Day 1: Arrive in Uganda through Entebbe International Airport.
Arrive on Uganda at her main entry point Entebbe International Airport where you will be warmly welcomed by one of our experienced company representative to transfer you to the lodge. Retire for relaxation, dinner and overnight
Accommodation:
Luxury: Sheraton hotel Kampala
Midrange: Cassia lodge
Budget: Common Lens Inn Hotel
Day 2: Ngamba Chimpanzee Sanctuary
After your breakfast our safari guide will be ready to take you around for a city tour; before you transfer to Ngamba chimps Island. Perched in the middle of Lake Victoria, this 100 acre forested island is situated just 23 km offshore from Entebbe. It acts as an orphanage for chimpanzees which are rescued from poachers and diseases.
Spend a day viewing orphaned chimps as they feed and exercise their acrobatics. In the evening transfer back to your lodge in Kampala
Accommodation:
Luxury: Sheraton hotel Kampala
Midrange: Cassia lodge
Budget: Common Lens Inn Hotel
Day 3: Transfer to Jinja: White water rafting & visit the source of River Nile.
After your morning breakfast at the hotel, our professional guide will be right at your service to pick you up from the hotel and brief you about the trip, and then proceed to Jinja going through the pleasant Mabira forest blanketed by the morning mist. Make a stopover in “Namawojolo” a local place for culinary tourism to taste on the local cuisine, such as roasted meat and Gonja; you do not have to miss out “Gonja”. Proceed later on the road to adrift for an amazing experience of white water rafting. This activity will make you feel touched to the Nile waters because you will bond freely with the water falls. So you do not want to miss out on such a beautiful activity.
After this amazing adventure, have lunch and relax a bit. After lunch, you take a ride to the source of the Nile-a quiet beautiful spectacular place where the environment is decorated with palm trees and incredible tropical flora. You will get to hear the gurgling Nile waters from a distance, observe local fishermen casting their nets in the river that takes 90 days to reach Egypt! – We shall organize 1:30 minutes boat cruise on Nile River crossing into Lake Victoria! Don’t forget to take memorable pictures for your friends! More so at the Nile you will visit the floating craft shops and don’t fail to buy anything for yourself, and also the traditional Basoga will be waiting for you to sing and dance for you as you come off the boat.
After these breath taking activities, you embark on a trip to Kampala early in the evening to relax and have dinner at the lodge.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Sheraton hotel Kampala
Midrange: Cassia Lodge
Budget: Common Lens Inn Hotel
Day 4: Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park.
After breakfast at your place of stay in Kampala, embark on the trip to Murchison Falls National Park in the north of Uganda, a journey of 311km about 5 hours’ drive. You traverse through the undulating hill slopes of Nakasongola (you may also opt for rhino tracking in Ziwa rhino sanctuary). Make a stopover in Masindi town for lunch and proceed on the drive to Murchison Falls National Park for relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Paraa safari lodge
Midrange: Pakuba game lodge
Budget: Red Chilli Rest Camp
Day 5: Morning game drive and afternoon Nile launch cruise.
You will wake up very early in the morning to go for a morning game drive where you will have a chance to spot early risers and nocturnal species before they return to their hideouts. This is the most beautiful national park in Uganda and this is because it hosts 4 of the big 5 animals and also it also home to one of the most beautiful and powerful falls in the world so far.
Traverse the rolling plains of Uganda’s largest National Park before returning later to the lodge for breakfast. The 3,893 sq. km park is home to a range of animals, and you will have a chance of viewing some of the Park’s residents including lions, giraffes, Jackson’s hartebeests, antelopes, buffalo, and elephants. For the birders, you will enjoy a cock tail of them as these areas support the secretary bird and the black chested snake eagle, to name a few.
In the afternoon, go for a boat trip to the base of Murchison Falls, where the Nile thunders through a small 7 meter gorge plunging 43 meters into the Nile on the way to Lake Albert. Lots of bird diversity can be spotted and numerous animals resting and drinking water along the banks of the Nile. The most common ones being hippos, buffaloes, Nile crocodiles and birds include, the African fish eagle, Yellow billed stork, Egyptian goose, Egrets, Malachite kingfisher among others. The launch cruise will take you close to the falls’ base where you will be shown the spot where Ernest Hemingway’s plane crashed during sightseeing tour to Murchison falls in 1954.
You can then get off the boat and go hiking up the side of the falls to the top.
