Detailed Tour Itinerary for Uganda Gorilla Trekking Wildlife Chimps Safari - 6 Days
Day 1: Meet at your hotel in Kampala / Entebbe or Entebbe Airport, drive to Lake Mburo National Park
Your 6 Days Uganda Gorilla Trekking Wildlife Chimps Safari shall be starting when you meet with your safari guide at the airport (if you arrive on Day 1) or at your hotel in Entebbe or Kampala. The safari guide briefs you through the tour, about the gorilla trek and all the other experiences on this Uganda safari.
The meeting time is normally at 8 am, but we could go earlier if you prefer, or later, but not later than 2 pm if you arrive the same day or just prefer to delay the start a bit.
We will then be driving through the remote villages of Uganda to Lake Mburo National Park in the south of the country. Safari today is going to be about 4 hours with several interesting stops for you to enjoy and take photos.
En route, there is a local community popular for making local drums and crafts and a fruit market. Stopover, admire and buy yourself souvenirs. Proceed to the Equator line taken as one beautiful scenery in Africa - the pathway of the sun and take photographs.
Once we arrive at Lake Mburo National Park, your safari guide will attempt a game drive on the tracks of the park. On this game drive, there are lots of wildlife to spot - including zebras, topis, buffalo, eland, impala, water hogs, waterbucks, giraffes, etc. The park landscape and savannah scenery are really impressive and photography in this area is great. Your safari guide will afford you as much opportunity for wildlife experiences as possible on this day, so until you are tired, it won't be over!
Accommodation options we plan to book in Lake Mburo National Park
Up-market: Mihingo Lodge
Moderate: Rakobo Rock | Kigarama Wilderness Lodge
Low Budget: Sheltered tent at Eagles Nest Camp | Leopard Camp
Day 2: Wildlife Game drives in Lake Mburo National Park, Drive to the mountain gorillas' sanctuary of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest
You might consider rising early today for another game drive in Lake Mburo National Parks. This park presents very rich biodiversity along its game drive tracks. Going early morning on a game drive in the park can reward you with rare sightings. Some lucky guests have been able to spot leopards and a lion, but hyenas are more common. Other more common wild game includes warthog, topi, impala, duiker, bushbuck, waterbuck, eland, and zebra.
Alternatively, if you are staying at Mihingo Lodge a horseback safari can be booked. Horseback safaris in Lake Mburo offer you the opportunity to get closer to wildlife because the motor vehicle noise is eliminated completely. The wild animals will just be looking on as you closely get by. The activity may be available to guests of other lodges but only if those at Mihingo Lodge don't take up all the horses. Many visitors have got closer sights of leopards, while horse riding.
After the game drives, we shall be departing Lake Mburo National Park to Uganda's main home for the mountain gorillas, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. We traverse highly fertile lands with verdant plains and steep-sided hills covered by neatly terraced rows of cultivation. Lots of beautiful landscapes should keep you awake as we go along hoping to arrive at Bwindi early in the evening.
Accommodation options we plan to book in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Luxury: Mahogany Springs Lodge | Buhoma Lodge Four Gorillas Lodge | Nkuringo Gorilla Lodge Bwindi
Moderate: Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge| Lake Mulehe Gorilla Lodge| Gorilla Mist Camp
Low Budget: Gorilla Haven Lodge Rushaga | Ruhija Gorilla Friends Camp | Gorilla Conservation Camp
Day 3: Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
For many, this is the highlight of the Uganda Gorilla Trekking Wildlife Chimps Safari!
After you have had your breakfast at the camp/lodge, your driver shall be picking you again to go for gorilla tracking in the Afro-montane rainforest of Bwindi. But first, you shall be participating in the pre-gorilla trek briefing at the park office. While here, a lot more information about gorilla conservation and ecology is shared. You will also be briefed about how to behave while gorilla trekking, how to act in case of emergencies, and also be allocated to a gorilla group/ family to visit.
You will then proceed to enter the Bwindi Forest in search of the endangered mountain gorillas.
Mostly, Bwindi is made of forested slopes with thick undergrowth everywhere and bamboo in some sections. Most trekkers take 1-3 hours to reach the mountain gorillas, but it all depends on where the gorillas are that day and the weather when you are hiking.
