The gorilla trekking safari itinerary, day by day
A gorilla trekking safari itinerary built around two encounters that change people — a permitted hour with mountain gorillas in the Virunga forests, then big cats on the Mara’s golden plains.
Nothing here is fixed — this is the shape we design most often. Tell us what to keep, stretch or swap, and your version arrives priced and complete.
June–September — drier trekking in the Virungas and migration season in the Mara.
US travelers: check current entry requirements for each country on travel.state.gov — we also walk you through visas at booking.
Kigali
Arrive Rwanda; city tour and the moving Genocide Memorial before heading to the volcanoes.
Volcanoes NP
Two gorilla treks (permits secured and included — $1,500 each, limited to 96 visitors daily) plus golden monkeys, from a luxury forest lodge.
Nairobi
Fly to Kenya; overnight and regroup.
Maasai Mara
Private-conservancy game drives, balloon over the plains and sundowners over the Mara River.
Home
Fly back to Nairobi and connect to your international flight.
Camps & lodges we love on this route
Three of the properties we reach for first on this journey — your final camps depend on your dates, style and budget.
All lodging & meals
Every camp night, all meals and house drinks on safari.
Private guide & vehicle
Your own expert guide and 4x4 throughout — never shared.
Fees & flights within Africa
Park fees, light-aircraft hops and meet-and-greet on every leg.
One transparent quote
Priced to your camps, season and style — no set packages, no surprises.
Questions about this journey
Make this journey yours.
Tell us when you want to go and how you'd bend this route — a specialist sends back your tailored, fully priced version within days. No pressure, ever.
Most of our travelers arrive the old-fashioned way — sent by someone who just came home.
Plan your safari