Gorilla permit tips - Uganda

Reading the lonely planet entries and some postings here on thorntree concerning gorilla permits for Uganda sent me into a panic but not quite enough to spur me on to make any reservations in advance. By the time I arrived in Uganda I still had not made any bookings or contacted any agencies. Would I ever see the gorillas?

The answer was yes.

I hope the following observations (current end Jan 2014) will be of use to fellow travellers:

• The new price for 2014 is $600
• The UWA office in Kampala have some discounted $350 tickets for March/April rainy/low season time
• You can book tickets for Mgahinga and Bwindi at the UWA office in Kisoro (you don't have to go all the way to Kampala)
• If buying from UWA Kisoro, they sell tickets for Rushaga (5 habituated groups) and Nkuringo (1 group)
• For Buhoma you can book at the UWA office in Buhoma

I had no problem at all securing tickets, I simply walked into the UWA office in Kisoro and booked for a few days after to fit my vague schedule. The office helped arrange transport to and from the trail head. Not using a tour company cut costs significantly. I also arranged cheap and clean accommodation in Kisoro independently. There are some good places to stay close to the park, but paradoxically you could end up with higher transport costs to/from the trail head and to the hotel!

Obviously for super peak times, especially during the July-August period the above could change, but my advice is, don't panic, you will probably get your permit.

The most recent advice I've heard for securing the discounted tickets is that these could sell sooner rather than later so its worth checking directly with UWA in Kampala for advice on this.