Chimpanzee Trekking in Uganda A Guide According to Experts

Chimpanzee Trekking in Uganda Facts, Permit Price, Best Places & reviews. There are 3 major destinations for Chimpanzee Trekking in Uganda. Kibale Forest is the best place to go chimp trekking because sightings are most common here. Chimpanzee Trekking and Chimpanzee habituation experience in Uganda’s Kibale Forest National Park is the most popular choice. Other chimpanzee trekking destinations include Budongo forest, chimp trekking in Kalinzu forest, and Kyambura gorge.

Unbelievable Chimpanzee Trekking Experiences

Chimpanzee trekking Uganda is the top primate tracking Safari activity in Uganda. Chimpanzee trekking & Chimpanzee habituation experience in Uganda’s Kibale Forest National Park is the most popular choice. Other Chimpanzee trekking destinations include Budongo forest, Chimp trekking in Kalinzu forest, and Kyambura gorge. Chimpanzee trekking in Uganda is one of the top activities on Uganda safaris in search of man’s closest primates.

Chimpanzees are known to be man’s closest relatives after Bonobos sharing about 98.7% DNA content depending on what is considered. Chimpanzees are intelligent creatures each with a flat face, big eyes, small nose, and a wide mouth.

Chimps live in tropical forests and woodland savannahs. Their black hair covering almost the entire body, long arms that extend to below their knees, and short legs help them live in these environments. Chimps are used their knuckles for walking. While tracking chimpanzees in Uganda, baby chimpanzees can be differentiated by the whitetail tuft that the older chimps do not have.

Chimps have the ability to learn and adapt to environments just like humans. Natasha, a female chimpanzee at Ngamba Island is known as the world’s most intelligent chimpanzee after a survey by Ms. Esther Herrmann and her colleagues from Germany. To make chimpanzee trekking safaris in Uganda possible several chimpanzee families are habituated in the different habitats to ensure they are familiar with human presence and behave almost “normally” hence displaying all of their characters lively during a trek.

Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi, Chimps in Kibale and Safari in Queen Elizabeth National Park

Just like the best time to visit Uganda, the best time for a chimpanzee trekking experience in Uganda is during the dry season. This is in the months of June – August, and December-February. During this time the rains are less and therefore trekking is more comfortable. Depending on your interests, chimpanzee tracking safaris in Uganda can be customized as part of long tours in Uganda or as a short trip just planned for chimpanzee trekking. This Uganda safari activity can be done either in the morning, mid-morning, or afternoon depending on your itinerary schedule.

5 habitats in Uganda are available as chimp tracking spots and these are Kibale Forest National Park, Budongo Forest, Kyambura Gorge,  Kalinzu forest, and Toro Semliki wildlife reserve. Here we give you a detailed idea of each destination to help in making great choices for tourists on safaris Uganda during tour planning. If you are also wondering where to see chimpanzees in Uganda, here are all of the spots to choose from for your next trek;

Kibale Forest National Park

Kibale Forest National Park is the popular Uganda chimpanzee trekking safari destination since its home to the highest population of chimpanzees, hence the slogan “world’s primate capital”.  More than 1,500 chimpanzees survive in Kibale Forest and have been habituated for tracking along the Kanyanchu primate walk trails. Because of the high chimp numbers, it’s only at Kibale Forest where you can track chimps either in the morning, mid-morning, or afternoon rather than 2 times in other destinations. The high chimp population guarantees a 99.9% chance of seeing chimpanzees in Uganda.

During a chimp trek at Kibale Forest, there are also other chances of seeing primates like the vervet monkeys, red colobus monkey, black and white colobus, Ugandan red colobus, Uganda mangabey, and blue monkey. Apart from the many primates Kibale Forest also offers the most thrilling photography moments with the unending surprising acts from the chimps. Since the park is the hot spot for tracking chimpanzees in Uganda, always pay as early as possible to ensure chimp trekking permit booking. 

Kibale National Park, Uganda | Crater Safari Lodge

Kalinzu Forest – Queen Elizabeth National Park

Kalinzu Forest close to Queen Elizabeth National Park is another amazing chimpanzee trekking spot.  This is home to over 220 chimpanzees with almost half of them already habituated for chimpanzee trekking experiences with 95% chances of seeing the chimps.

Tracking chimpanzees in the Kalinzu forest can be an all-day activity or half-day depending on how much time you would love to spend in the primate forest. Kalinzu forest is also home to several primates including vervet monkeys and colobus monkeys. 

