Kigali, Rwanda: Gorilla tourism is an important income source for Rwanda, but visitors numbers are dwindling and operators are pointing blame at a recent hike in safari permit fees.
Earlier this year the World Wildlife Fund conservation group said the mountain gorilla subspecies was making a comeback, with numbers above 600 from an estimated 480 in 2010 in the Virunga Massif, a mountainous area encompassing parts of Rwanda, Uganda and Congo.
A male silverback gorilla from the family of mountain gorillas named Amahoro, which means peace, sits in the dense forest on the slopes of Mount Bisoke volcano in Volcanoes National Park. Rwanda.
In Rwanda's Volcanoes National Park, tourists routinely trek to see gorillas in their natural habitat. Conservation is big business in the East African nation, where tourism is the top foreign exchange earner.
In May 2017 the government doubled the price of a permit to visit the gorillas to $US1500 ($2074) from $US750, making the fee the highest in the region.
A similar fee is $US600 in Uganda and $US400 in the Congo.
A tourist takes photos of a male silverback mountain gorilla in Rwanda.
Since then Rwanda has lost some tourist business, with some in the hospitality industry saying they have lost income.
"It was chaotic. I can't estimate the percentage of tourists we lost but it was very bad," said Parfait Kajibwami, manager of Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge near the park.
The lodge estimates it lost more than 40 per cent of its clients.
Some tourists, however, have said they are happy to pay.
"I will only be able to do this once in my life," said Diege Joost from Germany.
AP
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