Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is home to half of the world’s mountain gorilla population. Buhoma sector is one of the areas where you can trek gorillas, and the Katwe gorilla family is one of the groups found here. Book a Uganda trek to see how a Katwe visit fits into your safari.
The Katwe mountain gorilla family is the newest gorilla family in the Buhoma sector of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Its habituation took 3 years, and the family was officially opened for tourism in August 2018.
Family Composition
The Katwe family consists of 1 silverback, 3 blackbacks, 4 adult females, and 2 babies. This mix of ages and roles within the group gives visitors a good sense of typical gorilla family structure, from the dominant silverback down to the youngest members still relying closely on their mothers.
What Katwe’s Addition Means for Buhoma
This addition brings the number of gorilla families in the Buhoma sector to four, increasing the number of daily gorilla permits available from 24 to 32. For travelers hoping to trek in Buhoma, this extra permit capacity has made booking somewhat easier, since demand for this sector has traditionally outpaced availability during peak season.
Being the newest habituated family in the park also means Katwe offers a slightly different trekking experience compared to Buhoma’s older, more established groups. The gorillas are still relatively early in their exposure to regular human visitors, which can make encounters feel a little more unpredictable, and for some visitors, more exciting, than trekking a family that has been visited daily for decades.
Why Buhoma Is a Popular Choice
Buhoma is the oldest sector of Bwindi National Park and is home to the park’s oldest habituated mountain gorilla family. This sector also offers a wide range of accommodation options, from budget lodges to luxury properties, giving visitors flexibility no matter their travel style.
Many tourists prefer the Buhoma sector because it is easier to access by road from Kampala compared to other sectors of Bwindi, cutting down on travel time for those starting their trip from Uganda’s capital rather than from Rwanda.
Planning a Trek to See the Katwe Family
Visitors interested in trekking the Katwe family should book their gorilla permit well in advance, particularly during the dry season months of June to September and December to February, when demand across all of Bwindi’s sectors is highest. Pairing a permit with a lodge in or near Buhoma makes logistics simpler on trekking day, and gives visitors easy access to the sector’s other attractions, including nature walks and cultural encounters with the Batwa community, before or after their gorilla trekking experience.
