19 Days Uganda and Rwanda Wildlife And Primates Safari

Join the adventure of a lifetime with our 19 Days Uganda and Rwanda Wildlife And Primates Safari

Overview

Book our 19 Days Uganda and Rwanda Wildlife & Primates Safari and get an extensive travel experience of Uganda and Rwanda. Main highlights for this 19 days Uganda and Rwanda safari include Rhino tracking at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary in Uganda, Top of the falls tour in Murchison Falls national park, Chimpanzee Tracking in Uganda & Rwanda, Golden monkey tracking, Dian Fossey trek, Batwa trail, Visit Ngamba Island chimpanzee sanctuary, Game drives, Boat safaris, Bisoke Hike, and Cultural tour.

Trip Highlights

Day 1: Airport picks up

Day 2: Ngamba Island

Day 3: Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park via Ziwa Rhino sanctuary.

Day 4: Morning game drive- Afternoon boat safari-Top of falls

Day 5: Transfer to Kibale National Park

Day 6: Chimpanzee Trekking and Optional visit to Bigodi Swamp

Day 7: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park

Day 8: Game drive & Kazinga channel boat safari and Transfer to Bwindi

Day 9: Gorilla Trekking Bwindi 

Day 10: Batwa Trail & Transfer to Volcanoes National Park – Rwanda

Day 11: Visit Ellen DeGeneres Campus of Dian Fossey Fund and Ibyi’wacu Village Tour

Day 12: Gorilla Trekking – Volcanoes National Park

Day 13: Golden monkey tracking and optional nature walk

Day 14: Bisoke (Visoke) Hike – Volcanoes National Park

Day 16: Transfer to Nyungwe forest National Park

Day 17: Chimp trekking and Canopy walk 

Day 18: Transfer to Akagera National Park & Boat Cruise 

Day 19: Early Morning Game drive and Airport Transfer & Departure

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Day 1: Airport pick up

Upon arrival at the airport, our company representative together with the guide will welcome you and transfer you to your lodge. 

Depending on the time of your arrival, you might be able to do some optional activities in Entebbe like a visit to the Botanical gardens or the Ugandan Wildlife Education Centre (UWEC). Please note that all activities today are at your own cost.

Journey Time: 10 minutes

Day 2: Ngamba Island

After breakfast, you will take a short boat ride to Ngamba Island to visit the Chimpanzee Sanctuary, established in association with the Jane Goodall Institute. The island is home also home to monitoring lizards and many species of birds and is a natural habitat for chimpanzees that have been orphaned or rescued from captivity. 

You will watch these fascinating primates from a viewing platform and participate in the feeding experience. Later, you will transfer back to the pier in Entebbe; crossing the equator atop the waters of Lake Victoria! 

Arrive at the pier where your driver/guide will be waiting to transfer you to Kampala where you will visit the Kasubi tombs and crafts village if time allows. 

Journey Time: 10 minutes

Day 3: Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park via Ziwa Rhino sanctuary

Today after breakfast, your guide will pick you up from Kampala to Murchison Falls NP. En route, you will visit Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary where you will go for rhino tracking with an experienced ranger, which gives you a unique opportunity to view the rhinos from a close distance.

Have lunch and proceed with your drive to Murchison falls national park where you will embark on an afternoon boat cruise on the Nile River. You will have an opportunity to see wildlife basking at the river banks including hippos, Nile crocodiles, elephants, reedbucks, waterbucks and so many more.

After your boat trip, you will drive to the top of the falls and experience the thunderous roar with impressive views. Later transfer to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.

Journey Time: 7 hours

Day 4: Morning game drive – Afternoon boat safari -Top of falls

Today after breakfast, you will depart for an early morning game drive across the rolling plains of Uganda’s largest National Park. The 3,893 sq km park is home to a range of animals, and you will have a chance of viewing some of the Park’s residents including lions, giraffes, hartebeest, buffalo, and elephants. For the birders amongst you, these areas support the secretary bird and the black chested snake eagle, to name a few.  

In the afternoon, go for a boat trip to the base of Murchison falls, where the Nile thunders through a small 7-meter gap plunging 43 meters into the Nile on the way to Lake Albert. The banks of the Nile are densely populated with crocodiles, hippopotami, and a range of other wildlife that come to the river to drink.

