5-Day Uganda Gorilla Trekking and Wildlife Safari

• You'll be collected from the airport.
• Accommodation before the tour starts can be arranged for an extra cost.

Transfer to queen elizabeth national park

An early departure from Kampala heads west along the highway through Uganda's rolling agricultural interior. The first landmark is the Equator crossing at Kayabwe a genuine geographical moment and a worthwhile stop. The road continues through the highlands above Lake Mburo before descending into the flat acacia savannah of the Albertine Rift, where the profile of the Rwenzori Mountains appears on the northern horizon.
Arrival at Queen Elizabeth National Park in the early afternoon allows time for check-in at the lodge before an afternoon game drive on the Kasenyi plains — the park's most productive game-viewing sector. Uganda kob gather in large numbers on the open grassland, warthogs trot in family groups, and the floodplains near the channel hold buffalo herds, elephants, and predators. Lions are regularly encountered on the Kasenyi circuit in the late afternoon.

Main Destination:

Queen Elizabeth National Park

Best Time To Visit January to February and June to July (Dry seasons)

High Season June to September (Peak time for Uganda)

Best Weather June to July and January to February (Less rainfall)

Wildlife in Queen Elizabeth NP

ChimpanzeeOccasional

ElephantCommon

LionCommon

BuffaloCommon

HippoAbundant

LeopardOccasional

Show more

GiraffeNone

White RhinoNone

Black RhinoNone

CheetahNone

ZebraNone

WildebeestNone

Wild DogNone

Accommodation:

Pumba Safari Cottages

• Mid-range lodge located just outside Kyambura Gorge (Chimps)

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Meals & Drinks:

• Lunch & dinner (Breakfast not included)
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Full Day in Queen Elizabeth National Park

A full day in Queen Elizabeth National Park is one of the most rewarding wildlife days available in Uganda. The 6:00am game drive covers the northern circuits where predators are most active before the heat builds — lions lying out on open ground, leopards moving along the tree lines, large elephant herds crossing from forest to plain. Early morning game drive, when lions, leopards, elephants, and other wildlife are most active against the scenic backdrop of the Rwenzori Mountains. In the afternoon, enjoy a two-hour Kazinga Channel boat cruise, offering close views of hippos, crocodiles, buffalo, and abundant birdlife, making it one of Africa's finest wildlife boat experiences.

Main Destination:

Queen Elizabeth National Park

Accommodation:

Pumba Safari Cottages

• Mid-range lodge located just outside Kyambura Gorge (Chimps)

Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Queen Elizabeth NP – Ishasha – Bwindi Impenetrable Forest

The transfer from Queen Elizabeth to Bwindi passes through the Ishasha sector — and your guide does not treat this as a transit. Ishasha is where lions have developed the unique behaviour of climbing and resting in the broad horizontal branches of giant fig trees, and your guide navigates the known territories where this is most reliably seen. A pride spread across the branches of a fig tree, silhouetted against an open savannah, is one of the rarest and most striking wildlife sightings in Africa. Allow time here.
Beyond Ishasha, the road climbs steadily into the Albertine Rift escarpment, and the landscape transforms from flat savannah to terraced hillsides, dense tropical forest, and the cool highland air of Bwindi's altitude. Arrival at your Bwindi lodge in the early evening is followed by a ranger briefing on tomorrow's gorilla trek, and what to expect when you find the gorillas.

Main Destination:

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (Gorillas)

Best Time To Visit June to August and December to February (Gorilla trekking is easiest)

High Season June to September (Gorilla permits are scarce)

Best Weather June to July and December to February (Less rainfall)

Wildlife in Bwindi Impenetrable NP

GorillaCommon

ChimpanzeeRare

ElephantRare

White RhinoNone

Black RhinoNone

LionNone

Show more

GiraffeNone

LeopardNone

CheetahNone

BuffaloNone

ZebraNone

WildebeestNone

HippoNone

Accommodation:

Bwindi Neck View Lodge

• Budget lodge located just outside Buhoma (Bwindi Impenetrable NP)

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Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi

Breakfast before full light, boots laced on a damp wooden veranda, the forest already alive with sound around the lodge. At the park headquarters, you receive your group assignment, meet your lead ranger, and receive a final briefing before entering the forest on foot.
. The trek to find your gorilla family can take anywhere from 2 hours to several hours depending on where the gorillas moved overnight; your ranger team tracks their position from first light. When the signal comes that they are close, the group slows, voices drop, and you enter the permitted observation zone.
The hour with the gorillas is the centrepiece of this entire safari. A silverback may sit within metres of you, entirely relaxed, while the rest of the family moves around him — infants tumbling through the undergrowth, females feeding in the branches overhead, juveniles play-chasing with the same noisy energy familiar to any primates.
After the trek, you will head back to your lodge for a hot bath or massage.

Main Destination:

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (Gorillas)

Accommodation:

Bwindi Neck View Lodge

• Budget lodge located just outside Buhoma (Bwindi Impenetrable NP)

Meals & Drinks:

• All meals included
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

Return to Kampala / Entebbe

After your morning breakfast, you begin the return journey to Kampala or Entebbe, arriving by early evening.

Main Destination:

Kampala (City)

Accommodation:

No accommodation (End of tour)

Meals & Drinks:

• Breakfast & lunch (Dinner not included)
• Drinking water (Other drinks not included)

• Additional accommodation can be arranged for an extra cost.
• You'll be dropped off at the airport.