25 days:Super Safari Itinerary
Day 1
As soon as you arrive at Entebbe International Airport, you will be received by our tour guide who will lead you to Sheraton Hotel in Kampala. The guide will also brief you on the safari you are to undertake. If you have arrived a bit early, the guide may take you around Kampala to some important sites such as the Kasubi tombs (burial place for Buganda kings), Uganda Museum (for cultural heritage and antiquities) and the Bahai Temple. Overnight at Sheraton Hotel
Overnight at Speke Hotel/Hotel Africana (BB)
Day 2
At 7.00 am after the breakfast with the help of our guide, you will move for about 6 hours to Murchison Falls National Park where you will be able to arrive in the evening. The game drive as you go through the park to the top of the falls will surely send a cold chill up your spine. The elephants, red-tailed monkeys and black and white colobus monkeys, buffaloes, hippos, lions, antelopes, baboons, and crocodiles as well as some magnificent birdlife at close range will form your wildlife menu at the time. You will proceed to the top of the falls – a magnificent spot. Here the waters of the Nile are forced through a narrow gap in the rocks to fall through a series of foaming, roaring cascades down a drop of about 50 m, creating one of the world’s most spectacular waterfalls.
An overnight at Paraa Safari Lodge will be quite exciting
Day 3
As early as 7.00 am have your breakfast and resort to a morning chimpanzee tracking in Kaniyo Pabidi Forest. In this natural tropical rain forest chimpanzee tracking is the order of the day. For birders taking a guided bird walk along the Royal Mile, which runs between Nyabyeya Forestry College and the research station, will make the day. Generally regarded as being one of Uganda’s best forest birding sites with a variety of localized species including the sought after African Dwarf, blue-breasted and chocolate-backed kingfisher, Cassin’s hawk eagle, Nahan’s francolin, white-thighed hornbill, yellow-billed barbet, lemon-billed crombec, black-capped apalis, forest fly-catcher, yellow-footed flycatcher, Jameson’s wattle-eye and shoebill stork.
Overnight at Paraa Safari Lodge
Day 4
After you breakfast you will have a wonderful game drive in the Northern part of the forest. You will be able to see a variety of animal and bird species. Among these, you will see buffaloes, elephants, lions, crocodiles, and bushbucks. In the afternoon, you may enjoy a boat cruise near the Murchison falls as you marvel at the hippos, crocodiles and the water birds...
Overnight at Paraa Safari Lodge/mid range Sambiya River lodge/Budget Red Chili Camp
Day 5
At 7.00 am enjoy your breakfast and for yourself food for lunch as you head for Kibale National park, a journey that will take you over 8 hours. On the way, you will view the magnificent Lake Albert in the rift Valley and finally by evening you will be in Fort Portal town where you will retire for an overnight at Rwenzori View Guest House.
Overnight at Rwenzori View Guest House/budget Kanyankyu Ecological site
Day 6
After your breakfast move to the ranger station in Kibale National Park for tracking habituated chimps. This Kibale forest is a habitat to vast wildlife. At least 60 mammal species are present in Kibale Forest. It is particularly rich in primates, with 13 species recorded, the highest total for any Ugandan park. The nine diurnal primates found at Kibale are vervet, red-tailed; L’Hoest’s and blue monkeys, grey-checked mangabey, red colobus, black-and-white colobus, olive baboons, and chimpanzees. The forest, also, is home to afew lions, buffaloes, elephant, giant forest hog, and warthog, bush pig, bushbuck and sitatunga among others. Roughly, 335 bird species have been registered in Kibale national park including four species recorded nowhere else in other parks. These include birds such as Nahan’s francolin, blue-headed bee-eater, Cassin’s spine tail, masked apalis and great Blue Turaco. A variety of butterflies does exist in the park as well.
