Visiting Bwindi in New years Day
New Year’s Day is a wonderful time to experience the mountain gorillas and other wildlife in Bwindi impenetrable National Park.
Bwindi is a home of the endangered mountain gorillas which are almost half of those remaining in the wild
The park is a top destination for gorilla trekking activity which takes place in the four sectors of the park ie Ruhija , Nkuringo, Buhoma and Rushaga .
Bwindi impenetrable National Park covers an area of about 331 sq km at the edge of the Albertine Rift
The park has many wildlife species which include ; birds like black billed turaco , black bee eater , kivu ground thrush , woodpeckers , regal sun bird , mammals such as elephants, buffaloes , yellow black duikers among others , primates such blue monkeys , black and white colobus and red tailed monkeys .
The park is governed by Uganda wildlife Authority a body in charge of all national parks in the country
Bwindi National Park can be visited all year round with the New years Day inclusive .
The New Year’s Day is a time to reflect on the year ahead with the mountain gorillas in the jungle .
Escape the winter season in Northern Europe and United States of America by visiting Bwindi with warmer temperatures during that season.
During this season of New Year’s Day some offers of New years gorilla habituation experience packages are given to tourists.
Tourists ought to note that New Year’s Day is a high season and therefore it is difficult to secure goeilla permits and to make reservations for accommodation because there is high demand .
Tourists are therefore advised to book in advance about 2 to 3 months before the exact date .
Usually a New Year gorilla trekking experience can take from 3 days or 10 days in case of gorilla habituation or even longer.
Top Activities on New years Day
Gorilla trekking
Gorilla trekking is the major activity in Bwindi impenetrable National Park. The park is a home to almost half of the endangered mountain gorillas. Usually only 8 people are allowed to visit a gorilla family per day . Gorilla trekking takes about 2 to 7 hours but once gorillas are allocated then tourists will spend one hour with them.
A gorilla permit costs USD 800 for foreign non residents, USD 700 for foreign residents, UGX 300,000 for citizens of East Africa.
Gorilla habituation
Gorilla habituation is another top activity after gorilla trekking . Gorilla habituation takes place in the Rushaga sector of Bwindi. The activity involves making mountain gorillas used to human beings .
Usually it takes 4 hours as tourists are with gorillas compared to the 1 hour during gorilla trekking.
There are only 2 gorilla families under habituation in Rushaga therefore only 8 permits are available per day because only 4 people visit each family per day for habituation.
A gorilla habituation permit costs USD 1500 for foreign non residents
USD 1000 for foreign residents
UGX 750,000 for East Africans
Bird watching
Bwindi impenetrable National Park is a haven for bird watchers due to the very many bird species about 350
These include ; African green broadbill , blue headed sun bird , Rwenzori night jar , regal sun bird , black billed turaco , black bee eater etc
Mountain biking
This activity is best done in Buhoma sector of Bwindi and is provided by Ride 4 a woman community group who offer bikes for rent .
The tour guides will share the knowledge of the area and tourists will have a wonderful experience.
In conclusion , visiting Bwindi on New years Day is a different style of welcoming the new year as tourists experience nature.
