Join a journey to see the best of Uganda and Rwanda, visit some of the most biologically diverse primate and wildlife reserves in Africa.
14 Days in Uganda & Rwanda
01.3.2
VOLCANOES & PRIMATES SAFARI
What to expect?
Encounter cultures and traditions of the central African region, follow the Nile River at Murchison Falls in Uganda, descend along the Albertine Rift escarpment down to the "Thousand Hills" and lakes of Rwanda. Highlights include the chance to twice track mountain gorillas in both Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park Uganda, then Volcanoes Park in Rwanda, chimpanzee habituation experience in Kibale Forest, chimpanzee tracking in Kyambura gorge, visit to Ziwa rhino sanctuary and track rhino. A visit to Murchison Falls National Park and Queen Elizabeth National Park will provide an opportunity of watching game on a savannah landscape where you will enjoy a combination of game drives and launch trips on the Victoria Nile and Kazinga Channel which will provide an unforgattable African wildlife experience of a lifetime!
Recommended for:
Scenery
Big 5
Primates
Mountain
Culture
Your African experience starts here
Day 1 - Entebbe
Upon arrival at Entebbe International Airport you will be met by your safari guide and transferred to your Serena Lake Victoria Hotel in Entebbe for a welcome drink and safari briefing.
Days 4 & 5 - Kibale Forest
This morning you will drive from Murchison Falls heading Southwest via the Albertine Escarpment of the great Western Rift Valley through Hoima and reach Fort Portal, the capital of the Tooro Kingdom situated in the shadow of the fabled "Mountains of the Moon," the Rwenzori. Here you will have lunch at Mountains Of The Moon Hotel before your journey continues to Kibale Forest National Park. Kibale has a rich fauna and flora with over 370 species of birds and a record breaking 13 species of primates including Ugandas biggest single population of chimpanzees. The evening of day 4 will be spent enjoying a presentation about the ecology of Kibale forest and its inhabitants.
Day 5 has a special activity waiting for you! You will join local guides for a Chimpanzee Habituation Experience where you will trek deep into the forest to meet a family of wild chimpanzees. Spend the day following the troop on their daily routine with resident experts who have deep understanding and keen knowledge of all aspects of this remarkable forest of global significance. Follow the chimps from dawn untill dusk, quite literally a day in the life of a chimpanzee troop.
Days 2 & 3 - Murchison Falls
After breakfast, you will leave Entebbe through Kampala driving Northwest. Along the way you will stop to visit Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary and have a bush walk with experienced game rangers in this sanctuary followed by a lunch. Later you will proceed to Murchison Falls National Park, the largest conservation area in Uganda, spanning 3,840 km2, named after the falls on the Victoria Nile where you will stop at the "top of the falls" to enjoy the marvelous views of the falls from above before finally reaching the Paraa Safari Lodge where you will stay in luxury safari tents.
On day 3 you will take part in a game drive after breakfast which will lead you to the northern sector of the park towards the delta area to view elephants, buffalo, waterbuck, giraffes, Uganda Kobs and there is also a chance to see a pride of lions and leopards. Birds are numerous and colourful. In the afternoon you will experience one of Uganda's great experiences: a boat cruise on the Nile River up the river towards the falls. Expect to see a plethora of mammal and bird species in all their glory. Numerous crocodiles, hippos, elephants, and buffalo also call the riverbanks home.
drive to the next destination
drive to the next destination
Days 6 & 7 - QENP
Enjoy an early morning breakfast after which your guide will drive you to Queen Elizabeth National Park with a stop at the equator where there is an opportunity to take photos before continuing. This magnificent national park features the full African safari experience: view buffalo, elephant, leopard, lion and much more. The afternoon of day 6 will be spent on a game drive before retiring to the lodge to enjoy a relaxing drink as the sun sets on a wonderful day.
This morning, join local guides at Kyambura Gorge, a forested canyon within Queen Elizabeth National Park where you will track a group of wild chimpanzees and learn of the subtle differences in behavior that this isolated population displays versus the group you observed in Kibale. This experience should highlight the existence of varying cultures amongst different chimpanzee societies. After this activity you will return to the lodge for a relaxing lunch where you can discuss the morning's experiences. In the afternoon you will enjoy a boat trip on the Kazinga Channel. which is a passage of water that connects Lake George and Lake Edward. This water system hosts the highest concentration of hippos in the world and the boat will bring you really close to them. You will also see crocodile, buffalo, elephants and other game that drink from the channel and experience the profusion of bird life that is supported here. As dusk falls, prepare for dinner and a good night's sleep.
drive to the next destination
drive to the next destination
drive to the next destination
Day 13 - Kigali
After almost 2 weeks in midst untamed nature you will travel to a city at last, Rwanda's capital Kigali. Your guide will take you on a city tour including a visit to the genocide memorial, craft shops, local market and visit Bourbon coffee shop to have a taste of some of the best coffe in the world. You will spend the night in the world famous Hotel Des Milles Collines known from the award winning motion picture Hotel Rwanda
Day 9 - Oudtshoorn
From Robertson you drive for about 4 hours along the famously beautiful Route 62 to Oudtshoorn, which is also known as the capital of the Karoo. This region is famous for its Ostrich farms and the Cango Caves, but what makes your accommodation a must is their unique Meerkat Tour, which you will need to book a few days before you arrive.