Overnight at a luxurious Ndali Lodge/Kanyankyu Ecological Site/ Rwenzori View Guest House
Day 7
By 7.30 am enjoy your breakfast and set-off for Semliki Wildlife Reserve as you descend along the Eastern Shores of Lake Albert. Semliki wildlife Reserve lies in the magnificently scenic Semliki Valley at the base of the Albertine Rift to the West of Fort portal, where it is hemmed in by the Rwenzori foothills to the south, Lake Albert to the North, and the Semliki River along the border with the DRC. Semliki Game Reserve is the oldest protected area in Uganda previously known as the Toro Game Reserve. It is unique, gifted with geographical barriers that have formed a natural haven for wildlife. The area is characterized with riverine forest, woodland and savannah, famous for its very high densities of wildlife including massive maned lions, buffaloes, chimpanzees, and forest elephants-known to the hunting fraternity as ‘Semliki rats’ and reputed to be very aggressive. Semliki is the only place where a night game-drive can land you on a leopard. Semliki game Reserve is highly alluring to birdwatchers, with 350-400 species recorded. Game drives on the open plains are likely to yield Abyssinian ground hornbill and a variety of raptors, while areas of rank vegetation are good for marsh tchagra and African crake. The Mugiri river forest is famous for the elusive leaf love, and a variety of other localized species. To birders this is the reliable sanctuary for shoebill, as well as a profusion of water birds that are more common and the dazzling red-throated bee-eater, which forms large breeding colonies on sandbanks near Ntoroko between December and March. Less ornithological-minded visitors are usually boated to the base of the unexpectedly magnificent Nkusi Falls, which-like a smaller replica of Murchison falls-explode through a cleft in the Rift escarpment before tumbling noisily into the lake.
Overnight at Semliki safari Lodge
Day 8
After an early breakfast the tour guide will lead you to the rain forest to track wild chimpanzees. Chimps are easily seen at dawn and at dusk as they disappear towards noontime. By mid-day, you may return to Hotel for lunch and relaxation. Then in the afternoon go for a game drive and bird watching in the forest. Watch birds such as spotted-breasted ibis, Congo serpent eagle, chestnut-flanked goshawk, red-thighed sparrow hawk, long-tailed hawk, Hartlaub’s duck, Nkulengu rail, black-throated coucal, chestnut owlet, Bates’s nightjar, black-wattled hornbill, red-rumped tinker bird and Zenker’s honeyguide.
Overnight at Semliki Safari Lodge
Day 9
Have an early breakfast and move to Queen Elizabeth National Park accessing it from its Northern part through the Northern crater Area. This area is characterized by various crater lakes that give it the beauty that you find nowhere else in East Africa. With this, the park can boast of vast fauna and flora. The melting snow on Mt. Rwenzori is responsible for Lakes such Edward and George as well as the connecting Kazinga Channel. The Savannah grasslands comfortably provides sanctuary to immense mammals including the elephants, buffaloes, lions, chimpanzees, leopards, giant forest hog, Uganda kobs and along the Kazinga channel a big population of hippos.
The national parker is a sanctuary to over 610 bird species, possibly the highest total for any national park in the world. Besides 54 raptors, at least every water bird species and a variety of woodland and forest birds resident in Uganda can be found in this park.
In the afternoon after your lunch, you can opt for a game drive. During this activity, be assured of spotting elephants, hippos, waterbucks, warthogs, buffaloes among others. If you happen to reach Kasenyi, you will be able to spot tree-climbing lions.
Overnight at Mweya Safari Lodge
Day 10
After breakfast depart for Kyambura Gorge for chimpanzee tracking. This Southeasternpart of Queen Elizabeth National park is dominated by extensive Maramagambo Forest, which possibly harbours a greater biodiversity and fauna affinity with Central Africa. The two crater lakes of Nyamasingiri and Kyasanduka make the area obtain a unique beauty. From the visitors’ centre at the lakes, several worthwhile guided walks can be undertaken, offering the opportunity to observe a selection of the rich forest avifauna, as well as mammals such as chimpanzees, red-tailed and L’Hoest’s monkey, pottos, giant forest hog, yellow-backed duiker, pygmy antelope and giant elephant shrew. The most popular attraction in the Kyambura gorge is the community of chimpanzees-unlike those in Maramagambo, fully habituated-can be tracked within the confines of a forested river gorge carved into the surrounding flat savannah.
An overnight at Jacana Lodge
Day 11
After breakfast you will have a morning game drive this will expose you to elephants, buffaloes, topi, Uganda kobs, bushbucks, Deffasa waterbucks, giant forest hog, lions among others. After lunch at Jacana Lodge our guide will lead you to Kazinga Channel for a boat cruise along the channel as you go on enjoying the water mammals at the water’s edge. Herds of buffaloes and elephants and a high concentration of hippos may be drinking at the shores. Birdlife is prolific, too. Over 550 bird species have been registered in this place. Marabou Storks, red-throated sunbird, black-headed gonolek and a variety of weavers are very common in this area.