After the cruise, you will drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Paraa safari lodge
Midrange: Pakuba game lodge
Budget: Red Chilli Rest Camp
Day 6: Transfer to Kibale Forest National Park.
After breakfast, embark on a scenic trip to Fort Portal, a beautiful town overlooking the mountains of the moon. Taking the Western scenic route to Kibale National Park, the 6 – 8 hours’ drive will lead you through the Albertine Rift with stunning views of the escarpments overlooking Lake Albert. Lunch en route and proceed to Kibale in the evening for dinner and overnight at the lodge.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Primate Lodge
Midrange: Kibale Forest Camp
Budget: Rwenzori view guest house
Day 7: Chimpanzee tracking and a transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park.
Following your breakfast at the lodge, assemble at the park headquarters, Kanyanchu Tourism Center at 8am for briefing and set off. The park staff will take you through this session and clarify on the chimpanzee trekking code of conduct and the trekking instructions after which you proceed to the forest in search of our closest cousins. The hike through the jungle with sights of birds, impressive flora and other primate species like Black and white colobus monkeys and eventual encounter with the chimpanzees as they roll themselves in their natural habitat gathering fruits, socializing and making pant hooting calls combine to make your chimp tracking experience memorable. The Chimpanzee trekking experience tends to last 2 – 5 hours and 1 hour to interact with them. You will retreat to the starting point for a short relaxation and lunch.
After lunch, transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park. It is approximately a 2 to 3 hours’ drive to the most popular and remarkably the most visited of all parks in Uganda. The journey to Queen Elizabeth national is an amazing one as you traverse the verdant country side of Kasese flat plains intertwined with pleasant undulating hills and the stunning views of legendary mountains of the moon. Proceed to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Mweya Safari Lodge
Midrange: Ihamba Safari lodge
Budget: Simba Safari Camp
Day 8: Game drive and Boat cruise along the Kazinga channel.
After a splendid morning cup of coffee at your hotel, embark on the drive across the fascinating rolling savannah rangelands of Queen Elizabeth in search of wild game. The stretch to the Kasenyi plain, the renown mating ground offers you a lifetime opportunity of encounter numerous families of wild game in a single glance including elephants, buffaloes, water bucks and Kobs along with predators like lions, leopards and jackals. The game drive takes 3 – 4 hours and you retreat back to the lodge for relaxation and lunch. After lunch, you continue to Mweya jetty to catch up with a boat trip at exactly 4pm. The 2 hour boat cruise offers a chance to explore the 45km long Kazinga Channel which links the twin lakes, George and Edward, the channel is known to be the capital of Hippos and Nile crocodiles. Its banks are usually fully stocked with numerous wild game like elephants and buffaloes which can be seen along quenching their thirst from the Kazinga waters on a hot day. Retreat from the activity and do the game drive along the channel track as you proceed to the lodge.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Mweya Safari Lodge
Midrange: Ihamba Safari lodge
Budget: Simba Safari Camp
Day 9: Transfer to Lake Bunyonyi.
Travel to Lake Bunyonyi after an early morning breakfast, arguably Africa’s second deepest lake after Lake Tanganyika. Drive through the Ishasha sector expecting to encounter the famous tree climbing lions which are always spotted clinging on old fig tree branches.
After this experience, proceed to Lake Bunyonyi driving through the pleasant over hanging hill slopes of Kigezi with splendid sceneries. Arrive at the legendary Lake Bunyonyi in the afternoon and relax at your lodge before embarking on a fascinating sunset boat cruise to discover the lake with 29 Virgin Islands that have earned it a nick name as the lake of a thousand Islands.
Reach Lake Bunyonyi in the afternoon and relax at the Lake Shores. Dinner and overnight stay at the lodge
Accommodation:
Luxury: Arcadia Lodge, Bunyonyi
Midrange: Bunyonyi Safaris resort
Budget: Supreme Adventure Park
Day 10: A morning boat cruise and transfer to Rwanda.
After a relaxed breakfast, enjoy a boat cruise on the lake and reach out to the surrounding islands and the Batwa (Pygmies) community. After Lunch transfer to Rwanda via Chanika border and have dinner and overnight in Ruhengeri, volcanoes national park.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Mountain Gorilla view Lodge
Midrange: Le Bambou Gorilla lodge
Budget: Muhabura Hotel
Day 11: Gorilla Trekking adventure and nature walk.