After the boat safari, you will hike to the top of the falls. From here you have a wonderful view and fantastic photo opportunities!

Day 5: Transfer to Kibale National Park

Today is the first day of your tour to Kibale Forest National Park. The long journey through tea plantations and the beautiful green landscape that defines so much of Uganda is breathtaking.

Kibale Forest National Park is located in west-central Uganda, near Fort Portal, slightly east of the Rwenzori Mountains. The 766-square-kilometer park is mostly covered by evergreen rainforest and ranges in height from 1100 to 1600 meters. Kibale Forest, which forms a contiguous forest with Queen Elizabeth National Park, is one of the few surviving areas of both lowland and montane forests.

You will bring a packed lunch and arrive in the evening for overnight and supper.

Journey Time: 8 hours

Day 6: Chimpanzee Trekking and Optional visit to Bigodi Swamp

After breakfast, proceed to the park headquarters for a briefing before embarking on the Chimpanzee hike. You will enter the forest early in the morning to observe chimps leaving their night-time nests between 6:00 and 6:30 a.m. before eating, copulating, hunting, nursing, and resting. Return for supper and overnight, as described above.

Day 7: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park

After breakfast, you will continue your drive to Queen Elizabeth National Park with a stop at Fort Portal village to see the crater lakes and stalagmites. In Kasese, you will cross the equator once more.

Queen Elizabeth National Park is Uganda’s second biggest park, lying at the foot of the spectacular Rwenzori Mountain range, near Lakes Edward and George. The park’s wildlife includes Uganda Kob, warthog, and waterbuck. Lions are frequently spotted both within and outside the park. Be prepared to witness a large number of hippos and elephants, and keep an eye out for a leopard lying in the sun.

You will unwind at the lodge in the late afternoon. Dinner and overnight stay at a lodge of your choice.

Journey Time: 3 ½ 

Day 8: Game drive & Kazinga channel boat safari and Transfer to Bwindi

You get up early today. Coffee, tea, and doughnuts will be provided in the lounge shortly before daybreak before we depart for a lengthy game drive in time to catch the first rays of light. You will look for all of the species in the park, including elephants, Buffalo, Lion, Waterbuck, Leopard, Uganda Kob, and many Warthogs.

Following your early morning wildlife drive, you will go on a boat safari down the Kazinga Channel, which connects Lake George and Lake Edward.

There are more hippos than you can imagine here, as well as a variety of other species that come to the waterhole to drink or wash. Expect to witness buffalo, crocodiles, elephants bathing, and a variety of gorgeous birds. This will surely be one of your tour’s highlights.

Following the boat safari, you will have lunch and be transferred from Queen to your hotel in Bwindi, where you will have supper and spend the night at your chosen resort.

Day 9: Gorilla Trekking Bwindi

After an early breakfast, you will be taken to the park headquarters for a gorilla tracking briefing. You will come into contact with one of Bwindi’s endangered mountain gorillas. This is the ultimate highlight of most people’s Uganda visit.

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is the only forest in Africa that is home to both mountain gorillas and chimps. It also has five additional primate species, 113 mammal species, over 200 butterfly species, and 360 bird species. The gorillas you monitor are acclimated to humans and can accept their presence for a short period every day.

The time taken to track the gorillas can be as few as 2 hours to as many as 7 hours. Once the gorillas have been located, your group will be allowed a maximum of one hour with them. Coming face-to-face with a mountain gorilla is a truly humbling and emotional experience. This is a fantastic and privileged opportunity to get up close and personal with Uganda’s very own ‘Gorillas in the Mist’.

Day 10: Batwa Trail & Transfer to Volcanoes National Park – Rwanda

 Have an early morning breakfast and proceed to Mgahinga national park for the Batwa trail experience with a tour guide and learn about how the pygmies used to survive in the forest.

Have lunch in Kisoro town and transfer to Musanze – the base town for Volcanoes national park crossing into Rwanda through Cyanika border.