Overnight at Mweya Safari Lodge
Day 12
After breakfast with your guide you will move to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. You will access this park through the Southern part of Queen Elizabeth national park at a place called Ishasha. At this place, the tree-climbing lions are a big attraction. You will thus take-off some time viewing them before proceeding to Bwindi for mountain gorilla tracking. You may have lunch by the Ishasha River. Tourism to Bwindi focuses on gorilla tracking. More than half the world’s mountain gorilla population is resident in Bwindi. Bwindi harbours over 120 mammal species, more than any national park except Queen Elizabeth National Park. These include a healthy chimpanzee population, and substantial numbers of L’Hoest’s, red-tailed and blue monkeys, as well as black-and-white colobus, elephants, and olive baboon. A total of 350 bird species have been registered in Bwindi including some water associated birds. Of special interest to birders are 23 species endemic to the Albertine Rift such as the African green broadbill, white-tailed blue flycatcher, brown-necked parrot, white-bellied robin chat and Frazer’s eagle owl. In addition to its extensive checklist, Bwindi is also a sanctuary to at least 200 butterfly species, including 8 Albertine Rift Endemics and dedicated butterfly watchers might hope to identify more than 50 varieties a day.
Overnight at Gorilla Resort/Buhoma Community Bandas
Day 13
After a heavy breakfast and a briefing from the guides, you will now start gorilla tracking. Since the forest is quite impenetrable, it require the guides to move with a panga as they will go on slashing following a trail for over 3 hours. You will therefore require a relative degree of fitness and wear sturdy shoes. You will finally access a family of gorillas headed by a silverback. It is so exciting to interact with them. If you return to the camp early you can have a guide village walk to interact with the local community and acquaint yourself with their culture.
Overnight at Gorilla Resort/Buhoma Community Bandas
Day 14
Early in morning after breakfast, you will move to Rwanda. Our guide will lead you to Mille Collines Hotel/ the Windsor Umubano Hotel. After relaxing, you will visit important sites including the Franco-Rwandan cultural centre, the pottery project, the market and the genocide memorial centre.
Overnight at Mille Collines Hotel/The Windsor Umubano hotel (FB)
Day 15
After the breakfast visit the gorilla home of Parc National des Volcans, which protects the Rwandan sector of the Virunga Mountains, a range of six extinct and three active volcanoes which straddles the border with Uganda and the DRC. Ranging in altitude from 2,400m-4,507m, the Parc National des Volcans is dominated by the string of volcanoes after which it is named. This chain of steep, tall, freestanding mountains, linked by fertile saddles, which were formed by solidified lava flows, is one of the most stirring and memorable sites in the whole of East Africa. Higher altitudes support a cover of Afro-alpine moorland, grassland and marsh, a landscape dominated by otherworldly giant lobelia and senecio plants similar to those found on Mt. Kilimanjaro and the Rwenzoris. The gorilla tracking here is quite strenuous but rewarding. It is advisable that you carry with you some lunch as this may take the whole day tracking the gorillas in the forests.
An overnight at Mille Collines Hotel/The Windsor Umubano Hotel (Full Board)
Day 16
After breakfast move back to Uganda right away to Lake Bunyonyi. As its serpentine shape might suggest, Lake Bunyonyi is essentially a flooded valley system, extending northwards from the Rwanda border over a distance of 25 km through the contours of the steep hills that separate Kabale from Kisoro. Bunyonyi translates as ‘place of little birds’, which is possibly a reference to the prolific weaver colonies along its shore, but larger do also exist at the lake including grey-crowned crane, otters, and a variety of herons and egrets. Enjoy a boat cruise to the dotted islands as you meet the local communities while you appreciate their various cultural exhibitions.
An overnight at Lake Bunyonyi Overland Camp
Day 17
Visit the local communities. The one group visitors most wish to visit is the Batwa, the pygmies indigenous to the dense rainforests of the southwest. However, while meeting a Batwa community is easily achievable, visitors should be aware of the current situation of this tiny, ostracized minority, which has neither land rights nor legal forest access, and remains subject to discrimination on local and institutional levels. Arguably, the best place in which to meet Batwa is Bwindi National Park, where attendance of a Batwa music and dance performance is usually arranged as part of the Buhoma Community Forest Walk. Another possibility is Lake Bunyonyi, where an excursion to a local village is offered.
