Gabon tour
See Africa at its wildest on this short small group tour, where you’ll head deep into the rainforest, view diverse wildlife and get acquainted with fascinating local traditions.
Libreville Mitshogo village Lambarene Schweitzer Hospital Oguemoue Lake
Price
£4149To£4499 excluding flights
Convert currency:
Description of Gabon tour
Gabon has been described as a paradise for wildlife enthusiasts, with a huge proportion of its land designated as national parks and home to some of the continent’s most impressive wildlife. This short Gabon tour takes you to the heart of its rainforests, a land of primeval jungles, wetlands and savannah, made famous by the explorer Mike Fay in his epic trek through Central Africa. Starting in Libreville, we trek in the forests of the Raponda Walker Arboretum and spend some time exploring the city, before travelling to the old colonial town of Lambarene where we delve into the secrets of Bwiti, a bizarre and fascinating belief system found nowhere else, and are privileged to witness a unique local ceremony and gain insights into this almost mystical religion. We take a thrilling boat journey on the Ogooue? River, penetrating further into the rainforest, and at Lake Oguemoue, we stay in a tented camp as part of a community based tourism project and explore the surrounding forest and waterways in search of Gabon’s rich wildlife. We also have opportunities to meet local villagers going about their daily lives here. This short trip offers the chance to see Africa at its wildest, where nature rules supreme and the jungle is king. Gabon has often been called ‘Africa’s last Eden’ – come and find out why.
Price information
£4149To£4499 excluding flights
Convert currency:
Check dates, prices & availability
Travel guides
Africa’s last Eden’ is covered in rainforest and filled with wildlife.
Responsible Travel was built out of a love of solo travel, and we want to share the joy of it with you.
Reviews
1 Reviews of Gabon tour
3 out of 5 stars
Reviewed on 25 Sep 2024 by Alan Clarke
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Trek to see Lowland Gorilla.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
I will get in touch with the host company as not everything delivered as in itinerary. Not the English speaking guide I was assigned. No sighting of Mandrill. Change of flight meant increased hotel expenditure. I am finally home on Monday 30 currently in Paris.
Read the operator's response here:
Hi Alan
Thanks for your comments about your recent trip to Gabon, which you also sent to us directly and in more detail. We were really pleased to hear that you enjoyed your time in Loango National Park and I’m so pleased that the gorilla trek was so rewarding for you, especially as you hadn’t necessarily planned to do this again. You'd mentioned some issues during the last few days of your trip, and that things didn't go quite as smoothly as they should have. Unfortunately the guide that was scheduled to accompany you had to withdraw for family reasons and an alternative guide had to be found at short notice. English speaking guides in Gabon are fairly rare, and even more so at late notice and while we understand that he spoke English, he clearly wasn't as fluent as he could have been. With regards to the mandrills, we're really sorry that you weren't able to see these. We had recommended Lekedi as being the
best place to see these as sightings are most reliable but of course they can never be guaranteed, and unfortunately in this occasion the mandrill troop had retreated into a part of the reserve where they could not be tracked. We know that this was to be a particular highlight for you and we're very sorry that you weren't able to see them. We're also sorry to hear about the disruption caused by the flight change, which obviously isn’t ideal but unfortunately something that none of us have control over. However, perhaps your guide could have been more helpful in making some alternative arrangements, and adapting, given the circumstances. I’m glad that you were able to arrange a day room and avoided a long wait at the airport. Gabon is one of the more challenging destinations to operate in, with a poor tourist infrastructure outside one or two of the main national parks such as Loango and Pongara, and unfortunately quite high costs as well. Travel here can be a lot less smooth than
in many other countries in Africa, particularly the more established safari destinations where they have been receiving large numbers of visitors for decades, but we're always keen to make improvements and deal with problems that might arise. Had we known at the time of any issues we would of course have done our best to resolve them as they occurred, but as
mentioned in our direct correspondence we've offered a discount off a future trip, which I hope goes some way towards reassuring you of our good faith. Thanks again for travelling with us, and taking the time to provide feedback, and we hope to help with your travel plans again in the future.