You meet up with their guide at sunrise, and with a camping chair and a coffee you head out to the Meerkats' burrows on the farm, and you watch them come out of their burrows and go about their energetic business. The Meerkats are habituated, which means they are used to people, but they are never fed or touched. Truly a unique opportunity to see these funny and resourceful creatures in their natural habitat.
Day 8 - Ishasha Sector
After an early breakfast you will travel to the remote wilderness of Ishasha, the southern sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park, an area famous for abundant wildlife and most notably, a unique population of the tree climbing lions. This is Africa at it's best, a perfect blend of magnificent scenery and abundant wildlife. Expect to see elephants, buffalo, topi, Uganda Kob, and tree climbing lions among many other species.
You will stay at Ishasha Wilderness Camp.
Days 9 & 10 - Bwindi
An early game drive followed by breakfast will be the start of day 9 to make sure you can spot what you may have missed the previous day. Later you travel to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park one of the most biologically diverse natural forests in the world and famous for being home to half of the remaining population of mountain gorillas in the wild.
On Day 10 you assemble at the briefing point to meet rangers and trackers who will brief you about the day ahead in the forest. This will be an experience of a lifetime! Time taken to see the gorilla family varies and depends where the family spent the previous night. This is a strenous excerise and quite demanding, but any sense of tiredness will evaporate when you stumble upon a group. After locating the group you will spend one hour with them and slowly return to our lodge to recount our stories.
drive to the next destination
Days 11 & 12 - Volcanoes NP
This morning you will travel from Bwindi across the border into neighboring Rwanda. This is a leisurely drive taking most of the day. you will climb out of the Rift Valley at first and then travel through the Kigezi Highlands of Southwestern Uganda. The scenery gets increasingly more breathtaking as we switch back up and down the hills. Forty kilometers before the arrival, you will see today's objective: the mist-swathed Virunga Mountains, a conservation area, shared between Uganda, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most biologically diverse areas in the world. Your destination today is Musanze/Ruhengeri at the foothills of Volcanoes National Park, the home of Rwanda's population of mountain gorillas. On arrival, you will be welcomed to the luxurious Mountain Gorilla View Lodge with hot towels and a welcome drink. We retire to enormous cottages for a warm shower and meet later for dinner. After dinner, retire for the night.
Day 12's activity is the most exciting and challenging of our entire expedition! The mountain gorillas in Volcanoes National Park are part of a worldwide population of just about 800 individuals. The gorillas you are allowed to track belong to one of the 8 habituated family groups. For up to five years each, these groups have undergone an extremely delicate process that has gradually brought them to tolerate the presence of humans for a brief period of time every day and allowed a few privileged visitors to interact with them in the wild. The gorillas are by no means tame, and are completely wild animals. Experienced guides will accompany the encounter. Many of them have been involved in the habituation process themselves. The guides will use their knowledge of the gorilla's habits and information from the previous day to locate the groups' whereabouts. Because of this, the time required to track the gorillas varies enormously, from as little as one hour to as much as 8 hours before one returns to the lodge. Once the gorillas are located, your group will be allowed a maximum of one hour with them. This is one of the world's truly memorable experiences: a look into one of these magnificent creature's eyes brings home the poignant fact that they are on the edge of extinction, and that your presence here contributes to ensuring their continued survival. The hour is often over too quickly, and you slowly make our way back to our lodge to recount the day's adventures.
drive to the next destination
drive to the next destination
Day 14 - Back Home
Today is your last day and your guide will be at your disposal if you want to visit some more places or he will take you straight to the airport from where you will fly back home after 2 weeks of new impressions and unforgettable wildlife encounters...
Package includes:
-
accommodation in double/twin room as mentioned above
-
all meals as mentioned above
-
all activities as mentioned above
-
all entrance fees to National Parks
-
Gorilla & Chimpanzee Permits
-
Guide/Driver on the whole itinerary
-
4x4 car on the whole itinerary incl. toll & fuel
Package excludes:
-
flights to and from Uganda/Rwanda
-
drinks (alcoholic & non-alcoholic)
-
gratuities
-
laundry
-
souvenirs
-
personal, medical & travel insurance
-
vaccinations
-
visas
-
anything not mentioned under "package includes"
1 Day in Entebbe
2 Days in Murchison Falls
2 Days in Kibale Forest
2 Days in QENP
1 Day in Ishasha
2 Days in Bwindi
2 Days in Volcanoes NP
1 Day in Kigali
Like what you see?
The let's realize the holiday of your dreams together. Simply use the live chat in the bottom right corner or click on the contact us button below.