Safari Overview
This 18 days Uganda primates and wildlife safari is an amazing safari for those who have time and want to explore the beauty of Uganda. On this safari, you will visit over 6 national parks which are; Kidepo valley national park, Murchison falls national park, Kibale national park, Queen Elizabeth national park, Bwindi Impenetrable forest national park and Lake Mburo national park. You will visit source of the Nile in Jinja and proceed to Sipi falls where you will visit the falls, do coffee tours and different cultures. You will track gorillas which are Uganda’s iconic tourist attraction, you will track chimpanzees as well, visit the IK tribe in Kidepo valley and also the Batwa community in Bwindi. Expect to visit Mabamba bay a home to shoebills and other bird species, you will also enjoy the local cuisines. The journey will start from central Uganda, head to Eastern Uganda, connect to northern Uganda, connect to western Uganda and back to central Uganda.
Day by Day Program
Day 1: Pick up and transfer to Sipi falls
On the first keg of the trip, our driver guide will pick you from the Airport, brief you about the safari and hit the road to Sipi falls, it is about 6hours from Entebbe to Sipi falls, however, and you will have different stopovers. You will have a stopover in Mabira forest, visit Ssezibwa falls, you will enjoy these falls which are in the heart of Mabira forests, you will later proceed to River Nile where you will visit the source of the Nile and this will be a brief stopover and then you will later head to Jinja City for lunch and proceed to Sipi falls. You will be welcomed by the different sceneries, beautiful mountainous terrain, the falls themselves which give breathtaking views. You will later visit the coffee gardens, engage in coffee production experience and here you have an opportunity to taste the coffee. You will later retire to your lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 2: Transfer to Kidepo Valley National Park
Another beautiful day is here where you will wake up on a scrumptious breakfast, meet your driver guide, check out and transfer to Kidepo valley national park. This is the most isolated national park in Uganda but with breathtaking views, wildlife and unique culture of the IK people. You will drive for about 7 hours from Sipi falls, you will drive via Kaabong in Moroto, have lunch and proceed to Kidepo where you will feel detached from this world. You will check in the lodge, relax, and have dinner an overnight.
Day 3: Game drive and Visit IK Community
On the 3rd day of your safari, you will wake up in the morning at 6am, greet your intestines with a scrumptious breakfast and at 6:30am, meet your driver guide and the ranger guide and then head to the jungle. The game drive can last between 3 to 4 hours and while in the wilderness of Kidepo you will encounter lions, leopards, buffaloes, elephants, greater and lesser kudu, Guenther’s dik-dik, and mountain reedbucks and on a lucky day, you will spot a cheetah as well. You will later return to the lodge, relax as you admire the beauty surrounding environment, you will have lunch and then in the evening at around 3pm, you will visit the IK tribe on Mountain Morungole in Kidepo valley national park. These people will welcome you with songs and dances, they will take you through the ancient life, how they used to hunt, how they survived among others. You will later return to the lodge in the late evening for dinner.
Day 4: Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park
On the fourth day, you will wake up on a lazy breakfast at 9am, meet your driver guide, check out and transfer to Murchison falls national park which Uganda’s largest national park. You will drive for about 6 hours but with a stopover for lunch in Gulu city then embark on your journey. You will arrive in Murchison falls national park in the evening hours, connect to your lodge, check in, relax and have an overnight stay.
Day 5: Game Drive and Boat Cruise
Another day to explore the beauty of Murchison falls national park is here. You will arise in the morning at around 6am, enjoy a scrumptious breakfast, meet your driver guide and the ranger and then head to the jungle to catch the animals when they are still very active. You will be welcomed by herds of elephants, buffaloes, giraffes, kobs, lions and leopards to mention but a few. You will capture all the moments in the wilderness as you enjoy sweet lyrics from the birds all over, the experience is so mesmerizing yet true. Thereafter at around 11am, you will return to the lodge to relax, wait for lunch and then in the evening you will go for a boat cruise to the bottom of the falls. Expect to cruise through school of hippos, elephants will be swimming as buffaloes are also wallowing in the close vicinity, you will visit top of the falls to have a clear aerial view of the water falls. Murchison falls are the strongest waterfalls in the whole world, here you will be with a story to write about the waterfalls. You will later retire to your lodge for dinner and an overnight stay.
