Watch the chimpanzees playing, the colobus monkeys hiding and the baboons staring curiously at you. An impressive meeting with the endangered mountain gorillas will become an experience of a lifetime!
This safari takes you to the homes of the primates in Uganda. From a chimp sanctuary you will go straight to Kibale Forest - chimp trekking then Queen Elizabeth Park for game viewing onwards to Bwindi for a meeting with the mountain gorillas.
Day 1 : Ngamba Island A visit to the island of the chimpanzees! In the morning you will depart from Entebbe for a close encounter with our relatives. After a pleasant boat ride you will reach Ngamba Island, where you will be directed to the visitors centre to learn more about the chimps and their lifestyle. You will be able to view and photograph these fascinating apes in their natural environment from only a few metres away! In the afternoon a boat ride back to Entebbe and transfer to Kampala. Overnight at Orchidea Guest House. B-L-D
Day 2 : Kampala – Kibale National Park (ca. 7 hrs) At 7:30am depart Kampala and head to Fort Portal with lunch en route. Fort Portal rests in the shadow of the fabled Mountains of the Moon and is famous for the many tea plantations. From this lovely town we will continue to Kibale National Park. Dinner and overnight at the cottages of Primate Lodge Kibale. (L-D)
Day 3: Chimp trekking and Bigodi Swamp walk Today the forest opens its doors for a sensational chimp tracking. Kibale Forest is reputable of having the greatest variety and highest concentration of primates in East Africa. Enjoy a guided nature walk in the tropical rainforest in search of the wild chimpanzee, red-tailed monkey, black-and-white colobus monkey and many others. After a hearty lunch we transfer to the Bigodi Swamp for another, totally different nature walk. The Bigodi Swamp Walk is an initiative of the local community and is known for its rich diversity of birds and primates. Dinner and overnight at the cottages of Primate Lodge Kibale (B-L-D
Day 4: Kibale Forest - Queen Elizabeth National Park ( 3hrs) After breakfast we calmly drive back towards Fort Portal while we pass the crater lakes area, a beautiful landscape with small lakes and rolling hills. From Fort Portal we continue to Queen Elizabeth National Park. Dinner and overnight at Simba Safari Camp. (B-L-D)
Day 5: Game drive and Boat Cruise The day begins early when we start with a morning game drive and head to the mating ground of the Uganda Kobs. We search for lions, elephants, buffaloes and other wild animals in their natural habitat before returning for lunch. In the afternoon we take on a boat cruise along the Kazinga Channel, a natural channel between Lake Edward and Lake George. Thanks to the abundant birdlife that is sighted, and the elephants, buffaloes and hundreds of hippos that are cooling off at the shores, this cruise will definitely be one of the highlights of your safari. Dinner and overnight at Simba Safari Camp. (B-L-D)
Day 6: Queen Elizabeth - Bwindi National Park 5hrs After breakfast we head towards the south, passing the southern sector of the national park (if road conditions allow). This part is called Ishasha and is famous for the tree climbing lions. From here we continue to Bwindi while enjoying panoramic views. Dinner and overnight at Buhoma Community Camp. (B-L-D)
Day 7: Gorilla tracking in Bwindi National Park The highlight of your primate safari: a meeting with the gentle giants of Bwindi! Especially hikers will love the tracking in the beautiful ecosystem of the park. It is difficult to foresee how many hours you will hike, it may take two to eight hours. Expect to walk a long distance in steep and muddy conditions, sometimes with rain overhead, before you encounter any gorillas. But it will definitely be worthwhile as you observe them closely while they eat, play and rest. A unique and unforgettable experience! For conservation purposes, time spent with the gorillas is limited to one hour. The ranger guide always briefs you on how to behave with these giant apes. Dinner and overnight at Buhoma Community Bandas.
Day 8 : Bwindi – Entebbe (ca. 11 hrs) After breakfast we depart the dense forest of Bwindi and drive back towards the capital city. Look out for zebras and impalas as we pass Lake Mburo National Park and take some photos at the Ugandan equator. With lunch en route we will arrive in Kampala in the evening. Overnight at Executive Airport Hotel. (B-L)
Day 9 : Departure Enriched with an experience of a lifetime and unforgettable memories you will say goodbye to the Pearl of Africa. Depending on the time of departure you will be transferred to the airport for your flight back home. We are looking forward to seeing you again!
