Uganda Wild Safari in 11 Days

HIGHLIGHTS

Starts/Ends: Entebbe, Uganda

Country Visited: Uganda

Main Activities:  Game Drives, Boat Rides, Hiking, Chimps Trekking, Gorilla Trekking, Scenic Viewing and culture.

Strength Demand: Moderately Demanding

11 Day Uganda Wild Safari

Route: Kampala – Murchison – Kibale – Queen – Bunyonyi – Bwindi – Mburo – Kampala.

Uganda is so blessed with nature and that’s why Sir Winston Churchill named it “The Pearl of Africa”. The 11 Day Uganda Wild Safari route has got much to dish out to visitors; the safari offers crystal clear lakes, misty forests, snow capped mountains, emerald hills and much more. Talk of the wild life – go gorilla trekking and chimpanzee tracking, game viewing. And for Birders, trust you wont believe it.

The 11 Day Uganda Wild Safari adventures through western Uganda to Mighty and beautiful Murchison falls where you’ll encounter the Africa Big 5 game, unbeatable scenes of the Murchison falls and excellent accommodation. Then the safari goes down south through the most famous Queen Elizabeth National Park to the playful chimpanzees of Kibale Forest and up into the Virungas gorilla trekking to meet the gentle giants and experience the indigenous cultures of the native Batwa tribe and lastly head back into town. The food, culture, people, music and spectacular nature scenes are some of the great adventure experiences we can assure you on this 11 Day Uganda Wild Safari.

Safari Highlights

• The awesome and exciting experience of spending time with the Gorillas and watching at close range as they feed, play and relax.
• A visit to the spectacular Murchison Falls renowned for its scenic beauty as well game and boat drives on the Victoria Nile
• Being tantalized by the squeezing of the Nile River into a 7 meter gorge before tumbling 40 meters down in a thunderous explosion
• Watching at close range the wild but habituated chimpanzees, other primates and birds in their natural environment
• Sightseeing of the unique geographical gifting along the Albertine Rift Valleywith breathtaking glamour of scenic landscapes
• An encounter with the Batwa (former forest dwellers) for a demonstration of their former hunting and trapping techniques, and how to make ointments from native plants to cure all manner of ailments.
• A visit to a Batwa home to see the traditional huts used for grinding millet, cooking over an open fire and distilling local potent gin (Waragi).
• Enjoying game drives in the Queen Elizabeth National Park and a boat cruise on the Kazinga Channel.
• The rare treat at the beautifully created Lake Bunyonyi where you will enjoy cool canoe rides as you spot splendid varieties of birds and wildlife;scenic views and native cultural exposures.
• An opportunity to trek the endangered white Rhinos
• The thrill of a game-walking safari in Lake Mburo National Park
• An opportunity to stand in two hemispheres at the Equator for memorable photos.

Day 1: Arrival in Uganda

You will be met at the airport by our safari guide who will transfer you to the hotel reserved for you in Kampala. The guide will brief you on the 11 Day Uganda Wild Safari during your dinner and this is where you could ask a couple of questions.

Dinner and overnight will be at this hotel.

Day 2: Travel to Murchison Falls National Park (5-6hrs)

You begin the 11 Day Uganda Wild Safari with an early breakfast and drive to Murchison Falls National Park via the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary where you will have the opportunity to trek the Rhinos. The sanctuary houses Uganda’s Rhino reintroduction project. There are 9 white rhinos and tracking is done on foot for 1 and half hours. You will continue to Masindi Town for lunch and later drive to Murchison Falls National Park. The entire journey takes 6-7 hours. You will have dinner and overnight at the lodge of your booking.

Day 3: Game drive and Boat launch on the Nile

You will have an early start (6.30am) and set off at for a sunrise game drive in the Nyamsika plateau to see the Cape buffaloes, Rothschild’s giraffes, Uganda kob, hartebeest and waterbucks. You may also spot oribi, bushbuck, Bohor reedbuck, shy sitatunga, bush duiker, warthog and bush pig plus large carnivores including lions, leopards and spotted hyenas. Chimpanzees and olive baboons head the list of six species of primates found in the park. Crocodiles and hippos will be seen along the banks of the Nile. Some of the more common birds that can be seen include goliath heron, Egyptian geese, pelican, bee-eaters, kingfishers, hornbill, cormorant, saddle-bill stork and the rare shoebill stork.

You will return to your lodge for a late breakfast and some relaxation before you set off in the afternoon for a boat cruise on the placid Victoria Nile, upstream, to the base of the falls. En route you will see hippos, crocodiles, water buck and a wide variety of birds like the unusual shoebill stork. The boat stops just tens of meters from the “Devil’s Cauldron” for pictures to be taken of the photogenic and majestic Murchison Falls.

Day 4: Visit to the top of the fall and travel to Kibale Forest National Park

You will after your breakfast visit the “top of the thunderous Murchison falls”, where you will observe the River Nile squeezing itself in a 7 meter gorge before tumbling 40 meters down in a thunderous explosion and then flows down into a very peaceful river whose water banks are swarmed with a profusion of water and land animals as well as birds.

