Overview
This 11 Days Best of Uganda safari takes you through the nature’s finest by visiting chimpanzee in Kibale forest, Bigodi swamp walk, Queen Elizabeth national park, Ishasha sector for tree climbing lions, Bwindi impenetrable national park for gorillas as well as Lake Mburo national park for guided walking safari. Don’t miss milking a long horn cow and visiting the old airport base in Entebbe to learn more about Uganda and Israel relationship.
Day 1 – Arrival at Entebbe International Airport
You will be received by your driver / tour guide at the Airport. Depending on your arrival time, if you arrive night time, we check into Via Via Hotel for a relaxation moment after the long flight as at the same time prepare for the following day set off for the 11 Days Best of Uganda safari trip.
Day 2. Transfer to Kibale National Park and Chimp Trek
Today you will wake up early to go to the park head offices to be briefed about your chimp tracking experience. Kibale Forest National Park boasts the highest number of primate species in the world, including the chimpanzees. Approximately 5,000 chimpanzees live in the wild in Uganda, which makes it a perfect place to see them
An experienced ranger will take you chimp tracking in afternoon; you might also see other monkey species that live here. Once you locate the chimpanzees you will have a full hour of eye-to-eye contact with them. Since they are wild animals, we can never guarantee you to see them and might have to settle with hearing their hoots and hollers.
After tracking, you will then return to the hotel for dinner and overnight stay.
Main Destination: Kibale National Park
Accommodation: Rweteera Safari Camp, Mid-range tented camp located inside Kibale NP
Meals & Drinks: All meals included, Drinking water (Other drinks not included)
Day 3. Bigodi Swamp walk, Monkey trek, and Evening nature walk.
Today you will go for a guided walk in Bigodi wetland sanctuary to look for more species of primates and birds like the shining blue kingfisher, blue Throated Roller, see various species of trees among many other species plants.
Dinner and overnight stay.
Day 4: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park.
After breakfast, your guide will drive you to Queen Elizabeth National Park, home to a high concentration of Uganda’s mammals that include tree climbing and savanna lions, elephants, wart hogs, Uganda kob, water buck, Cape buffalo, hippos, leopards, as well as more than 600 species of birds that include the African spoon bill, pied kingfishers, fish eagles, pelicans, vultures.
Queen Elizabeth National Park is Uganda’s second largest park, located at the base of the majestic Rwenzori Mountain range, adjacent to Lake Edward and Lake George. The Park has game including Uganda kob, warthog and waterbuck. Lions are often sighted both in and at the entrance to the park. Be ready to see huge numbers of hippos and elephants, and keep your eyes on the lookout for a leopard lazing in the sunshine.
In the late afternoon you will relax at the lodge. You will stay in a nice lodge, overlooking the Lake George.
Main Destination: Queen Elizabeth National Park
Accommodation: Irungu Forest safari lodge, Mid-range lodge just located outside Queen Elizabeth NP
Meals and drinks: All meals included, Drinking water (Other drinks not included)
Day 5: Sunrise Game drive – Afternoon Boat Safari.
Today you wake up early. A little before sunrise coffee, tea and donuts will be served in the lounge before we head out for a long game drive in time to see the first rays of light. You will search for all the wildlife in the park and are likely to come across Elephant, Buffalo, Lion, Waterbuck, Leopard, Uganda Kob, and many Warthogs.
A well-deserved brunch will be served back at the lodge in the late morning.
In the afternoon you will take a boat safari along the Kazinga Channel which joins Lake George and Lake Edward.
Here you will see a lot of hippos more than you can possibly imagine as well as a variety of other animals which come to the waterhole to drink or bathe. You can expect to see buffalo, crocodile, bathing elephant, and a range of beautiful birds. This will undoubtedly be one of the highlights of your tour.
Main Destination: Queen Elizabeth National Park
Accommodation: Irungu Forest Safari Lodge, Mid-range lodge located just outside Queen Elizabeth NP
Meals & Drinks: All meals included, Drinking water (Other drinks not included)
Day 6. Transfer to Ishasha for tree climbing lions.
