Ten nights tracking wild chimpanzees in Gombe and mountain gorillas in the Virungas — on foot, in a group of six, led by a wildlife biologist who has walked these paths alone.
Watch the film
A wildlife biologist on what it's truly like to stand among wild chimpanzees and mountain gorillas.
Why this trip is different
Gombe is Tanzania's smallest national park — 60 square kilometres of forest on the shore of Lake Tanganyika, and the place where our understanding of chimpanzees began. Exclusivity like this is rare in Africa.
Your trip leader
Clara is a wildlife biologist with dual degrees in Environmental Studies and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Colorado. She has worked with the Cheetah Conservation Fund in Namibia and on human-elephant coexistence research with Save the Elephants in Kenya. She has read all of Goodall's books, followed her work for years, and met her once.
She also went to Gombe alone.
“Once there, it was just me and my guide in the forest, surrounded by a large troop of chimpanzees. One baby, riding on his mother's back as she walked by, reached out and touched the scarf I was wearing. It was an incredible moment — to stand on the ground in such a rugged and remote place, with no other people around, and witness true wildness in its purest form.”
This trip is the one she wanted to take. Now she's leading it.
Clara
Day by day
This is an active trip. The physical requirements are notably higher than a traditional safari — you'll cross uneven terrain and climb hills, some of them steep.
Arrival into Dar es Salaam (DAR). After immigration, luggage, and customs, you'll be met at the airport exit by a local representative holding your name and transferred to the Dar es Salaam Serena Hotel.
The group meets for dinner at 19:00 at the hotel restaurant.
Overnight · Dar es Salaam Serena
Transfer back to Dar es Salaam Airport for the scheduled commercial flight to Kigoma (TKQ) in western Tanzania. Met on arrival and taken to the dock, where you board a boat for the roughly two-hour transfer to Gombe Stream National Park.
Here you are following in the footsteps of the pioneering chimpanzee researcher Jane Goodall. The afternoon is free — relax, or walk around camp and along the lakeshore.
Overnight · Kasekela Tented Camp
Your first chimpanzee trek in Gombe Stream National Park. Trek durations vary depending on where the chimps have moved, but the experience is deeply rewarding — you'll observe them in their natural forest habitat, feeding, grooming, playing, and interacting.
Return to camp for lunch and rest. The afternoon is free for swimming in the lake, birdwatching, or simply relaxing on your tent deck.
Overnight · Kasekela Tented CampA second trek, and another chance to track a different chimpanzee community or revisit the main group, depending on sightings.
Afterwards, an optional guided forest walk focused on Gombe's ecology, birdlife, and other primates — red colobus and blue monkeys among them. The afternoon is unstructured: photography, journaling, or the quiet rhythm of the lake.
Overnight · Kasekela Tented CampAfter breakfast, journey back to Kigoma by boat and transfer on arrival to the Kigoma Hilltop Hotel.
This afternoon, a historical tour and a visit to Stanley and Livingstone's meeting place. The remainder of the afternoon is at leisure.
Overnight · Kigoma Hilltop Hotel
Transfer to Kigoma Airport for the scheduled commercial flight to Kigali (KGL) via Dar es Salaam, with access to an airport lounge during the layover.
On arrival in Kigali you'll be met and assisted through immigration, luggage, and customs, then transferred to the hotel for a buffet dinner. In Rwanda, you follow in the footsteps of the gorilla conservationist Dian Fossey.
Overnight · Four Points by Sheraton Kigali
A walking tour and cooking class beginning at the Nyamirambo Women's Center with a traditional snack, a Kinyarwanda language lesson, and an introduction to the Center's work. The route weaves through Nyamirambo, one of Kigali's oldest neighbourhoods — a women's hairdressing salon where the adventurous can get a free braid, a family compound to pound cassava leaves, two mosques and a lookout over the city, a tailor's shop. It ends with a traditional lunch cooked and served in the home of Aminatha, the Center's best cook.
Time permitting, a visit to Gahaya Links, the Rwandan handicraft company founded by sisters Joy Ndunguste and Janet Nkubana after the 1994 genocide. It now includes over 5,000 women weavers across 52 cooperatives.
Then on to Volcanoes National Park, about two and a half hours away.
Overnight · Virunga Inn Resort & Spa
An early transfer to park headquarters, where the group is split into parties of eight or fewer and assigned a gorilla family. Rangers who know the gorillas well — their names, ages, and histories — lead you to the start of the trek and guide you into close proximity, explaining the lives in front of you. It is arguably the most soulful wildlife experience on the planet.
At 3:00pm, a private behind-the-scenes VIP tour of the Ellen Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund with a senior staff member: the Conservation Gallery, and the scientific labs.
Overnight · Virunga Inn Resort & Spa
Climb through the forest to the tomb of Dian Fossey and the gorilla cemetery beside it — an ode to the pioneering conservationist's legacy, and a memorable one. Visit the site of the old research centre she started in 1967 and hear how the work continues.