Overnight at Lake Bunyonyi Overland Camp (Self Catering)
Day 18
After breakfast you will leave for Lake Mburo National Park through a picturesque scenery all the way through the Kigezi highlands and then the Mpororo undulating plains you will access Mbarara municipality towards mid-day. You can briefly move to any of the modern Hotels around such as Rwizi Arch Hotel and enjoy some of the local dishes such as the millet posho and eshabwe (cow-ghee) stew, etc. Later proceed to Lake Mburo National Park. This park extends over 260 sq. km of undulating territory with an altitude range from 1,220m-1,828m above sea level. The park is covered by savannah grass with acacia woodland. Lake Mburo National Park offers some excellent game viewing, and you are as likely to see many different large mammal species over the course of a day as would be the case in any other Ugandan national park. More pragmatically, Lake Mburo is also ideally positioned to break up the long drive between Kampala and the National Parks along the country’s western border. The park accommodates several species not easily observed elsewhere in Uganda. It is the only reserve in the country to support a population of Impala, the handsome antelope, after which Kampala is named. Other antelope species a visitor is likely to see are topi, bushbuck, common duiker, oribi, Defassa waterbuck, and Bohor reedbuck, while the lake and lush fringing vegetation support healthy populations of buffalo, warthog, bush pig, and hippopotamus.
Have an overnight at Mantana Camp (FB)
Day 19
After breakfast, you can embark on birding. A handful of birds recorded at Lake Mburo National Park are essentially southern species, for instance, the southern ground hornbill, black-collared and black-throated barbets, and green-capped eremomela. Some 315-bird species have been confirmed in Lake Mburo National Park. This is the best place in Uganda to view acacia-associated birds, and Rwonyo Camp is as good a place as any to look for the likes of mosque swallow, black-bellied bustard, barefaced go-away bird and Ruppell’s long-tailed starling. Of special interest to birders are the swamps, in which six papyrus endemics are resident, including the brilliantly colored papyrus gonolek, the striking blue-headed coucal, and the highly localized white-winged and papyrus yellow warblers. You can have a night game drive to see leopards, spotted hyenas, and olive and vervet monkeys.
Overnight at Mantana Camp/UWA Bandas at Rwonyo (FB)
Day 20
Very early in morning you shall now head to Eastern Uganda en route visiting the Source of the Nile, a spot the explorers Speke and Grant visited before any other European. Relax at Sunset Hotel as you prepare to move in the evening to Bujagali Falls where activities such as dancing, rafting and bungee jumping.Overnight at Jinja Nile Resort/Sunset Hotel (FB)
Day 21
After breakfast you will proceed to Mountain Elgon National Park. Straddling the Kenya border east of Mbale, Mount Elgon is the eighth highest mountain In Africa, and it rises from the broadest base of any freestanding mountain in the world. Mt. Elgon is the relic of an extinct volcano, whose formation was associated with the tectonic activity that created the Rift Valley several million years ago. Elgon’s tallest peaks form a jagged circle around the more or less intact caldera, which has a diameter of about 8 km (making it one of the largest in the world) and is dotted with small crater lakes and hot springs. With a day’s hike following Sipi trailhead will make you appreciate the cool mist at Chebonet Falls, the bats-filled Kapkwai cave, ‘the talking’ tree and the magnificent panoramic view. Elgon lies below the snow line, but it can be very cold at night or in windy weather. You must be sure to bring enough warm clothing. The ascent of the escarpment via a tricky path known as the Wall of Death on the Sasa Route is not recommended if you are afraid of heights.
Overnight at Rose’s Last Chance / Wills Country Home (FB)
Day 22
After breakfast, you will set-off for Kampala where you are likely to arrive by mid-day. Your tour guide will lead you to Hotel Africana for relaxation in the pleasant environment with a swimming pool and for a comfortable overnight.
Overnight at Hotel Africana (Full Board)
Day 23
After your breakfast at 8.00 am, your tour guide will take you to Ngamba Island in Lake Victoria. It is a 45 minutes boat cruise to the Island. This is a sanctuary to 39 chimpanzees. On your arrival at the Island, you will be briefed on how to conduct yourself while interacting with the chimps. You will later have an opportunity to be involved in feeding them. The mannerisms exhibited by the chimps will definitely leave you wondering.
Overnight at Ngamba Island Camp (FB)
Day 24
After a morning breakfast, you may have a forest walk with the chimps but this subject to production of inoculation evidence by the visitor. It is nice experience to associate with the chimps. They can move with you while holding your hand. Surely, they are so friendly!
Overnight - Ngamba Island Camp (FB)
Day 25
You guide, after breakfast, lead you back to the mainland and finally to Entebbe International Airport for your flight back to your home country.