Day 6: Check out and Transfer to Kibale Forest National Park
On this day, you will wake, grab a mouthwatering breakfast at 8am, check out of the lodge and transfer to Kibale forest national park. This is also known as the Primate Capital of the World. You will drive for about 5 hours with stopovers for sceneries for example the rolling hills of tea plantation, you will visit CVK (Crater Valley Kibale), and this is famous for the beautiful views of Lake Nyabikere and it will give you the best view of the park’s entrance. Lunch will be in Fort-Portal which is also not Tourism city, after lunch, you will hit the road to Kibale forest national park, connect to your lodge, check-in, relax, have dinner and overnight stay.
Day 7: Chimpanzee tracking and Bigodi Wetland
Another beautiful day is here, you will arise in the morning at 6:30am, greet your intestines with a scrumptious, meet your driver guide and transfer to Kanyanchu information center for a briefing about chimpanzee trekking etiquettes. You will be assigned a chimpanzee troop to track with a guidance of a ranger guide who is knowledgeable and he will be answering all your questions. The forest is endowed with other mammals like birds, bush-pigs, and different tree species. After you have met the chimpanzees, you will spend 1hour in their presence as you watch how they play, feed their young ones, you will later exit the park, return to the park headquarters to receive a chimpanzee trekking certificate, you guide will be waiting to transfer you back to the lodge. You will refresh and in the evening head to Bigodi wetland, this is another birding sanctuary, you will spot different birds, and then visit the community where you will taste the local beer and be taken through the process how it is made. Later in the evening at around 5pm you return to the lodge for relaxation and overnight stay.
Day 8: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park
You will wake up on a lazy breakfast at around 9am, park your luggage and bid a farewell for Kibale national park and head to Queen Elizabeth national park, you will drive for about 2hours from Kibale national park to Queen Elizabeth national park, arriving will be in the lunch time, connect to your lodge, check in and relax. You might do an evening game drive depending on what you want or relax at the lodge.
Day 9: Game Drive and Boat cruise on Kazinga Channel
Another brand new day here for you to explore the beauty of Queen Elizabeth national park which is Uganda’s second largest park and it is famous for tree climbing lions, endless plains and wildlife. You will wake up at 6am, grab a cup of coffee, meet your driver guide and head to the wilderness to encounter the animals when they are still very active. You will spot tree climbing lions, buffaloes, elephants, leopards, hyenas, kobs, bushbucks, waterbucks, birds among other wildlife. You will return to the lodge, wait for lunch and in the evening get ready for a launch cruise on Kazinga channel a water body that combines lakes Edward of D.R Congo and Gorge of Uganda. This is another animal spotting sanctuary where buffaloes, hippos and elephants share the same pool and birds be chirping as they entertain you. The launch cruise lasts for 2hours then head to Kikorongo for Equator experience. After that, you will head back to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
Day 10: Check out and Transfer to Bwindi
On the 10th leg of your safari, you will wake up in the morning at your time of convenience, enjoy a mouthwatering breakfast, check out of the lodge, meet your driver guide and head to Bwindi impenetrable forest national park. You will drive for about 5 hours via Kabale and this is where you will have lunch from and after lunch, hit the road again to Bwindi national park. The weather and the vegetation will be different from the rest of the parks. You will connect to your lodge that will be surrounded by thick canopies, you will check in the lodge, relax, have dinner and wait for yet another day.
Day 11: Gorilla Trekking and Batwa Cultural Tour
You will unfold your day with a scrumptious breakfast at 6:30am, meet your driver guide at 7am and head to the park headquarters for briefing about gorilla trekking habits. You will be assigned a gorilla family to track and then head to the jungle with a ranger guide who will help you to locate the gorilla family you were assigned. After you have met the gorillas in their natural habitat, you will spend 1 hour in their presence taking pictures and videos, you will later return to the park headquarters to collect your gorilla tracking certificate and then meet your driver guide who will be waiting to transfer you back to the lodge to refresh, have a snack and then in the evening you will visit the Batwa community. This is a tribe with shortest people in Uganda who have lived in the forests since time immemorial, they will tell you a lot of stories, they will sing and dance for you thereafter, you will retire to the lodge for dinner and an overnight stay.
