8 Day Gorilla Trekking, Wildlife & Chimpanzee Tour

8 Day Uganda Gorilla Trekking, Wildlife & Chimpanzee Tour

OVERVIEW

The 8 Day Uganda Gorilla Trekking, Wildlife & Chimpanzee Tour takes you to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park where you will get to encounter habituates mountain gorillas in the renowned Bwindi Forest. Later transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park for a game drive and Launch cruise on the Kazinga Channel, and the journey to Kibale Forest National Park for chimpanzee tracking experience and Bigodi Swamp Walk where you stand a chance to see amazing bird species like the Rare Shoebill Stork.

Highlights 8 Days Best of Uganda Safari

Day 1: Arrival in Entebbe & Transfer to Kampala

Day 2: Drive to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Day 3: Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest

Day 4: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park and Evening Game Drive

Day 5: Morning Game Drive and Afternoon Boat Cruise

Day 6: Lion Tracking and Drive to Kibale National Park

Day 7: Chimpanzee Trekking and Bigodi Swamp Walk

Day 8: Transfer Back to Kampala/Entebbe

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Detailed Itinerary of  8 Day Uganda Gorilla Trekking, Wildlife & Chimpanzee Tour 

Day 1: Arrival in Entebbe & Transfer to Kampala

Arrival in Entebbe & Transfer to Kampala: On Day 1 of your 8 Days Best of Uganda Safari, pickup by our company representative upon your arrival in Entebbe International Airport. After a brief meet and greet session, you will be transferred to Kampala city where you will check into your hotel and get refreshed. Depending on your time of arrival in Kampala city, you can opt to head out for a brief tour of Kampala with interesting places to visit like Ndeere Cultural Centre, Namugongo Martyrs’ Shrine, Craft Village, Uganda Museum, Acacia Mall, Kingdom Kampala among others.

Drive back to your hotel later in the evening for dinner and overnight at Forest Cottages/ Sheraton Hotel/Serena Hotel.

Day 2: Drive to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Drive to Bwindi National Park: Have breakfast early in the morning at your hotel and then meet up with your driver guide. You will then drive to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park via Mbarara- Masaka Highway.  The journey from Kampala to Bwindi impenetrable national park is quite a long, taking between 6-10 hours depending on which sector of the park you tracking gorillas from. You will have a stopover at the equator monuments in Kayabwe, Mpigi district. These two equator monuments mark the point where the equator runs through Uganda.

You will the Proceed to Igongo Cultural Centre for lunch. This epic cultural center is a good stop for many travelers on route to western Uganda and it is just 12 km from Mbarara Town. Igongo Cultural Centre was opened to the general public in 2010. While here, take a short tour of the center’s museum which has a lot to tell about western cultural history. You can also visit the Nkwanzi crafts and bookshop where you can purchase a few souvenirs for yourself.

After having a hearty meal, proceed to Bwindi where you will check into your accommodation, have dinner and your overnight stay at Buhoma Community Rest Camp / Ichumbi Lodge/Buhoma Haven Lodge.

Day 3: Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest and Batwa Community Visit (Optional)

Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi: Have breakfast at your lodge as soon as possible since your guide will pick you up at 6 a.m. You’ll take a short drive to the Parks headquarters in Buhoma. You are expected to be at Buhoma at 7 a.m. for a briefing by the park’s chief ranger, which will begin at 8 a.m., and then you will be divided into groups of 8 people based on the gorilla troop you will be tracking. Tracking begins at 8:30 a.m., so make every effort to stay on time. Gorilla trekking in Bwindi can take between 4 to 8 hours or more depending on the location of the gorilla group that you will be tracking. Endeavour to pack lunch from your lodge on this day.

Batwa Community Tour (Optional): After your gorilla trekking experience, you can opt for a community visit to the neighboring Batwa communities near the national park. Get to mingle with the local Batwa people and learn more about their daily lifestyles and culture; from traditional dance performances to storytelling and so much more. Dinner and overnight at your lodge as above.

Day 4: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park and Evening Game Drive

Transfer to Queen: Have breakfast at your lodge early in the morning and proceed with your transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park. The park is about 90 km away from Buhoma via Ishasha. You will drive for roughly 4-5 hours to Queen Elizabeth National Park from Buhoma in Bwindi, and about 7 hours if you are travelling from the southern sector of Bwindi.

Evening Game Drive: Upon your arrival in Queen Elizabeth National Park, you will check into your lodge and proceed for lunch. You can rest for the afternoon at your lodge and later in the afternoon you will head out for an evening game drive in the park. You will have a chance to see lots of wildlife animals roaming in the park as they retire back to their dens for the night.

Later retire back to your lodge for dinner and overnight stay at Elephant Plains Safari Lodge/ Park View Safari Lodge/ Pumba Safari Cottages.

Day 5: Morning Game Drive and Afternoon Boat Cruise

Morning Game Drive: Have an early morning breakfast and proceed on a morning game drive in the park which begins at 6am. This morning game drive will give you a great chance to view nocturnal animals like leopards, serval cats and other wildlife such as African savannah elephants, hyenas, Uganda Kobs, heart beasts, giraffes, zebras and many more.

Afternoon Boat Cruise: Return back to your lodge for lunch and in the afternoon, head out for an evening boat cruise along the Kazinga channel. The boat cruise starts at exactly 1pm and can take approximately 2 hours. During your boat cruise, you may sight lots of wildlife such as hippos, Nile crocodiles, elephants and some species of birds like the great flamingos, Shoebill stock, Ibis and so many others.

Community Tour (Optional):  After your boat cruise, you can opt to do a cultural tour where you can visit the nearby Bakonjo local communities. On your visit, get to see the day to day activities of the local people and be entertained by the traditional dance groups.

Later return to your lodge for dinner and overnight stay.

Day 6: Lion Tracking and Drive to Kibale National Park

Lion Tracking Experience: After having breakfast at your lodge early morning, embark on a lion tracking experience as you search for lions in the park. The activity can take between 2 to 4 hours or more depending on the location of the lions in the park.

Transfer to Kibale: After your lion tracking experience in Queen Elizabeth national park, drive further west to Kibale National Park. You will have a stopover in Fort Portal town for lunch and then proceed with your drive to your lodge for dinner and overnight at Chimpundu Lodge/ Chimpanzee Guesthouse/ Kyaninga Lodge.

Day 7: Chimpanzee Trekking and Bigodi Swamp Walk

Chimpanzee Trekking: Have breakfast and head out for chimpanzee trekking in Kibale forest. The activity begins at 8.00am with a briefing regarding the rules of trekking the chimpanzees after which you set off to search for them in the forest. Once you locate the chimpanzees, you will have a full hour with them. Later drive back to your lodge for lunch and rest for a while.

Bigodi Swamp Walk: After having lunch at your lodge, drive to Bigodi for an afternoon swamp walk which will give you an opportunity to see the Rare Shoebill stork and other interesting bird species.  Later drive to your lodge for dinner and overnight same as above.

Day 8: Transfer Back to Kampala/Entebbe

Transfer Back to Kampala/Entebbe: Wake up at your leisure and eat breakfast at your lodge. You will then travel back to Kampala or Entebbe International Airport to catch your trip back home. End of Tour.