12 Days Uganda Birding Safari

Day 1: Arrival & pick up from Entebbe

Entebbe isn’t only a base to the State House, but also one of Uganda’s key transport hubs –Entebbe International Airport, and is where you will be picked up by our professional driver guides. Entebbe is known for its 1976 historic Israeli raid to rescue hostages taken during an Air France hijacking. Besides its unique history, Entebbe has multiple sites worth visiting if time permits. Key areas of interest in Entebbe City include the Reptile Village, Uganda Wildlife Conservation Education Centre, Entebbe Crafts Village, and more.

Accommodation Options

• Budget: Gorilla Africa Guesthouse or Executive Airport Hotel
• Midrange: The Boma Hotel Entebbe
• Luxury: Hotel No.5 or Protea Hotel Entebbe

Depart Entebbe for Mabamba Swamp, focusing on shoebill sightings, with chances to observe other birds. With about 300 species, Mabamba is a key area for migratory birds. Besides elusive shoebills, you may encounter white-winged warblers, yellow-billed kites, Goliath herons, papyrus canaries, black-faced rufous, pallied harriers, blue swallows, and more. After a rewarding birding excursion in Mabamba, return to your hotel to unwind.

Accommodation Options

• Budget: Gorilla Africa Guesthouse or Executive Airport Hotel
• Midrange: The Boma Hotel Entebbe
• Luxury: Hotel No.5 or Protea Hotel Entebbe

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, plus Dinner

Depart from Entebbe for Murchison Falls National Park, located in the Northwestern Uganda. You will get to Murchison through the Kampala-Gulu highway, and en route, you have the opportunity to visit Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary. Rhino tracking will be experienced at Ziwa, a great chance for you to observe rhinos in the wild.

For birders, Ziwa is also home to more than 300 birds, making it one of the birding destinations with diverse habitats ranging from thorn-scrub, savanna, papyrus swamp, and acacia woodland, and more. You will exit Ziwa after tracking rhinos and proceed to Masindi to be offered lunch. From Masindi, drive to your pre-booked safari lodge in Murchison Falls National Park.

Accommodation

• Budongo Eco Lodge in Kaniyo-Pabidi

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner

Travel time: 5-6 hours.

Budongo is part of Murchison Falls National Park and is home to over 360 bird species. A birding tour in Budongo Forest will enrich you with bird sightings, including the chocolate-backed kingfishers, yellow-footed flycatchers, white-thighed hornbills, Puvel’s illadopsis, and more. After a great birding tour in Budongo, you will continue towards the Northern circuit with a chance to visit the top of the falls for a photography experience.

Accommodation

• Budget: Murchison River Lodge
• Midrange: Pakuba Safari Lodge
• Luxury: Nile Safari Lodge or Paraa Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner

Today, you will have a combined game drive and bird-watching excursion. The focus will be to explore the Northern circuit game tracks. A wide array of wildlife will be spotted, including the Rothschild giraffes, gazelles, buffaloes, elephants, lions, plus varied bird species.

The morning game drive session will take about 2-3 hours, then you can return to enjoy lunch. In the afternoon, proceed with the boat cruise along the Victoria Nile and which allows you to observe the aquatic species such as hippos, crocodiles, birds, especially kingfishers, fish eagles, and more.

Accommodation

• Budget: Murchison River Lodge
• Midrange: Pakuba Safari Lodge
• Luxury: Nile Safari Lodge or Paraa Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner

Located in Kabarole District, Kibale National Park is East Africa’s premier chimpanzee trekking and birding destination. Access to Kibale on this day will involve driving through the Hoima route to Fort Portal City about 7-8 hours. En route, lunch will be enjoyed in Fort Portal then expect to connect to Kibale National Park via the tarmacked Kamwenge road.

Accommodation

• Budget: Isunga Lodge or Chimpanzee Guesthouse
• Midrange: Primate Lodge or Treetops
• Luxury: Kyaninga Lodge or Crater Safari Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner

Wake up early in the morning to enjoy breakfast, and after, catch up with a driver guide who will transfer you to Kanyanchu. Meet the Kibale National Park team to take you through the short briefing. Today, you will embark on a search for the African green breasted pitta birds but there is a lot to spot in Kibale Forest. Up to 375 bird species are in Kibale, and other birds include Cassin’s spine tail, black-billed turacos, blue-breasted kingfishers, black-capped waxbill, brown-chested alethe, zebra waxbill, black crowned tchagra, and many more.

After the morning birding session, drive from Kibale to Semuliki National Park, home to 441 bird species.

Accommodation

• Budget: Kirimia Guesthouse
• Midrange: Ntoroko Game Lodge
• Luxury: Semuliki Safari Lodge or Nyati Game Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner

Embark on a birding tour in Semuliki National Park to search for diverse birds in this park that account for a total of 441 species. The birds of Semuliki include the red-billed dwarf hornbills, shoebill storks, yellow-throated nicator, white-crested hornbills, and more.  From Semuliki, connect to Queen Elizabeth National Park, with an en route visit to Kikorongo Equator crossing.

Accommodation

• Budget: Simba Camp or Kazinga Channel Resort/Bulbul Safari Lodge
• Midrange: Mweya Safari Lodge or Enganzi Game Lodge
• Luxury: Elephant Plains Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner

Start the day with a delicious breakfast, and after, set off for Kasenyi. Clear with the park officials and later, you will proceed on a game drive combined with bird sighting. A range of wild animals to spot includes spotted hyenas, buffaloes, elephants, lions, and various antelopes. The common birds include red-throated spurfowl, grey-crowned cranes, black-headed gonoleks, martial eagles, palm-nut vultures, and more.

In the afternoon, you will catch up with the launch or boat ride on the Kazinga channel, which comes with sightings ranging from hippos, crocodiles, and birds. The birds to find along the Kazinga channel include cisticolas, pink-backed pelicans, kingfishers, and many more.

Accommodation

• Budget: Simba Camp or Kazinga Channel Resort/Bulbul Safari Lodge
• Midrange: Mweya Safari Lodge or Enganzi Game Lodge
• Luxury: Elephant Plains Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner

Meet your safari guide after you have had breakfast. Leave Queen Elizabeth National Park for Bwindi, accessing the park via Ishasha. At the Ishasha, you stand a chance to spot the tree–climbing lions, plus some birds, and you continue to the lodge in Bwindi. Ishasha –Bwindi drive journey takes about 2-3 hours.

Accommodation

• Budget: Ride 4 a Woman
• Midrange: Engagi Lodge/Mahogany Springs
• Luxury: Luxurious Bwindi Lodge/Buhoma Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Today morning comes with breakfast, and then your head to Buhoma to get briefed about gorilla trekking rules and allocation of gorilla groups. Gorilla trekking will begin from Buhoma, a region located in the northern side of Bwindi, and has gorilla groups like Habinyanja, Mubare, Muyambi, and Katwe group. During the Buhoma gorilla trek, expect to enjoy up close with mountain gorillas for a maximum of 1 hour and this is especially once you have located these apes. Begin walking back to the lodge and relax before you are led to the Batwa pygmies’ community for a cultural experience.

Accommodation

• Budget: Ride 4 a Woman
• Midrange: Engagi Lodge/Mahogany Springs
• Luxury: Luxurious Bwindi Lodge/Buhoma Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Enjoy a leisurely cup of tea/coffee at the camp/lodge, then check out of the lodge. We bid farewell to Bwindi and start driving to Kampala or Entebbe city. En route, expect to have lunch and the Equator experience at Kayabwe.

End of safari