In the morning at 7:30am, you will assemble at the park headquarters for a briefing in the morning together with your trekking gears and drinking water and packed lunch.
After briefing you will begin the trekking. The trek can be quite tough that it takes a lot of time usually 2-8 hours and that is why we emphasize physical fitness making the entire encounter with these unique species an unusual experience. The hike amidst the jungle while viewing the lovely Rwandan flora and fauna, the impressive panoramic views and magical scenic landscapes of the Virungas will surely leave you mesmerized. The 1 hour direct contact with the world’s rarest animals is worth remembering and getting attracted to their thick beautiful fur while being entertained by the playful young gorillas puts your stressful minds and thoughts into a state of relaxation and happiness, worth the expensive price of a gorilla ticket.
Return to the lodge for relaxation and lunch. Dedicate your evening to nature walk or visiting the Ib’yiwachu Cultural Village for Rwanda’s cultural heritage and practices.
Accommodation:
Luxury: Mountain Gorilla view Lodge
Midrange: Le Bambou Gorilla lodge
Budget: Muhabura Hotel
Day 12: Golden Monkey tracking/Dian Fossey hike.
In the morning, you may either go for golden monkey tracking in the Volcanoes national park, where you will encounter other primate species or hike up to Dian Fossey grave.
In the morning, you will gather at the park headquarters for briefing. You set for golden monkey tracking. Trekking golden monkeys and gorillas is a similar experience – in a small group of not more than eight people, and visitors are allowed a maximum of one hour to spend with the monkeys once they find them.
They are very active creatures that keep jumping from tree to tree which is really interesting, though a little difficult to photograph.
A hike up to Karisoke research centre is quite amazing too; this ancient centre was established by Dian Fossey, an American primatologist who dedicated all her life conserving the lives of mountain gorillas by conducting an18 year comprehensive study about the fateful ape until she was killed and buried next to Digit, a mountain gorilla. You will learn more about the lives of the mountain gorillas at the research centre.
On return, after lunch, transfer to Lake Kivu and relax at the beach in the afternoon. Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel
Accommodation:
Luxury: Lake Kivu Serena
Midrange: Water Front Resort
Budget: Paladise Malahide Lodge
Day 13: Transfer to Nyungwe Forest National park.
In the morning, after breakfast, transfer to Nyungwe Forest National Park through scenic valleys and terraced hills. The park is home to East Africa’s most diverse primate population. Nyungwe is the only location in Africa where you’ll find “super groups” of more than 300 Colobus monkeys and one of the few places worldwide where you’ll see L’Hoest’s monkeys (primarily on the main round near Uwinka).
Another rare animal in the park is the owl-faced monkey, an Albertine Rift endemic that inhabits Nyungwe’s southern forests. In fact, most of the monkey species found in the park are endemic.
Other primate species include; Adolf Friedrich’s Angola colobus, Silver monkey, Golden monkey, Hamlyn’s monkey, Red-tailed monkey, Dent’s Mona monkey, Vervet monkey, Olive baboon, Grey-cheeked mangabey.
Arrive in the evening for dinner and overnight
Accommodation:
Luxury: Nyungwe forest lodge
Midrange: Nyungwe hill top view hotel
Budget: Gisakura guest house
Day 14: Colobus Monkey trekking and afternoon Canopy walk.
Take your breakfast before 6.00 am and embark on colobus monkey trekking in Nyungwe Forest. Expect to encounter other primates such as chimps, vervet monkeys, baboons among others as well as forest birds, and butterflies.
In the afternoon, embark on the unique Canopy walk at Uwinka, the Nyungwe forest Canopy walk gives visitors a great opportunity to experience the rain forest with the canopy walk way challenge.
Built in 2010, this walk way is embedded in a specialized guided tour sloping down from the Uwinka visitor’s center through the Igishigishi trail. The trail takes approximately 30minutes to get to the starting point of the canopy allowing visitors to walk slowly in a steep slippery valley.
Return in the evening for Dinner and overnight
Accommodation:
Luxury: Nyungwe forest lodge
Midrange: Nyungwe hill top view hotel
Budget: Gisakura guest house
Day 15: Transfer to Kigali and departure.
In the morning after breakfast, transfer to Kigali with en route visit to the King’s Palace at Nyanza, Butare Museums and Murambi Genocide Memorial Site reaching Kigali in the evening and transfer to the airport for your departure flight marking the end of the safari.
End of Safari with Love Uganda Safaris
