Mountain Gorilla Festival & Virunga Gorilla Marathon
My Gorilla Family
Transport partner
Four days of running, music and culture in Kisoro, raising awareness for the mountain gorillas and the communities that protect them.
Come for the challenge. Stay for the people, the place and the memories you'll carry home.
Filter by area, budget or name. Marathon partners are the official stays of the Virunga Gorilla Marathon.
Festival central. Stay in or near town if you're running or want to be close to the action, and use the days around it to explore the park.
Before and after the marathon, the Mayor's Garden in Kisoro fills with local farmers, producers and traders. Come for the honey, coffee, crafts and fresh produce, and take a piece of Kigezi home. Every purchase goes straight to a local business.
For farmers, producers, traders and brands who want a stand.The smartest beds in and around town.
Nyarusiza, Mgahinga buffer zone
Four handcrafted volcanic stone suites between green hills and the Mufumbiro volcanoes, each with a private balcony and a stone fireplace for the cold nights. Breakfast on the terrace is a slow, lovely start to race day.
Comfortable, well run and easy on the budget.
Simple, clean and well reviewed. Good for runners and anyone keeping costs down. Rooms go fast over the festival, so book early.
More pocket-friendly rooms, guesthouses and homestays are available around Kisoro, depending on availability over the festival weekend. Tell us your budget and we'll find you a bed.
Tell us your budget →Short, easy tours with a local guide, timed around race day. Do one on the day you arrive, or save it for when your legs need a gentle day.
The town on foot, the way the locals know it.
From the farm to your cup, with time in the community.
Kisoro's lakes, with the volcanoes as a backdrop.
The best of town and the lakes, rolled into one day.
Running club, company or school group? We'll shape a tour around your numbers and race times. Ask about group rates.
About half an hour from town and a different world. Still water, islands and the volcanoes reflected at dawn. Our pick for the night after the race.
The cheapest way to stay for the festival, and one of the best. Bring your own tent, or let us have one pitched and ready when you arrive.
We set up a quality tent at a partner campsite before you get there. Just turn up, drop your bag and go.
Mgahinga park gate
Pitch your tent under the volcanoes at this community-owned camp. Meals at the restaurant, and your stay supports local families.
Southern shore, Lake Mutanda
Camp by the water at a community-run lodge. Wake up to the lake and the volcanoes.
Lake Bunyonyi, on the road down
Camping on the shore of Lake Bunyonyi, ideal if you're breaking the journey on the way to Kisoro.
Other lodges and campsites around Kisoro and Lake Mutanda take campers too, depending on availability. Tell us where you'd like to be.
Find me a pitch →Most people come down by road in a single day. Bus seats start at UGX 60,000 one way, or ride the official marathon shuttle with Ihangwe Safaris. Pick an option, add your details and send the request. We'll confirm your seat or vehicle and the pickup time within 24 hours.
Domestic flights reach Kisoro airstrip in about an hour. Tell us your dates and we'll help with the booking and the pickup.
Kisoro is three to four hours by road through the Cyanika border. We can meet you in Kigali or at the border.
Bwindi's southern sector is close by. If you're trekking before or after the festival, these lodges put you near the gates.
Rubuguri, between Rushaga and Nkuringo
You can't miss the entrance. A giant gorilla stands guard at the gate, and it sets the tone for the rest of the stay. Wagtail is a down-to-earth eco camp with forest cottages and views of the volcanoes, close to both the Rushaga and Nkuringo trekking sectors.
A great base if you're staying on to trek after the festival, with Batwa visits and birding on the doorstep.
Walk down through the village and the farm with the community, past tall eucalyptus and terraced hillsides. It was one of the most special afternoons of our trip. We even got to name some of the pigs.
Highlights from our creators' trip into Bwindi Impenetrable Forest ahead of the festival: rangers, trails and a lot of green.
Skip the brochure and see the streets, the food spots and the people with two of Uganda's favourite storytellers. Expect laughs, local slang and the kind of stories you won't hear on a game drive.
On request only. Supplement rate applies.
Roughly 480 km from Kampala, best done in two easy days with a night on Lake Bunyonyi. Four good stops, then you're in Kisoro.
The bus gets you to Kisoro in a day, but if you've got time to spare, the road from Kampala is worth taking slowly.
You'll cross the Equator before mid-morning, stretch your legs at Lukaya, and stop for lunch at Igongo outside Mbarara. Then the road climbs into the Kigezi hills and Lake Bunyonyi appears below you. The next morning you come over Kanaba Gap, and the Virunga volcanoes are suddenly right there in front of you.
Here's the route stop by stop, with places to stay at each one. Tell us how you like to travel and we'll put it together for you.
Drive times depend on the road and how long you linger. Short on time? The shuttle does it in a day.
The first proper break on the Masaka road. Photos, coffee, snacks and a chance to wake up before the long stretch west.
Ankole country, long-horned cattle and a good lunch stop. Stay over here if you'd rather break the drive into three easy days.
Mbarara
Smaller and more intimate than the big stops, with service that makes you feel looked after and prices that are kind to your pocket. Mizabibu is owned by local guides, a real community investment, so your stay goes straight back into the people who show visitors this country.
Terraced hills and a lake dotted with 29 islands. The best place to spend the night, ideally with a view of the water.
Bunyonyi ridge, Kabale
A family-run lodge high on the ridge, with eleven cottages looking straight down over the islands. It's the view in the photo above, and you wake up to it.
Dinner is served with the hills in the window. Island cruises, canoeing and birding can all be arranged from the lodge.
Kabale, near Lake Bunyonyi
Volcanic stone cottages with big glass doors that open straight onto the garden. Settle in with pizza and a glass of red as the light goes, then sleep well before the drive over Kanaba Gap.
A calm, comfortable stop on the road down, and an easy hop to the lake if you want a boat out in the morning.
The road from Kabale winds up through bamboo forest. Keep the camera ready for the moment the volcanoes come into view.
Send us your dates, how many of you are coming and the kind of stay you like. We'll come back with options within 24 hours. No payment needed to ask.
For bringing runners, visitors and the whole Kisoro community together in the gorilla highlands, and for showing the world what this corner of Uganda is made of.
We're proud to help look after the runners and guests coming down for the festival week.
