11 Days, Chimps, Gorillas & Lions in Uganda

Overview:

This fantastic, well-planned 11 Days, Chimps, Gorillas & Lions in Uganda allows you to see the best Uganda has to offer. This not only includes staying in quality lodges just outside or within the national parks but also the best safari experiences in the pearl of Africa.

Track the majestic mountain Gorillas and man’s closest relative, the chimpanzee. Boat Cruises on the river Nile, Kazinga Channel, and Lake Mburo, as well as getting the chance to see the ‘Big 5’ and take in some of the most spectacular scenery in the whole of Africa.

Day 1: Arrival at the Airport.

Upon arrival at Entebbe International airport, you will be met by your guide, briefed about your upcoming journey, and transferred to your lodge.

Day 2: Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary and Murchison Falls N. Park

After breakfast, your safari will start as you depart for Murchison falls national park in the Northwestern part of the country for two nights passing via Ziwa Rhino sanctuary for Rhino tracking. Have lunch, then proceed to the top of the falls and later check in the lodge for overnight.

Day 3: Game Drive and Nile Boat Safari.

Spend the morning on a game drive in Murchison’s breath-taking wildlife and scenery, including 4 of the ‘Big 5’, with only a rhino missing. In the afternoon you will embark on a boat cruise to see one of the planet’s great sights, Murchison Falls themselves, where the mighty Nile River squeezes through a 7m wide gorge creating the world’s most powerful water flow and the trademark rainbow. During this three-hour cruise, you will also get to see the fantastic array of wildlife on the river bank.

Day 4:Transfer to Kibale Forest National Park.

Depart south for the Kibale Forest, a full day’s drive, taking picnic lunches with you. On the right-hand side, you should enjoy views of the Rwenzori Mountains in the distance, known as the Mountains of the Moon. Kibale forest is home to extraordinary thirteen species of primates including chimpanzees, black and white colobus monkeys, red colobus, and grey-cheeked mangabey. Kibale forest also has recorded over 355 bird species and a range of other mammals including the elusive forest elephants.

Day 5: Chimp Tracking & Bigodi Swamp on our 11 Days, Chimps, Gorillas & Lions in Uganda

Spend the morning tracking chimpanzees in the Kibale Forest – one of the best places in Africa to see these lively primates. In the afternoon you will visit the nearby Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary, a haven for birdlife and butterflies.

Day 6: Kibale Forest – Queen Elizabeth National Park

Transfer to the Queen Elizabeth National Park. On our way we pass the equator where we will make a stop. Game drive in the afternoon. Queen Elizabeth National Park is one of the best places in Uganda to see lions. Expect to see elephants, lions, many hippos, crocodiles, buffaloes and maybe leopards.

Day 7: Game Drive and Kazinga Channel Boat Cruise.

This morning you can go on a game-drive on the Kasenyi Track, an area which is one of the best places to look for big cats, as well as herds of elephants and solitary buffalos, and of course the fairly common Ugandan kob. This afternoon you will do a boat trip on the Kazinga Channel, which is a lovely change of scene from being in a vehicle, and is best in the afternoons when animals such as elephant and waterbuck come to the water to drink. Birdlife along the shore is equally impressive, including malachite kingfishers, saddle-billed stork and pink-backed pelicans.

Day 8: Queen Elizabeth – Bwindi Impenetrable national park.

Morning transfer Queen Elizabeth – Bwindi Impenetrable After your morning breakfast, transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable national park about 4-5 hours via Ishasha where you have a chance to see the tree climbing lions, which have made Queen Elizabeth national park very famous arriving at the lodge in time for lunch. Spend the afternoon relaxing and have a good night’s sleep in preparation for the following day’s gorilla tracking.

Day 9: Gorilla Tracking.

After an early breakfast you will set off towards what will undoubtedly be one of the highlights of your safari, the unforgettable experience that is Mountain Gorilla tracking. After trekking through the dense forest to where the Gorillas were found the day before, you continue your tracking, searching for the largest primate in the world. Upon sighting, you will stay with them for one hour as they eat, rest and bond with their young. The tracking can take anywhere between 30 minutes to 4 hours, so be prepared for a long trek through the humid rain-forest. Afterwards you will spend the afternoon relaxing and taking in your beautiful surroundings. In the afternoon, grace yourselves for a community walk. This offers an opportunity to interact with the local people as they do their local activities. There are different sites like tea and coffee farms, traditional healer (medicine man) who uses different herbs to cure different diseases, banana brewing, distillation site, visiting the community schools, visiting the batwa (pygmies), people who used to live in the forest and were evacuated from the forest because of conservation reasons. These people will entertain you with traditional dances and songs explaining their life in the forest.

Day 10: Bwindi Impenetrable – Lake Mburo national park.

After breakfast, we drive to Lake Mburo National Park.. Game drive or boat trip on the lake in the afternoon. In the evening we make a night game drive with high chances of seeing leopards. Lake Mburo is one of the 2 national parks with zebras and the only national park with impalas in Uganda. There are no elephants and lions, so walking safaris are possible.

Day 11: Lake Mburo National Park – Entebbe.

Game drive or game walk in the morning. On our way back we can make a stopover at the Equator for photos. Transfer to the airport for your departure.