Chimpanzee sitting on a branch in Kalinzu Forest in Uganda

Budongo Forest – Murchison Falls National Park

Budongo Forest is the second-best spot for chimpanzees just adjacent to Murchison Falls National Park. The forest covers about 825 sq. km and is home to more than 600 chimpanzees with 4 habituated chimpanzee families for a Budongo chimp trek. Trekking chimpanzees in Budongo forest can even be on a short trip since it’s the closest Uganda chimp tracking habitat from Kampala on about a 4 hours drive.

Tracking chimpanzees at Budongo is done on the 115km long trail that offers an extensive chance to see chimps and other primates. While tracking chimpanzees at Budongo Forest also expect to come along several other flora and fauna species. 9 primate species, 24 species of small mammals, 465 plant species, and 270 butterflies are within the boundaries of the forest. 

Chimpanzees of Kibale and Budongo Forest and Birding in Bigodi Wetlands, Uganda

Kyambura Gorge in Queen Elizabeth National Park

Kyambura Gorge is a chimp tracking spot of its kind in the world offering a chimpanzee trekking tour in Uganda to the “valley of apes”. Its referred to as the valley of apes because the Kyambura Gorge is about 100m deep below sea level. The Kyambura Gorge is home to fewer chimpanzees habituated for trekking and sightings are not so amazing as in other spots.

Chimpanzee trekking in the Kyambura Gorge is possible at any time of the day depending on the preferred time. To have priceless chimp tracking experiences in Kyambura Gorge you can have your trip tailored to a long Uganda wildlife safari with experiences in Queen Elizabeth National Park.

Unbelievable Discoveries in Uganda’s Queen Elizabeth National Park

Toro Semliki Wildlife Reserve

Gazetted in 1926, Toro Semliki Wildlife Reserve is one of the first reserves to be gazetted in Uganda. This was with the aim of protecting the many Uganda Kobs within this area. Primates, communities, and the hot springs in the adjacent Semliki National Park are the top attractions in this area.

Chimpanzees can be tracked during a primate walk in the park however sightings are rare as they are mostly semi habituated. Researchers from the University of Indiana have been studying chimpanzees in the riverine forest of Mugiri and therefore a good spot to sight chimpanzees.

Just like Gorilla trekking in Uganda, chimpanzee trekking requires a permit that is purchased at a price set by the Uganda Wildlife Authority. Chimpanzee trekking permit prices in Uganda are dependent on the park and the chimp tracking location. Here are the current prices and the set prices to be effective by 1st July 2020.

Note: The costs exclude park entrance fees

Updated on January 26 – 2024

• To trek chimpanzees, you must have a chimp trekking permit that can be booked by your tour operator before the trek date.
• All intending chimp tracking visitors must attend the briefing session in the morning.
• Strictly a maximum of 1 hour is spent in the presence of the chimpanzees.
• Each chimpanzee family is trekked by a total of 6 people per trek.
• 12 years is the minimum age for chimp trekking in Uganda
• Do not track chimpanzees if you are sick, they can easily catch human diseases.
• Do not litter in the forest during tracking
• If you need to urinate or defecate do so off the trail. Bury your waste in a hole (30cm deep) along with any toilet paper.
• Do not eat near
• Do not chase the chimpanzees
• Do not mimic chimpanzee vocalization
• Do not use flash photography
• Keep as quiet as possible, you will see more
• Keep at least 8m (25ft) from the chimpanzees at all times

Unlike Chimpanzee trekking, chimpanzee habituation makes tourists involved in the habituation process (human presence familiarisation) among “wild” chimpanzees. In Uganda chimpanzee, habituation experiences can only be undertaken at Kibale Forest National Park. Chimpanzee habituation in Uganda offers more time with the chimps as you get involved in the process of familiarizing chimpanzees to the presence of humans. Uganda chimpanzee habituation is a whole day experience and expects to wake up early, have packed lunch, and head to the jungle. You find the chimps where they built their nest and spent the night. You spend the day with the gorillas, learning their behavior and seeing how they go along with their day. Carry your camera to capture all the moments. The day ends with the chimpanzees climbing to their newly built nests for the night.

Chimpanzee Habituation Prices

The popular way of seeing chimpanzees is by trekking, however, it is possible to see chimpanzees and learn about them without having to hit the trails for the trek. This is possible by visiting Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary on Lake Victoria-Africa’s largest freshwater lake. Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary is home to 50 chimpanzees, 4 born on the island and 26 rescued from different parts of East Africa. The sanctuary is run by a nonprofit organization. You can visit Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary on a 1-day tour to Ngamba Island either at the start or end of any Uganda safaris tour.

Chimpanzee Habituation Experience – Kibale, Uganda