A shoestring trip is a kind of trip that is way below a budget trip. In this kind of trip, you spend as though it is a must for you to have this trip yet you are short on funds thus cutting all expenses as much as possible to simply execute this trip. Been wondering how to execute a shoestring African gorilla safari in Uganda! here is how best to execute your gorilla safari in Uganda.
There are likely five items necessary for you to execute your gorilla safari in Kisoro or in Bwindi impenetrable forest national park. That is lodging, transportation, meals, time, and gorilla trekking permit.
Acquiring a Gorilla trekking permit
Unlike the non- East African, your gorilla trekking permit will cost you UGX150,000 per permit for the discounted permits which are meant to last until 31st of March 2021. Beyond this time, your gorilla trekking permit will cost you UGX250,000. However, you also have to put into consideration the expenses of ferrying yourself to Uganda wildlife authority offices to buy these permits from there since you cannot have the permit printed electronically.
But you can still avoid this expenditure by considering doing your trip in the low seasons; In case you are planning to do the trip after the stipulated time of the discounts then you might have to consider the months of November and April. In these months, it is very easy to acquire gorilla trekking permits on the ground. This will help you save the few bucks that you would have spent on travel to and from Uganda wildlife authority offices in Kampala. With the above at the back of your mind, you can boldly sum up your gorilla trekking permit budget on UGX150,000.
Meals during your shoestring gorilla safari
In order to execute your trip, you will have to spend some time of the days in your trip grabbing a snack, drink, or a real course meal. But by the time you are considering a shoestring gorilla safari, I assume you are really ready to take on the least budget for meals in Uganda. For that matter; you might have to plan for a minimum budget of UGX25,000 means daily.
I know very well that if you are coming from Kampala, you are already convincing yourself that you can get a meal on a budget way lower than that but you need to be aware that you are not well versed with the whole country. But consider that budget to be on the safe side.
Lodging for your shoestring Gorilla safari
Though we are using lodging to refer to your accommodation on this trip, you actually might have to spend your two nights during your shoestring gorilla safari in tents. Therefore you might have to find a lodge that also offers camping services. This might not exceed UGX50,000 for the two nights. Of course, the rates will depend on where you camp and lodge as well.
However, in case you wish to upgrade, gorilla safari lodges have some good insights about the different lodges to consider for your gorilla safari in Uganda.
Time For Your shoestring Gorilla Safari
You might consider 3 days for your trip. The first day is for transfer from Kampala to the gorilla safari lodge with a camping site section where you will be spending your night near the park. On the second day, you will head for your gorilla trekking safari. You can choose to spend the rest of the day in the nearby town instead of the lodges. Then on the third day, you will transfer back to Kampala
Transportation During your Shoestring gorilla safari
When we talk of transport to your gorilla trekking destination, many at times people only think about the bus transfer however you also need transportation from the bus park to the lodge. This is usually the neglected cost.
A bus from Kampala to Kisoro might cost you around UGX80,000 or less depending on the time of the year. Roughly; you might have to consider a budget of UGX150,000 on merely bus transfers. On top of this, you might have to consider the transportation to the lodge and then the transportation from the lodge to the gorilla trekking inception point.
Therefore on top of the Ugx150,000 bus fare, you might have to plan for an extra Ugx100,000 merely on transfers. It can even go beyond that but being a shoestring trip, you can find your way out on that budget.
In all things we have said, here is the total sum; the trip might cost you between Ugx500,000 and Ugx600,000. Unlike a visit to other parks, gorilla trekking is a walking safari so you can endure going for this trip without a car.