Included in the price: - Airport transfer - Ground transport per comfortable 4WD safari vehicle - English speaking driver/guide - Accommodation in places mentioned in the itinerary, based on a double room - Full board (breakfast, lunch, dinner), apart rom your stay in Entebbe and Kampala - Bottled mineral water throughout the safari - Park entrance fees - Game drives - Ngamba Island - Boat launch on the Kazinga Channel - Chimp tracking in Kibale Forest
Exclusions: - International flight - Visa - Gorilla permit (USD $500 per person) - Meals and drinks not mentioned above - Laundry and tips - Items of personal nature
Note: Please note that demand is very high and only 8 persons per day per group are allowed to see the gorillas. Therefore we advise you to book permits at least 4 months in advance.
If you wish to stay in luxury accommodation please notify so we can inform you about the upgrade fees. Please complete the enquiry form below for more details and tailor-made safaris in Uganda and Rwanda!
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I was very impressed with the website when I was looking for a company to plan our trip to Murchison Falls. My friend and I were going to Uganda to visit my daughter and her friend who were working as volunteers with an NGO in Jinja. The four of us wanted to visit Murchison Falls.
We were pleased that the operator was able to make arrangements to suit our budget. They also accommodated our wish to be picked up in Jinja instead of Kampala.
Our driver, Beki was wonderful. Not only was he a very competent driver, but he was full of good humour and knowledge about the culture of Uganda and its animals and plants. He answered all of our questions about everything we saw on our trip to Murchison Falls and we had many as this was our first trip to Africa. He pointed out many things of interest to us and made us feel so comfortable on our trip. Beki helped to make our safri a most enjoyable and memorable experience.
The company sent us an information package and a complete itinerary before we went on our safari. I thought this was very helpful. I have only praise for their staff. If Beki is representative of all their drivers, then you are ensured of an amazing safari experience.
We thought they did a very good job of meeting our needs during our trip to Uganda. They were responsive when we asked to modify the standard itinerary - visiting a local hospital, the Kampala marketplace, and the veterinary school at the University.
At our request, they substituted an extra game drive for the scheduled activity, and accommodated our request for a different hotel in Kampala on our last days.
Our guide/driver was named David, and he answered all of our questions, maintaining his composure despite some unforeseen circumstances (car broke down, and he had to get a different driver to bring us back to Kampala).
We took the luxury option except for Travellers Rest, which we chose when the Nkuringo Lodge was not able to honor our reservations. It was an unexpected pleasure to stay at Travellers Rest -- wonderful food and friendly service at a very reasonable price. The Primate Luxury Tented Camp, where we stayed when we tracked chimps in Kibale, seems like it's not quite ready for prime time but shows promise for the future.
Overall, we were very pleased, and if we were going to make the trip again, we'd call them.
We would be delighted to provide you with information about our holiday. We have nothing but praise for this operator, both for their helpfulness throughout and their flexibility in planning our itinerary.
We had a rather unusual plan for our holiday, in that, as well as touring the game parks, we wished to seeand meet Ugandans on the ground as much as possible,and also we wished to end our holiday by being taken to Gulu, where our daughter is working as an NGO.
They responded to this by including a 2-day visit to a farm in the far south-west, near the Tanzanian and Rwandan borders, and by agreeing to drop us off in Gulu, rather than returning us to Kampala.
We visited Lake Mburo, Queen Elizabth, Kibale and Murchison Falls National Parks, in addition to Nshenyi village referred to above. All this was achieved in an 11-day itinerary, at a very reasonable cost. Our driver was fantastic. He was not only one of the best drivers I've ever come across either inside or outside of Uganda, but he was also very friendly, and most knowledgeable about all the wildlife, including the rich variety of birds we saw. He also had phenomenal eyesight; even when the road he was negotiating was particularly pitted and rough, he still managed to catch sight of birds and game a long way of, which we would have missed.
Altogether a most positive, enjoyable and educational trip. I'd recommend anyone to go; Uganda is a truly beautiful country. We look forward to returning.
I found the safari operator to be very accommodating with any special requests we had regarding the itinerary.
The Safari Lodge pool made for a perfect setting for a sunset swim, overlooking the channel filled with hippos. The lodge also provided the unique experience of waking up to a hippo grazing outside our door.
