorillas and lowland gorillas.
There are two parks in Uganda where gorilla tracking activities take palace that is: the Mgahinga Gorilla National Park and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Mgahinga is positioned on the extreme southwest corner of Uganda on the slopes of the Virunga Mountains. It borders the DRC and Rwanda. The park only covers 28 square miles and gorilla tracking is its main activity together with Golden Monkey tracking. Bwindi is Located in the south-western Uganda and is home to about half of the remaining mountain gorillas. The park covers about 200 square miles, while in this park; you can also do Bird watching, Community walks, Forest walk and so many other activities depending on the time flame.
Rwanda has one park in the North of the country encompassing its share of the mountain gorilla population: the Volcanoes National Park or Parc National des Volcans (PNV). The park covers an area of about 46 square miles and encompasses six volcanoes. While in PNV, you can do gorilla tracking which is the main activity, together with Golden monkey tracking and hiking safaris.
The DRC also has a section of the Virunga Mountains Park called the Parc National des Virunga.
To track these close relatives of Man kind, you need to book in advance before your tracking date, 3-2 months of booking time is required, so that you can secure a permit with any of the tour operators in these three countries.