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Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, Uganda

Gorilla Forest Camp

This is the most luxurious lodging option within the Bwindi area. Located right inside the park, we love to find space here.

If you are not very active, the hike up many stairs to get to the lodge and rooms can be exhausting.  — Mango's view

Gorilla Forest Camp is a permanent luxury tented camp nestled in the mist-swathed rainforests of a mountainside in the heart of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The exclusive location - the sole property within the park's boundaries - afford Gorilla Forest Camp the status of being the ideal base for gorilla tracking, primate viewing and birding excursions in the park. Bwindi is situated on Uganda's extreme western border, very close to the geographical heart of Africa where the confluence of the Rift Valley and the Great Lakes have created an eco-system that perhaps defines the very essence of the continent. Fittingly, Bwindi is one of the most biologically diverse areas on earth, recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage site.

Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is an enduring pocket of a huge primeval forest that once stretched from the Virunga Volcanoes in the south to the Rwenzori Mountains in the north. The fertile 331 sq km of the park contain 113 species of mammals (including a herd of the rare forest elephant), 200 species of butterfly, over 360 species of birds and a prodigious 324 tree varieties (10 of which are endemic to the park). In addition to this incredible diversity, Bwindi is home to 7 species of primates, attracting the attention of international conservation efforts, of which the most endangered is that elusive giant of Africa-- the mountain gorilla. Only 600 of these magnificent animals remain worldwide, and Bwindi is home to just over half of them.

Gorilla Forest Camp has been designed to blend seamlessly into this most atmospheric of environments, carefully appointed toward the misty valleys and looming forest clad mountains that protect this fragile eco-system. Accommodation is in 8 double tents, raised on wooden platforms, each with ensuite facilities and hot and cold running water, WC, basin and unusually - a bathtub looking out onto the forest. Each tent has a spacious wooden verandah where guests can relax, enjoy a private meal and absorb the exotic mystery of the surrounding rainforest that provided the inspiration for the animation of Disney's, The Jungle Book.

Each morning, guests with trekking permits depart in two groups of six, accompanied by two guides and four guards and head out in search of the mountain gorillas. These special animals are rare and gentle, like us yet so different. This can be humbling and thrilling at the same time. Gorilla tracking is an intense experience that can take all day. The guide will lead you through the gorilla's world, explaining aspects of their ecology and behavior along the way. Only 600 of these magnificent animals remain worldwide, and Bwindi is home to just over half of them. The variety and abundance of birds and butterflies only adds to the magic of this mystical forest.

Includes: All meals, drinks, & laundry (trekking permits are extra)