When you reach the previous night's resting place for the gorillas, you will be allowed to study the nests and gorilla camp before proceeding. By this time, the gorillas should be just a few meters from you. You shall be hearing them hooting, breaking tree branches, and chest-thumping. When you finally catch a glimpse of the first gorilla, you shall be guided to a safe viewing position which should be at least 6 meters from them. You will be allowed 1 hour to enjoy the mountain gorillas. Usually, the rangers allow more time than the one how, but not that much.
It will then be time to descend back to camp. Along the way, you might encounter other wildlife species in Bwindi which include 120 types of mammals including 10 primates like the unhabituated chimpanzee, L'Hoest's, red-tailed and blue monkey, black and white colobus, and baboon. If you are a keen birder, you might be able to spot or hear some of Bwindi's resident 350 species, 7 of which are on the IUCN red data listed.
Accommodation options available (all on full board basis)
Luxury: Mahogany Springs Lodge | Buhoma Lodge Four Gorillas Lodge | Nkuringo Gorilla Lodge Bwindi
Moderate: Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge| Lake Mulehe Gorilla Lodge| Gorilla Mist Camp
Low Budget: Gorilla Haven Lodge Rushaga | Ruhija Gorilla Friends Camp | Gorilla Conservation Camp
Day 4: A perfect Uganda safari day in Queen Elizabeth National Park & Tree-climbing Lions
After breakfast, we drive through stunning savannah grasslands as we head to the southern sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park.
Ishasha is a much more remote and less-traveled part of Queen Elizabeth National Park, but one which has a sense of exclusivity and remoteness. The game densities here are high, and this region has reported some of the largest herds of elephants anywhere in Uganda, as it is their main migration corridor between Uganda and the DRC.
As we enter the park, we do a game drive in search of the wild game. We continue and drive to the northern circuit, which is the area near the main road known for its tree-climbing lions. We look particularly at the many fig trees where lions like to stay. But we also visit the Uganda kob mating ground, which is their preferred hunting area.
Accommodation options we plan to book in Queen Elizabeth National Park
Luxury: Mweya Safari Lodge | Elephant Plains Lodge Katara Lodge
Mid-range: Buffalo Safari Lodge | Enganzi Lodge | Bush Lodge
Budget: Bush Lodge (tents)| Simba Safari Camp (tents) | Pumba Cottages
Day 5: Kyambura Gorge Chimpanzee Trekking and a Boat safari on The Kazinga Channel
After an early breakfast, you head out to the Kyambura Gorge for Chimpanzee trekking.
Chimpanzee tracking in the gorge is remarkable as some of the Chimps have been habituated, meaning that these chimpanzees are familiar with human beings and can carry on their day-to-day activities in the presence of people. Kyambura is the only place in the park where you can see habituated chimpanzees and other types of primates including red-tailed monkeys, black-and-white colobus, baboons, and vervet monkeys. This area is also identified for a variety of avian species like numerous falcons, the blue-headed bee-eater, and the African Finfoot.
In the afternoon, we will go for a launch trip along the Kazinga Channel. This gives you the opportunity to view wildlife up close: hippos huff and spray at a mere foot away from the boat, and buffalo linger in the shallows. The shores of the channel are also home to an array of birds, including pink-backed pelicans, pied and malachite kingfishers, saddle-billed storks, and many others.
Accommodation
Luxury: Mweya Safari Lodge | Elephant Plains Lodge | Katara Lodge
Mid-range: Buffalo Safari Lodge | Enganzi Lodge | Bush Lodge
Budget: Bush Lodge (tents)| Simba Safari Camp (tents) | Pumba Cottages
Day 6: Safari Game drives, Depart for Kampala or Entebbe - End of the Uganda Gorilla Trekking Wildlife Chimps Safari. Days
It is advisable that you plan to depart from the lodge/camp at the latest 6:30 am today for the game drive along the Kasenyi plain area in northern Queen Elizabeth National Park. This is the best time for opportunities to view the cats in action, owing to the vast population of Uganda kobs. We drive at very slow speeds in search of lions, elephants, and solitary buffaloes.
After covering as many tracks as possible, we shall end the game drive and start on the journey back to Entebbe / Kampala.