Month by month
Mahale Mountains in February
February pairs the year's best value at the top camp with the last full month before the mountain shuts to visitors entirely. Both facts should shape how you plan it.
If you only want the answer
February combines Greystoke's lowest rates of the year with harder, longer trekking, and it ends abruptly: the camp closes mid-month while the wider closure begins on 1 March. Book early in the month if price matters, and check exact closing dates with any camp you have in mind.
The cheapest bed of the year, briefly
Greystoke's published rates bottom out in February, close to the same level as early June, before the camp closes for the rains around mid-month. That makes the first two or three weeks of the month the single best value window at Mahale's most famous camp, if you can accept a longer trek in exchange for the lower rate.
Mbali Mbali Mahale runs on a different calendar and stays open through the end of February before its own closure on 1 March, so a late-February trip is still workable there even after Greystoke has shut its doors.
February weather: trekking gets its hardest test of the open months
Rainfall eases only slightly from January, 221 mm over 23 days against January's 248, but the chimps have had two extra months of fruiting trees to range through, and February treks are commonly the longest of the open season. Guides still find the group on essentially every outing; the walk to reach them simply is not the twenty-minute version you get in August.
The lake mirrors the forest: still stormy by afternoon, still swimmable and snorkellable in the mornings, with visibility well short of what September delivers.
Families and the age rule
Anyone chasing that low February rate as a family trip should settle the age question before booking rather than after arriving. The commonly cited minimum for trekking is 12, but it is not a figure TANAPA states numerically, and some camps set their own higher house minimum, so confirm with your specific camp.
The lake stays usable throughout, and $10 buys three hours of snorkelling even on a month when the water is not at its clearest. Pair it with a boat safari, priced at $20, if a rough forest morning has left you wanting a calmer afternoon.
Check the exact closing date
Call ahead and ask each camp on your shortlist for its actual February closing date before you book. Greystoke, Mbali Mbali and Nkungwe do not all shut on the same day, and a trip planned around the wrong calendar can arrive to find its camp already closed.