Chimpanzees are a joy to watch. It is no wonder that seeing these incredible primates in the wild is on so many bucket lists. Spending an hour with a family of chimps can be a truly grounding and life altering experience. Africa is the best (and only!) continent in the world to see chimpanzees in the wild and there are only a few excellent spots in East Africa which gives tourists from all over the world the best chances of finding them.
Best Places to See Chimpanzees:
Where do Chimpanzees Live?
Africa. Specifically Rwanda, West Tanzania and Uganda. They are also in the Congo, Senegal and other countries which are not really on the map for African tourism. We would recommend if chimpanzees are on your bucket list then head to countries with a better tourism infrastructure to see the chimps.
Chimpanzee Habitat
Chimpanzees can be found in forests and roam anywhere from sea level to around three thousand metres above it. They are very mobile primates making it hard to predict how far up the mountain they may be when you trek to see them so your trek may be five minutes or five hours! They like savanna woodlands, grassland-forest and tropical thick bush forest and generally move where the food is.
Are chimpanzees endangered?
Yes, they are exactly one-hundred thousand to three-hundred thousand left in the world. They have already become extinct from four African countries and it is believed that their population has decreased by ninety percent in the past twenty years, so their numbers are dwindling fast. By visiting the chimpanzees, you are contributing to their conservation which has never been more important than it is now.