You will thereafter set off on a 9 hour journey to Kibale Forest National Park. The drive route is through verdant countryside lined with traditional homesteads and farms and via the towns of Hoima and Fort Portal which rests in the shadow of the fabled Mountains of the Moon. You will have dinner and overnight at the lodge of your booking

Day 5: Chimp tracking and nature walk in Kibale Forest

The 11 Day Uganda Special Safari continues after breakfast. You will report at the Kanyanchu Tourist Centre for a briefing on the rules of chimpanzee tracking at 08.00 am. Kibale Forest National Park has the greatest variety and highest concentration of primates in East Africa. The most famous of its 13 species is the Chimpanzee, a very delightful ape. The trek takes 2-3 hours and it will provide you with the opportunity to see a variety of other primates and animals as well as birds and butterflies. You will return to the lodge for lunch and in the afternoon go for a nature walk in the Bigodi Wetland to see a variety of birds and monkey species. You will have dinner and overnight at your lodge.

Day 6: Game drive and boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth National Park

After your morning breakfast, you will have an early morning Game drive where you will see the lion, leopard, giant forest hog, Cape buffalo, elephant, defassa waterbuck, Uganda Kob, topi and bushbuck among others. You will return to your lodge for lunch and in the afternoon go for a 2-hour boat cruise on the Kazinga Channel. This is a 42km channel that joins Lake Edward and Lake George. This boat trip passes through possibly the highest concentration of hippos and offers an excellent platform for photography, bird watching and game viewing. The prolific bird life is colorful, with well over 550 resident species.

Dinner and overnight will be spent at your reserved lodge.

Day 7: Game Drive and travel to Lake Bunyonyi

You will wake up early for a morning game drive in the park during which you will see Lions, Elephants, Topis, Leopards, Bush bucks, Cape Buffaloes, Defassa Waterbucks, Giant Forest Hogs, Uganda Kobs, among others. You will return to your lodge for a late breakfast after which you will travel to Lake Bunyonyi. The lake lies close to the border with Rwanda, and is said to be one of the most beautiful places in western Uganda. It is the second deepest lake in Africa and also one of the few places in the country where it is considered safe to swim as it is bilharzias free. The journey takes 6-7 hours and you will have your lunch enroute. Dinner and overnight will be at one of the many lodges near the lake.

Day 8: Canoeing and hiking on Lake Bunyonyi

This morning you can choose to either have a canoe-ride on the lake or a walk through the surrounding hills. The landscape around the lake is made up of steep slopes covered with lush green vegetation protruding from the water’s edge. Bunyonyi means “place of little birds” and as the name suggests, there is plenty of birdlife around the lake. You can get to know the seven islands, visit the local families and admire views of volcanoes. In the afternoon you will drive to Kisoro town close to the borders of Rwanda and Congo. You will go through a beautiful part of the country often referred to as ‘the Switzerland of Africa’. You will see a great country-side, bamboo forests and have great views of the Virunga Mountains. And if it is a Monday or Thursday you will have the opportunity to see a typical colourful African market in Kisoro. You will have dinner and overnight at the lodge of your booking.

Day 9: Gorilla trekking in Bwindi

This part of the 11 Day Uganda Wild Safari is intense and exciting. It’s the day you’ve been building up to and it’s here. You will have an early morning breakfast and move to the Park headquarters to join other trackers in a briefing about the gorilla trekking rules at 7:45 am. You will trek through thick creepers and undergrowth with your guides to find the Gorillas, which can take you 2-8 hours. The steeply forested landscape is incredibly dense but crisscrossed by numerous animal trails allowing access by tourists. You will have one hour to stay with the Gorillas once sited before returning to your lodge to rest.

You will have dinner and overnight at the lodge of your booking.

Day 10: Transfer to Lake Mburo, Afternoon/ Evening game drive

You will have an early breakfast and travel to Lake Mburo National Park centered on a series of swamp-fringed lakes rich in bird life while its green acacia woodland harbors wildlife like the Zebra, warthog, Elands, Impala among others. Later after lunch you will go for an afternoon/ evening game drive. Expect to see zebra, hippos, crocodiles, eland, antelope, impala, and a variety of birds. And later retire to the lodge of your booking for dinner and overnight.

Day 11: Early Morning Walking Safari and transfer to Kampala/ Entebbe

Early breakfast before embarking on our return to Kampala, You will have a short drive to the Rwonyo park headquarters. This has often been a good chance of seeing hyenas coming back to the water you will see buffalo zebra, impala and topi and with a bit of luck may be even asitatunga, an antelope rarely seen living in the papyrus swamps. Later, in the mid-morning you will transfer back in Kampala reaching in the evening. Dinner and overnight will be at your lodge of booking.

This marks the end of the amazing 11 Day Uganda Wild Safari.