Today you will wake up early to have break fast and then transfer to the Southern sector of Queen Elizabeth. Ishasha sector is home to unique species of lions known as tree climbing lions. These lions commonly climb trees and spend almost their sleeping hours in the trees. Here, you will get to understand some of the underlying reasons why Ishasha lions climb tree.
Dinner and overnight stay in Ishasha.
Day 7: Transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park
Today you will transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is situated in southwestern Uganda on the edge of the Western Rift Valley (Albertine rift) and is shared by Kanungu, Kabale and Kisoro districts.
Bwindi is home to 326 gorillas, which make up almost half of the world’s population of mountain gorillas. There are also 346 species of birds, over 200 species of butterflies and about 324 varieties of trees.
Dinner at Gorilla mist lodge or Bakiga lodge.
Main Destination: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Accommodation: Bakiga lodge, Mid-range lodge located inside Bwindi Impenetrable NP
Meals & Drinks: All meals included, Drinking water (Other drinks not included)
Day 8: Gorilla tracking and Batwa Experience
Today after early breakfast, you will be transferred to the park headquarters for briefing about gorilla tracking. You will encounter one of Bwindi’s endangered mountain gorillas. For most people this is the absolute highlight of their tour in Uganda.
Bwindi Impenetrable national park boasts both mountain gorillas and chimpanzees – the only forest in Africa that can make this claim. It also hosts five other species of primates, 113 species of mammals, over 200 species of butterflies and 360 species of birds. The gorillas you track are habituated and can tolerate the presence of humans for a brief period of time, every day.
After gorilla trekking, you will visit the Batwa people who ere to natives of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest before the forest was gazette a national park. These people would consider animals as food and the forest would provide also fruits, medicine etc. Today, they were relocated and its quit challenging for them to adopt to the new ways of life.
The time taken to track the gorillas can be as few as 2 hours to as many as 7 hours. Once the gorillas have been located, your group will be allowed a maximum of one hour with them. Coming face-to-face with a mountain gorilla is a truly humbling and emotional experience.
Main Destination: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Accommodation: Bakiga lodge, Mid-range lodge located inside Bwindi Impenetrable NP
Meals & Drinks: All meals included
Day 9. Transfer to Lake Mburo national Park.
Today, you will wake up early and transfer to Lake Mburo national park. Here you can enjoy a walking safari and connect more with nature. It’s a guided walking safari. You will have lunch at Igongo Cultural center and then do evening game drive to see impalas, zebras, giraffes, buffaloes, leopards etc.
Dinner and overnight stay at Rwakobo Safari Lodge
Day 10. Transfer back to Kampala.
Today you will do morning game drive as you exit the park for transfer back to Kampala for overnight stay. We shall visit a farm for Ankole Long Horn cattle to learn about how to Milk a cow and thereafter we shall embark on the way to airport where we shall stop at Equator village for the experience.
Day 11. Transfer to Entebbe international airport for old airport Israel-Uganda history and after check in for departure.
The old airport was the scene of a hostage rescue operation by Israeli Sayeret Matkal, dubbed Operation Entebbe, in 1976 after an Arab-German hijacking of Air France Flight 139 following a stopover in Athens, Greece en route to Paris from Tel Aviv. After the tour. You will check in for departure.
INCLUDED;
- Park fees (For non-residents)
- Gorilla permits (One per person, non-resident)
- Chimp permits (One per person, non-resident)
- All activities (Unless labeled as optional)
- All accommodation (Unless listed as upgrade)
- A professional driver/guide
- All transportation (Unless labeled as optional)
- All Taxes/VAT
- Round-trip airport transfer
- Meals (As specified in the day-by-day section)
- Drinking water (On all days)
EXCLUDED
- International flights (From/to home)
- Additional accommodation before and at the end of the tour
- Tips (Tipping guideline US$10.00 pp. per day)
- Personal items (Souvenirs, travel insurance, visa fees, etc.)
- Government imposed increase of taxes and/or park fees