This afternoon, the Women's Dukomezubuzima Cooperative. Established in 2014, it brings together youth, women, and people with disabilities under one goal: improving their lives through agriculture. Option to visit the Iby' Iwachu Cultural Village afterwards, time dependent.
Overnight · Virunga Inn Resort & Spa
The same procedure, but a different gorilla family. This is the last opportunity to witness the creatures Dian Fossey gave her life to protect.
Lunch afterwards at the Gorilla Sip, a local Rwandan restaurant. Then Handspun Hope: the skill of spinning wool into yarn was lost entirely during the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. In 2008 it was reintroduced, along with Merino sheep, so the trade could employ widows and at-risk women. You'll meet the 209 women who work there and watch them spin yarn from the fleeces of their own flock.
Overnight · Virunga Inn Resort & Spa
After breakfast, golden monkey trekking in the bamboo forests of the Virungas — a critically endangered species, and a moderate hike suitable for a range of fitness levels. Lunch and a quick refresh, then the transfer back to Kigali (approx. 2.5 hours) for departing flights.
International flights can depart at 18:00 or later.
Where you stay
The accommodation changes with the terrain — simple eco-style living in Gombe, walled rooms and gardens in Rwanda.
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania · 1 night
Five-star, at the heart of the city centre business district and moments from the Indian Ocean beaches, the fish market, and the crafts markets. Extensive tropical gardens and an outdoor pool.
Gombe National Park · 3 nights
TANAPA-managed, nestled deep within Gombe Stream. Each tent is crafted with local design elements and inspired by the forest's most famous residents. Private en-suite bathrooms, plush bedding, and a viewing deck over the forest and the lake.
Kigoma, Tanzania · 1 night
Set on a remote outcrop amongst acres of lush gardens overlooking Lake Tanganyika, fifteen minutes from the airport. Every room has a private balcony with a view. The hotel employs locally.
Kigali, Rwanda · 1 night
Four-star, in the city's financial district and close to several embassies. Floor-to-ceiling windows, three restaurants and bars, a 24-hour fitness centre, and an outdoor pool.
Volcanoes National Park · 4 nights
A resort in Kinigi, close to the park, with twenty rooms set across fourteen chalets built to sit within the mountain landscape. Ikaze Restaurant and its terrace serve locally inspired and international cooking; the spa and gym are award-winning. Rooms have a private balcony over the gardens and individually controlled heating.
The women you're following
When Jane Goodall entered the forest at Gombe, the world knew very little about chimpanzees, and even less about their genetic kinship to us. She took an unorthodox approach — immersing herself in their habitat and their lives, understanding them as individuals with emotions and long-term bonds rather than as a species observed from a distance. Her 1960 discovery that chimpanzees make and use tools is considered one of the great achievements of twentieth-century scholarship.
Dian Fossey undertook an extensive study of mountain gorilla groups until her death in 1985. She supported conservation efforts in Rwanda, opposed poaching, and was murdered in her cabin at a remote camp in December of that year. She is buried in the gorilla graveyard she built herself, next to Digit, her most beloved gorilla, and near many other gorillas killed by poachers.
Both left work that outlived them: the Jane Goodall Institute, founded in 1977, and the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, whose Ellen Campus you'll tour on January 18. This trip visits both worlds.
Safari costs
$11,950PER PERSON SHARING
This is the discounted price for payment by check or bank wire. By Visa or Mastercard, the non-cash price is $12,428 per person / $1,263 single supplement.
Based on 4–6 travelers sharing. Should the group close at 2–3 travelers, the price is $12,500 per person ($9,325 safari cost + $3,175 permits; $13,000 by card).
Minimum age for trekking is 15.
From travelers
The Wild Source was founded by big cat researcher Bill Given, employs a staff of 20 in Africa, and runs its own guides and camps from an office in Arusha.
“I just wanted to thank you for all the planning put forth for our trip. We had a great time. Was really happy with how everything turned out. The more we explore Africa, the more we love it. We will be back again for sure.”
Barb
“Our safari was wonderful with Fadhil. Not only is he an excellent, knowledgeable guide, but he's a lot of fun to be with. He knew where to go to find the animals away from the crowds of other vehicles.”
Sherry
“The trip was absolutely amazing! The accommodations were wonderful, the food was delicious… I'm running out of superlatives. This was very well planned on your part. Thank you for giving us the experience of a lifetime!”
Hindi
Only 4 spots remaining
She has walked these forests. Send your questions and she will reply with the complete day-by-day, the property details and the terms — take the time to write out exactly what you want to know. Prefer to talk? Call any weekday.
Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm Mountain Time. A 30% deposit confirms your booking. Trek permits are non-refundable and must be paid in full at booking to secure your space.
Terms
A 30% non-refundable deposit confirms your booking. Full payment is due 90 days before the tour date; bookings made inside 90 days are settled in full on confirmation.
Trek permits are non-refundable, billed separately, and must be paid in full at booking to confirm space. Full passport details are required on confirmation to secure them.
If the government institutes a tax increase, The Wild Source reserves the right to extend the increase, which could apply to national park fees, departure taxes, and tourism tax.
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