Journey Time: 4 hours

Day 11: Visit Ellen DeGeneres Campus of Dian Fossey Fund and Ibyi’wacu Village Tour

Enjoy your breakfast at the lodge and later meet up with your guide. You will then drive to Kinigi where will be visiting the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Fund. Take a guided tour through the newly constructed facilities and exhibition 

hall as you get to learn more about the conservation projects of the campus and Fossey Fund, as well as the late Dian Fossey. Have lunch at your lodge and later in the evening head out for a cultural tour to the Ibyi’wacu Village which is situated outside Volcanoes national park. You will be entertained by amazing Rwandan dance and singing performances from the local intore dance troupe. Dinner and overnight stay at your lodge same as above.

Day 12: Gorilla Trekking – Volcanoes National Park

You will enjoy an early morning breakfast and transfer to the park headquarters with your packed lunch and bottled drinking water for a briefing by the park ranger guides at 7:00 am. After the briefing, you will start your gorilla trekking journey accompanied by the ranger guides in search of the mountain gorillas; this takes 2 to 8 hours depending on the movement of the gorillas.

However, the guides will try to find them from where they were last seen the previous day! You will spend 1 hour with these gentle giants and later return to your lodge to refresh and visit Iby’iwachu cultural village in the evening to experience the Rwandese culture. 

Meal plan: Full Board. Drinking water (Other drinks not provided)

Day 13: Dian Fossey Trekking & Musanze Caves Tour

Breakfast will be served early and drive back to the park headquarters as on day 2 above. Receive briefing and go for Dian Fossey trekking to her grave in Karisoke. The Dian Fossey trek is more challenging and lasts 6 to 7 hours 

Return to the lodge for lunch and a short rest. In the afternoon; you will go for a tour of the Musanze caves with a ranger guide. Return to the lodge in the evening for dinner and overnight.

Day 14: Day 6: Golden monkey tracking and optional nature walk

After early morning breakfast, transfer to the park headquarters for briefing and later enter the forest and hike while in search of the golden monkeys. Tracking the golden monkeys rewards views of other primates such as the black and white Colobus monkeys, and Olive baboons among others. In the afternoon, you can opt for a guided nature walk in Buhanga eco-park. This is an optional activity so you will have to give us prior notice if you wish to include this activity in your itinerary.

 Dinner and overnight stay at your lodge.

Day 15: Bisoke (Visoke) Hike – Volcanoes National Park

You will enjoy breakfast and set out for Mt. Bisoke hike which is part of volcanoes national park; home to Rwanda gorillas. On reaching the summit, you will discover a beautiful crater lake and the whole experience is overwhelming! Along the trail, you will discover a lot of birdlife and captivating scenery – the reason Rwanda is referred to as the “land of a thousand hills”. 

After the hike, you will have lunch and transfer back lodge to spend the evening at leisure. Dinner and overnight stay as above

Day 16: Transfer to Nyungwe forest National Park

After breakfast, set off for Nyungwe Forest National Park. It is a scenic drive that goes through people’s homesteads and different hills of Rwanda – the land of a thousand hills. Arrive in the afternoon. Dinner and overnight stay at Nyungwe top view hill hotel

Day 17: Chimp trekking and Canopy walk

After breakfast, transfer to the park offices for briefing, and after entering into the tropical rain forest to search for the shy chimpanzees hopping on the tree branches and take unforgettable photos and videos. 

Have lunch and in the evening, experience the canopy walk which offers a clear view of plants, primates, birds, and butterflies very close. Return to the lodge for dinner and overnight as above. 

Day 18: Transfer to Akagera National Park & Boat Cruise

Have breakfast in the center of Kigali before beginning your 6- to 7-hour adventure. You will stop for lunch en there and take a nighttime boat tour on Lake Ihema, where you can witness wildlife such as hippopotamuses, crocodiles, and numerous bird species that inhabit the lake and nearby marshes. Later in the evening, you may go on an evening game drive, eager to view the many creatures that may become more active as the day draws to a close. Akagera National Park is quickly becoming one of Africa’s conservation success stories, having just completed the big 5 restorations by introducing rhinos in addition to lions – all from South Africa.

Journey Time: 7 hours

Meal plan: Full board. Drinking water (Other drinks not provided)

Day 19: Early Morning Game drive and Airport Transfer & Departure

Rise early and go for a game drive with great anticipation of seeing the different animals which rise early to graze and predators looking for their early morning kill. After the game drive, return to the lodge to freshen up and embark on your journey to Kigali city.

Today, depending on your flight time, you will depart Akagera and transfer to Kigali international airport for your onward flight.