Most people visiting Bwindi impenetrable forest national park focus on gorilla trekking and forget a lot of other exciting activities like visiting the locals and exploring the other parts of the park on foot or using a bike.
Bwindi impenetrable forest national park is a leading tourism destination for mountain gorilla trekking in the world with he other parks being Mgahinga gorilla national park still in Uganda, Volcanoes national park in Rwanda and Virunga national park in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Rubugiri village walk
Rubugiri village walk can be done from the borders of Bwindi impenetrable forest national park, this is one of the best village walks you can take while in Bwindi as you join locals in their day to day activities in their traditional homesteads. The Rubigiri village tour is under authority of Nkuringo cultural center creating working opportunities for the locals as income earned is used for supporting the local community.
The walk to Rubugiri village offers panoramic views of rolling hills, lush swamps and African traditional homesteads. You can join the locals in weaving baskets, making hand made crafts, cooking local food and so much more.
You can buy handmade crafts from a craft shop at Wagtail eco safari camp. Tourists can enjoy local traditional dances from the locals of visit the local Batwa community who were the first people of the forest, they used to survive through hunting and fruit gathering.
You can enjoy local traditional dances from the traditional dancers of Rubugiri village as they showcase their skills in African dance.
Gorilla trekking
One cannot visit Bwindi impenetrable forest national park for Rubugiri village walk and not trek the endangered mountain gorillas, mountain gorillas live on higher elevations of Bwindi impenetrable forest. They are human close relatives sharing over 95% DNA with humans like Bonobos and chimpanzees. When planning to combine Rubugiri village walk and gorilla trekking then you will need to book your permits in advance with Uganda Wildlife Authority or a trusted tour agent.
Nature guided walks
A part from Rubugiri village walk, there are a lot of other established trails within Bwindi national park like Munyaga trail, river Ivy trial, waterfall trail and so much more. You can explore the ancient rainforest by taking a nature that can last from 1 hour to half day. The nature guided walks gives you an insight into the jungle where you will view lots of primates, bird species, butterfly species and so much more. For those who don’t like moving they can explore Bwindi on mountain bikes.
Best time to go for Rubugiri village walk
Rubugiri village walk can be done all year round and at any time of the day.
Cost of gorilla permits
Mountain gorilla permits cost $600 per person per trek in Uganda and gorilla habituation permits cost $1500 per person. Permits must always be bought in advance of 3-6 months before arriving in the country especially during the peak season as they may become scarce or unavailable.