Thanks for your comments about your recent trip to Gabon, which you also sent to us directly and in more detail. We were really pleased to hear that you enjoyed your time in Loango National Park and I’m so pleased that the gorilla trek was so rewarding for you, especially as you hadn’t necessarily planned to do this again. You'd mentioned some issues during the last few days of your trip, and that things didn't go quite as smoothly as they should have. Unfortunately the guide that was scheduled to accompany you had to withdraw for family reasons and an alternative guide had to be found at short notice. English speaking guides in Gabon are fairly rare, and even more so at late notice and while we understand that he spoke English, he clearly wasn't as fluent as he could have been. With regards to the mandrills, we're really sorry that you weren't able to see these. We had recommended Lekedi as being the
best place to see these as sightings are most reliable but of course they can never be guaranteed, and unfortunately in this occasion the mandrill troop had retreated into a part of the reserve where they could not be tracked. We know that this was to be a particular highlight for you and we're very sorry that you weren't able to see them. We're also sorry to hear about the disruption caused by the flight change, which obviously isn’t ideal but unfortunately something that none of us have control over. However, perhaps your guide could have been more helpful in making some alternative arrangements, and adapting, given the circumstances. I’m glad that you were able to arrange a day room and avoided a long wait at the airport. Gabon is one of the more challenging destinations to operate in, with a poor tourist infrastructure outside one or two of the main national parks such as Loango and Pongara, and unfortunately quite high costs as well. Travel here can be a lot less smooth than
in many other countries in Africa, particularly the more established safari destinations where they have been receiving large numbers of visitors for decades, but we're always keen to make improvements and deal with problems that might arise. Had we known at the time of any issues we would of course have done our best to resolve them as they occurred, but as
mentioned in our direct correspondence we've offered a discount off a future trip, which I hope goes some way towards reassuring you of our good faith. Thanks again for travelling with us, and taking the time to provide feedback, and we hope to help with your travel plans again in the future.
Responsible Travel
As the pioneers of responsible tourism, we've screened this (and every) holiday so that you can travel knowing we've worked to maximise the benefits of your holiday to local people and places, and minimise any negative impacts.
Planet
This tour travels through some very remote regions, many of which have barely been touched by the presence of humans, and we strongly believe in maintaining their pristine nature. We strive to ensure that we leave these areas as we find them and our team have been trained in strict no litter policies, meaning that we take all refuse to either be recycled or properly disposed of in nearby towns.In conjunction with our local team we work with hotels and guesthouses to implement best practices when it comes to environmental matters. This includes basic things like not replacing towels each day, as well as saving electricity and turning lights off.
Our travellers are specifically briefed on not to buy souvenirs made from endangered species – people in remote parts of Central Africa do not always have the same respect towards wildlife as most travellers will have, and can sometimes offer such things for sale. This also extends to bushmeat – it is quite common to find antelope, porcupine or even monkey served in restaurants, and we specifically advise our travellers against contributing to the depletion of local populations.
Whilst staying at Oguemoue Lake, we go out in search of wildlife including elephant and hippo. We must respect the local wildlife at all times, keeping our speaking volume at a minimum, respecting the wildlife around us, and keeping a suitable distance for the safety of both the wildlife and ourselves.
The presence of tourism in areas such as Oguemoue, where we stay at a tented camp and employ local guides, shows local populations that the forest can generate sustainable income for their communities in terms of providing jobs, as opposed to the less sustainable alternative of providing food via poaching. This helps to reinforce in local consciousness the fact that the forest is worth preserving, and is an important factor in preventing poaching.
People
As well as wildlife, this tour has a strong focus on local culture. Where possible we try to ensure that local people benefit from our presence.We spend time witnessing a Bwiti ceremony whilst in Lambarene. Through long association with this area, our local team has established solid relationships with certain groups and our presence here is very much welcomed – we feel that it is very important to be seen as guests here rather than outsiders coming to merely look. We are able to spend time with the community here, learning about their traditions and customs.
We are careful not to disrupt the traditional way of life of these people. As a way to say thank you for allowing us to visit, we bring traditional gifts, such as sugar, tea and so on – we do not bring modern accoutrements that may change their way of life as we feel that it is important for all tribal groups that any move towards a more ‘modern’ lifestyle is made on their own terms and not imposed upon them. We give gifts to the elders of the villages who will then ensure that they are distributed appropriately, rather than just giving them to individuals, which can cause problems, jealousy and fights within small communities.
These are very traditional areas with certain codes of behaviour, and the people here are not that accustomed to outsiders. We ensure that our travellers are appropriately briefed in order so as not to offend local sensibilities.
Where possible we encourage our travellers to spend their money with local businesses; for this reason we do not include meals where it is feasible to eat outside of the hotels, in order that local restaurants are able to benefit from the presence of tourism, rather than the income being channelled just to the hotel.
Popular similar holidays
Gabon wildlife tour
From £8195 10 days including domestic flights only
Track mandrills, black colobus and gorillas in Gabon
Cameroon and Gabon holiday
From £8299 - £8499 13 days excluding flights
A pioneering journey through the heart of Central Africa
Gabon wildlife holiday, mandrills and gorillas
From £8150 10 days including domestic flights only
Track Mandrills, Gorillas, Elephants in the forests of Gabon