Day 12: Transfer to Lake Bunyonyi and Community Engagement
On this day, you will arise in the morning at your time of convenience like at 9am, enjoy a delicious breakfast and then check out of the lodge and transfer to Lake Bunyonyi Uganda’s hidden wonder with over 29 Islands and this lake is the deepest lake in Uganda and second deepest lake in Africa after Lake Tanganyika. Each Island is unique and therefore the experience is unique as well. It is about 4 hours drive from Bwindi to Lake Bunyonyi. You will arrive in time for lunch, connect to your accommodation, check in and have an evening engagement with the community. There is a lot to learn as well and to enjoy at the same time.
Day 13: Canoeing and Relaxation
What a beautiful day this will be. Unfold your day with a scrumptious breakfast at 8am and head to the lake for canoeing. You will explore different Islands including the Punishment Island also known as the Akempene Island. This is where they used to dump girls who would get pregnant before being married. You can also swim in Lake Bunyonyi since it is the only lake that is Bilharzia free in Uganda, after canoeing, you will return to lodge for relaxation as you catch feelings for the surrounding aura.
Day 14: Transfer to Lake Mburo National Park
On this day, you will arise in the morning at 9am, enjoy a delicious breakfast, check out and transfer to Lake Mburo national park. Lake Mburo national park is Uganda’s 4th largest savannah national park and it is packed with lot wildlife. You will drive for about 4hours from Lake Bunyonyi to Lake Mburo national park, you will have a finger licking lunch in Mbarara, you will visit Igongo country hotel where there is Ankole museum. You will learn some history about the Ankole culture hit the road again and connect to the park and this will be in the afternoon hours. You will connect to your lodge, check in, relax and here you can do an evening game drive or relax and get ready for the next day.
Day 15: Game Drive and Boat Cruise on Lake Mburo National Park
As your exploration still lasts, you will unwrap your day with a finger licking breakfast at 6:30am, meet your driver guide and the ranger and head to the jungle. As you start your game drive, you will be greeted by warthogs, welcomed by herds of buffaloes, zebras, giraffes, impalas, elands, leopards and this will signify that you have been accepted by the jungle already. You will be entertained by birds since Lake Mburo is another bird sanctuary with a recorded number of birds to be over 350 bird species. You will later return to the lodge at around 11am, relax at the lodge, have lunch and be ready for the launch cruise on Lake Mburo national park another beautiful experience awaits.
Day 16: Guided Nature Walk and Cycling
Another beautiful day is here for you. Arise on a scrumptious breakfast at 6:30am, meet a ranger guide at 7am and go for a guided nature walk. Nature walk in Lake Mburo lasts for about 2hours and all this time is spent when you are very close to the nature. You will be escorted by the ranger who will be giving you protection and also knowledgeable enough to answer any questions. You will spot hippos as they return to the lake from grazing, birds will be leaving their nests, antelopes will jumping around, zebras, herds of buffaloes and giraffes will be in the closest vicinity. You will visit different scenic view points, then after that, at around 10am return to the lodge for relaxation, freshen up and in the evening you will do cycling. This is the only national park where you can do cycling and this starts from 2pm or 3pm depending on what time favors you and it lasts between 1-2 hours as well.
Day 17: Check out and Transfer to Mabamba Bay
On this day, you will arise in the morning at a round 8am, enjoy a scrumptious breakfast, check out and transfer to Mabamba Bay a home to shoebill storks. It is about 4 hours drive from Lake Mburo to Mabamba bay a home to shoebills, this place is near Entebbe international airport. You will have a stopover at the Equator in Kayabwe to have another experience, here are some craft shops here as well where you can buy souvenirs, and lunch will be served at the lodge in Mabamba.
Day 18: Shoebill Sighting and Departure
On your last leg of the safari, you will arise in the morning at 7:30am, enjoy a scrumptious breakfast, meet your guide and head out to spot the shoebills. You will take as many pictures and videos as you can, then after, you will fold your bags and bid a farewell to Mabamba bay. You will be transferred to the Airport which is about just 1:30hours from Mabamba to Entebbe international Airport. And this will mark the end of your safari.
