Gorilla + Chimps & water safari Itinerary

Upon arrival at Entebbe International Airport on (time to be advised by the client) you will be met by our representative and driven the short distance across town to reach your guesthouse in the town’s leafy suburbs. You can spend the remainder of the day relaxing and prepare for your Ugandan adventure Overnight at The Boma.

Dinner provided.

Depart early in the morning and drive west to Kibale National Park in the foothills of the Rwenzori Mountain range. You will reach Fort Portal town in time to stop off for lunch before driving south to reach the Magombe Swamp in the Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary, situated on the edge of Kibale National Park. Here you’ll meet a local guide who will take you on your walk around Magombe Swamp, a protected RAMSAR site. The path meanders along the edge of the swamp and along a raised boardwalk through dense clusters of papyrus, taking a couple of hours to complete. This community run project offers the chance to see up to 138 bird species including the Great Blue Turaco, a variety of butterflies and perhaps what the swamp is best known for; its population of monkeys.

You will then be driven the short distance to your accommodation on the edge of the rainforest.

Accommodation: Turaco Treetops lodge

Breakfast, lunch and dinner provided.

Drinking water in the car also provided

Rise early to meet with the Uganda Wildlife Authority researcher team, for a briefing on tracking the chimpanzees in the rainforest. Kibale National Park is one of East Africa’s premier destinations to chimp track. It has a 95% successful tracking rate, as it is home to one of the highest concentrations and diversities of primates found anywhere on the continent. Groups of chimps live in communities containing between 10 and 100 member and once you’ve found your group, you will spend an hour with them.

You will be able to observe their natural behavior as they play, eat, socialise and display their prowess.

Afterward, return to base so your driver can take you south following the Rwenzori Mountain chain also known as the ‘Mountains of the Moon’ and cross over the equator to reach the savannah plains Queen Elizabeth Park.

You will drive down to the docks to embark on water safari to explore the Kazinga Channel. This river flows through the heart of the park and is an excellent way to view a variety of savannah wildlife. As you meander your way along the river banks you will have the chance to spot elephants, buffalo, warthogs and waterbuck as they come down to the water’s edge to cool off in the heat of the day. The channel is also a prime location to view crocodiles, hippo pods and a plethora of bird species.

Afterwards, you will be driven to your lodge perched on an escarpment where you can watch the sunset as it lights up the savannah below.

Accommodation: Marafiki Safari Lodge

Breakfast, lunch and dinner provided.

Drinking water in the car also provided

This morning rise early to explore the savannah of Kasenyi Plains on a game drive, set to stunning views of the Rwenzori Mountains or ‘Mountains of the Moon’ running along the skyline. These plains are home to a number of kob leks or kob breeding grounds for Uganda kobs, where they do battle for mating rights. The vast herds of Uganda kobs found here graze the grass keeping it short allowing easy viewing of species such as elephants, buffalo, warthogs, bushbuck and waterbuck grazing amongst the cactus tree dotted landscape. The large game herds make the area a prime location to track prides of lions, which hunt the game herds found here. You’ll be joined by a Uganda Wildlife Authority guide who are experts in tracking the lions giving you the best chance of tracking them down and are very knowledgeable about the flora and fauna of the savannah.

You will then drive south to reach Ishasha Plains which covers the southern sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park and are particularly known for their iconic population of tree-climbing lions. Lions are only recorded to exhibit this behavior in a few locations across Africa, believed to be a learned behavior specific to a few prides. It’s been speculated this behavior is to avoid the hottest part of the day to catch the cool breezes in the trees and to avoid the biting insects found in the grasses below. On entering the savannah you will track through the African bush on a game drive with a Uganda Wildlife Authority to seek out these impressive cats. These rangers are based on the plains and track the lions daily giving you the best possible chances of finding the lions. You’ll be looking for them in the branches of huge fig trees, as they laze away in the shade, sheltered from the heat of the day. You will then depart from the savannah plains and take a winding drive passing villages, forests and tea fields to reach your accommodation on the edge of Bwindi Impenetrable NATIONAL PARK. Here you can relax for the remainder of the day with views over the rainforest.

Accommodation: Haven lodge

Breakfast, lunch and dinner provided. Drinking water in the car also provided

Today after an early morning breakfast, you will embark on your gorilla trek. First up is registration and briefing by one of the rangers. The guides will then lead you through the undergrowth, parting thick creepers, to track the gorillas. The trek can take anywhere from half an hour to several hours, so a sturdy pair of walking shoes is a must. It is an extraordinary feeling sitting in the dense rainforest knowing you are with a few of the last remaining mountain gorillas – sadly there are only about 650 Gorillas left on the planet-half of which are found in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. You are allowed exactly one hour with the gorillas before returning to base station and then your lodge for lunch and relaxation.

Accommodation again at Haven Lodge again

Breakfast, lunch and dinner provided. Drinking water in the car also provide

After another early breakfast, you will be transferred to the Kihihi Airstrip for your ~7:00am flight back to Entebbe International Airport which arrives at 8:45am (flight ticket is included in this package and will be given to you by Safaris R Us).

On arrival into Entebbe Airport you will transit to the 2:55pm international flight to Mt Kilimanjaro, Tanzania (we recommend you organize with your international flight agent to add this flight, TC215, leaving Entebbe, Uganda at 2.55pm, arriving into Mt Kilimanjaro, Tanzania at 4.25pm to your overall international flight ticket)

On arrival into Kilimanjaro (flight details to be advised by client), you will be met and transferred The School of St Jude. Dinner provided.

Breakfast and dinner will be provided.