8 Days Uganda Wildlife Safari

In the morning, your driver guide from Uganda will be meeting you for pick you up. The driver guide will spare a few minutes to take you through the itinerary. It is today when you will kick start your journey to Kibale National Park.

Kibale is one of the leading primate tracking destinations in Uganda, a special location to find abundant primates and birds. The 795 sq. km Kibale prides itself on over 1500 chimpanzees, plus other primates including olive baboon, vervet monkeys, blue monkeys, pottos, mangabeys, red colobus monkeys, l’hoest monkeys, black and colobus monkeys.

On reaching Fort Portal, you make a stopover to enjoy lunch. Leave Fort Portal and on a safe drive, proceed to the safari lodge to check in as you wait for the actual chimpanzee tracking session the following day.

Accommodation

• Isunga Lodge/Chimps Nest –(Budget)
• Chimpundu/Primate Lodge –(Midrange)
• Ndali/Kyaninga Lodge –(Luxury)

Kibale National Park offers 2 chimpanzee trekking sessions, but today, you will embark on the first one, which starts in the morning. Gather at the Kanyanchu Tourist Center to have a briefing where the park official (tourism warden) takes you through the chimpanzee tracking regulations. The ranger guides will also be allocated to each sub group of visitors consisting of 6pax. Leave Kanyanchu by car or start trekking Kibale chimps on foot expecting to take about 2-4 hours or less.

The park ranger guide who accompanies you will grant you a maximum of 1 hour to explore chimpanzee behaviors, take pictures, and more. Expect to return to where you started the trek from, and the driver guide will take you to the lodge. At the lodge, a delicious lunch will be served, and later, there will be a chance to end the day with a Bigodi Wetland excursion.

The Bigodi Wetland is one of the best places to experience more about community-based tourism. The Bigodi wetland lies adjacent to Kibale and holds a diversity of primates, birds, and other mammal species, including sitatunga antelopes. During the guided swamp walk, you stand a chance to encounter variety of these wildlife and you will be led by local guide from Bigodi.

Accommodation

• Isunga Lodge/Chimps Nest –(Budget)
• Chimpundu/Primate Lodge –(Midrange)
• Ndali/Kyaninga Lodge –(Luxury)

Depart for Queen Elizabeth National Park, and this will be using a 4WD vehicle. Queen Elizabeth Game Park is Uganda’s 2nd biggest Park and is accessible in just 2-3-hour’ drive from Kibale. En route to this premier savanna protected area, you have a chance to have a photography experience at the Kikorongo Equator Crossing. Continue from Kikorongo Equator to the safari lodge, where lunch will be enjoyed, followed by a short relaxation.

Exit the safari lodge or camp for an afternoon guided game drive. This will be your first game drive session as per this itinerary, and you will explore Kasenyi Plains, which is found in the Northern part of Queen Elizabeth National Park. The Northern sector (Kasenyi) is popular for its abundant wildlife to be spotted, including spotted hyenas, elephants, buffaloes, leopards, warthogs, and different birds. The rest of the evening, when you get back, will be spent in the lodge.

Accommodation

• Simba Safari Camp/Tembo Safari Lodge/Bulbul Safari Lodge –(Budget).
• Buffalo Safari Lodge/ Bush Lodge/Enganzi Game Lodge –(Midrange).
• Elephant Plains Lodge/Mazike/Mweya Safari Lodge –(Luxury).

Meal plan –Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner

Wake up early and start the day with a hefty breakfast. The driver guide will be available to collect you and you will head to the Kasenyi Plains to experience the best of Lion tracking adventure. The lion tracking session combines a normal game drive whereby you get a chance to search for the lions. During lion tracking, you search for the collared lions that are monitored for research purposes. There is a higher chance of spotting lions during a tracking session compared to normal game drives.

After the lion tracking, get back and be served lunch. Later, end the day with a captivating boat cruise on the Kazinga channel, which links Lake Edward and Lake George. A variety of aquatic animals to find include crocodiles, hippos, and water birds.

Accommodation

• Simba Safari Camp/Tembo Safari Lodge/Bulbul Safari Lodge –(Budget).
• Buffalo Safari Lodge/ Bush Lodge/Enganzi Game Lodge –(Midrange).
• Elephant Plains Lodge/Mazike/Mweya Safari Lodge –(Luxury).

After a leisurely breakfast, you will officially bid farewell to Queen Elizabeth National Park as you connect to the next destination, which is Bwindi. Ishasha sector will be your connecting point to the Buhoma sector. Driving through the Ishasha sector allows you to spend some time to search for the tree climbing lions, then proceed to the Buhoma sector.

Accommodation

• Ride 4 A Woman _(Basic/Budget).
• Engagi/Silverback Lodge –(Midrange).
• Buhoma Lodge/Bwindi Lodge –(Luxury).

Gorilla trekking is the only adventure that lets you explore an already habituated gorilla group. Today, you will start the day with breakfast, followed by a briefing and allocation of ranger guides and gorilla groups. The length of the gorillas varies depending on factors like guest hiking speed, the nature of the habitat, and where gorillas are found in the day. These are mobile creatures, and they keep moving in search of what to feed on. But expect to take at least 2-6 hours, which covers an hour for an up close and personal encounter with these unique creatures.

Trek back and have lunch plus relaxation, then you will have an afternoon visit to the Batwa pygmies in their adjacent community. This cultural experience will be led by an experienced local guide from the Batwa pygmies.

Accommodation

• Ride 4 A Woman _(Basic/Budget).
• Engagi/Silverback Lodge –(Midrange).
• Buhoma Lodge/Bwindi Lodge –(Luxury).

You will be picked up by your driver guide from your respective lodges in Bwindi and set off for Lake Mburo National Park. Today’s journey is likely to run for about 6-7 hours, and once you have arrived at Lake Mburo, continue to the lodge to check in. Lunch will be served in the lodge in Lake Mburo, and then relax for a short while. After lunch, you will board a 4WD safari vehicle set for your evening game drive or catch up with a launch cruise on Lake Mburo.

Accommodation

• Hyena Hill Lodge/Mburo Eagle’s Nest –(Budget)
• Rwakobo Rock Lodge –(Midrange)
• Mihingo Lodge Lake Mburo/Kigambira Lodge –(Luxury).

Set off for a sunrise game drive through the savannas of Lake Mburo National Park. A lot of wildlife awaits to be spotted in Lake Mburo Park, including buffaloes, elands, zebras, topis, impalas, waterbucks, and more. After the game drive, you can get back to the lodge to check out or proceed to Kampala at once if you have already checked out.

End of the 8 Days Uganda Wildlife Safari