OVERVIEW
Your 7-day adventure takes you on a journey through the primate forests of Uganda in search of primates, before visiting Queen Elizabeth National Park for a thrilling wildlife experience.
Begin at Chimpanzee forest guest house, where walks into the lush forest bring you into contact with a variety of birds and primates. In addition, you visit the local community to discover more about peoples’ way of life in harmony with the forests. Tracking gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest is a highlight that you will remember forever. Continue to Queen Elizabeth National Park, where game drives and boat cruises deliver a variety of animals and birds in a wonderful wildlife experience.
Perfect for the adventurous at heart, this journey delivers the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to discover mountain gorillas in their natural habitat, deep in the forests of Uganda.
DAY ONE: Arrival in Entebbe
Upon arrival at Entebbe Airport, you will be picked by the driver who will transfer you to hotel accommodation for refreshment and overnight stay. Dinner and overnight stay Airport guest house.
DAY TWO: Transfer to Kibale National Park
Leave the Ugandan capital of Kampala and drive to Fort Portal, a lovely town resting in the shadow of the fabled Mountains of the Moon, and famous for its tea plantations. Enjoy a packed lunch along the way as you pass the Crater Lakes region on your way to the secluded Kibale forest camp within the Kibale Forest National Park. An optional visit to Bigodi swamp or visit a local community initiative – the Bigodi Wetland Walk. Be on the lookout for primates and the rare great blue turaco, one of the 138 bird species found in the swamp area depending on time of arrival. Retire at the lodge for dinner and overnight stay at Chimpanzee Forest Guest House.
DAY THREE: Chimpanzee Trekking & Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park
Start the day with some sensational chimpanzee tracking in the heart of the Kibale Forest. The reserve boasts the greatest variety and highest concentration of primates in East Africa, providing sightings of wild chimpanzees, red-tailed monkeys and the black-and-white colobus monkeys on your guided nature walk. After a hearty lunch you will transfer to Queen Elizabeth,driving down the Rwenzori Mountains, Africa’s highest mountain range, also called the Moon Mountains, there will be ample opportunity to get out and enjoy the spectacular views. On the way you will also visit a vanilla farm where you will see cocoa, tropical fruits and spices in addition to vanilla. You also stop at the center of the world, equator, where you can stand a foot on every hemisphere and see the monument that marks where the line goes.
You arrive at Twin lakes safari lodge in Queen Elizabeth National Park late afternoon, well in advance for dinner. It is one of Uganda’s most popular national parks because of an overwhelming animal kingdom.
DAY FOUR: Morning game drive and afternoon Boat Cruise
The day begins with an early breakfast and we go for a game drive in the Kasenyi Kobs mating ground which is in the northern sector of this Park. We are more likely to see waterbucks, buffaloes, elephants, lions and warthogs in their nature habitat. The game drive normally takes 2-3hours. After lunch we go for a boat cruise on the Kazinga channel, a natural channel that connects Lake George and Lake Edward. This is a very interesting cruise because of the big numbers of animals and birds it offers. It also takes 2hours. Dinner and overnight at Queen Elizabeth Twins Lake Lodge.
DAY FIVE: Game Drive and Transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest
The day begins early as we start the game drive at 6:30am in the Kasenyi plains in search for wildlife which includes the Buffalos, Kobs, Warthogs, Elephants, Waterbucks, Lions, Hyenas, and on lucky days leopards among others. After the game drive that takes about 2 – 3 hours, we go back to the lodge for breakfast, check out and drive to Bwindi through Ishasha sector where tree climbing lions can be seen according to the luck of the day. We have lunch en-route OR (packed) and later retire at the lodge for diner and overnight stay.
DAY SIX: Gorilla Trekking Experience
The day is dedicated to the Gorillas, you get an early cup of morning coffee or tea and a warm breakfast thereafter, drive out to the park to trek the Gorillas. Under the experienced guidance of your guide, you move on foot into the part of the rainforest where the huge animals live. There are only 700-800 left of them in the world, and about half live here. The going can be hard as the mountains are steep, the air humid and the vegetation dense. But the exertion is all worth it when you finally reach a group of gorillas eating, grooming, playing or napping. Their behaviour is so familiar that you may feel like you have known them all your life; it is an inspiring and privileged moment to see these highly endangered creatures in the wild. Some of them are going to stand close to you – an experience we guarantee you will never forget!
DAY SEVEN: Departure
After the morning breakfast, you will drive to Entebbe through the rolling hills on the farmlands. You have a stopover for lunch before you continue to reach Entebbe in the evening for your flight back home.
INCLUSIONS
- Vehicle air conditioned with pop up roof.
- Transport in 4X4 Vehicle
- Services of an English speaking guide/ driver
- Accommodation as per the itinerary
- Meals as per the itinerary
- Bottled water in the safari Vehicle
- Fuel
- Chimp permits and gorilla permits
- Activities as per the itinerary
EXCLUSIONS
- Drinks
- Tips and gratuities
- Porters
- Laundry services
- Visa (Uganda)
- Any other personal interests
- No accommodation on last night in Uganda (But can be arranged at an extra cost)
- Optional activities
- Insurance