Gorilla Tracking, Wildlife & Chimpanzee Safari
( 9 days £1,990)

Gorillas, Volcanoes & Lakes of Uganda
( 6 days £1,395)

Aqua-Firma arranges tailor made and small group travel to some of the best wilderness and wildlife locations in Uganda and Rwanda.  These include opportunities to see the mountain gorillas and chimpanzees in both countries.

Uganda lies at the very heart of Africa and provides the headwaters of the continent’s two greatest rivers: the White Nile and the Congo.  It is also home to an amazing array of wildlife – in particular the Mountain Gorilla and Chimpanzees.

Aqua-Firma first explored Uganda in 1992 when the directors ran the recce for a Links 2000 expedition that resulted in the building of a new school library at a village near Kasese.  In addition to the recce, our main focus was to explore the Kibale National Park, home to several groups of chimpanzees, and the Bwindi National Park - also known as the Impenetrable Forest.

Bwindi is home to the largest surviving population of mountain gorillas, comprising around half of just 600 individuals that remain in the wild.  By 1992, none of these groups has been ‘habituated’.  Habituation was a slow and careful process which has since led to the opportunity for small groups to experience truly special encounters with some of our closest blood relatives.

The mountain gorilla’s greatest threat is habitat loss.  The gorillas live on some of the most productive volcanic soils in central Africa, with their forest mountain retreats surrounded by verdant farmlands.  Land is precious here for both gorillas and people.  Recognising this, conservation and aid organisations including the Wildlife Conservation Society and CARE International realise that tourism revenues from visiting the gorillas is essential to help the gorillas to retain their habitat.  That is why it is now possible to visit the mountain gorillas in the Bwindi and Mghinga National Parks in Uganda, and the Parque Nacional de Volcans in neighbouring Rwanda.

For more details about our trips to Uganda and Rwanda click on the Contact Us button at the top of this page.

Photo credits: Praveen Moman & Ralph Pannell