Gouania vitifolia is a climbing shrub with stems that are short-pilose to glabrate. The leaves are simple and alternate, with ovate to broadly ovate or elliptic blades measuring 3–8 cm in length and 2–4.8 cm in width. The leaf apex ranges from acute to short-acuminate or sometimes obtuse, with a cordate to shallowly cordate base. The upper leaf surfaces are moderately to sparsely appressed pilose, while the lower surfaces are denser in pilosity, especially along the veins. The leaves are green on the upper surface and chartaceous in texture, coarsely crenate to serrate-dentate margins, each tooth having a blunt glandular apex. The leaf venation is pinnate, featuring 3–5 conspicuous veins spreading from the base, and petioles are 0.5–1.5 cm long. The stipules are ovate, measuring 2.5–4 mm long, and are caducous. The flowers are in spicate inflorescences 8–70 mm long, densely covered with rusty short-pilose hairs, situated on short lateral branches that bear 1–2 leaves and stiff, revolute tendrils in the lower axils of the flowering branch. The bracts are ovate, 2.5–3 mm long, and the flowers can be bisexual (perfect) or functionally unisexual, displaying actinomorphism (radially symmetric). The calyx comprises five sepals, each about 1–1.1 mm long, and the corolla consists of 5 white petals, approximately 0.7–1 mm long. There are five stamens opposite the petals, with distinct filaments that adhere to the base of the petals. The inferior ovary is 3(4)-celled with one ovule per cell, and the style is deeply 3-lobed. The fruit is about 9–10 mm long, featuring 2–3 wings, each 2.5–3 mm wide, extending to the base, and covered in tomentose hairs, eventually splitting into three mericarps. The seeds are dark brown, glossy, ovoid, and 3.5–4 mm long. It occurs on dry, rocky ridges and slopes in dry shrubland or dry to mesic forest at 610 meters.