Arrival at Entebbe
Our 14 Days Best of Uganda and Rwanda Safari starts with a pick up from Entebbe International Airport as our driver-guide will be waiting to meet and introduce themselves to you upon arrival at Entebbe airport, afterwards transfer to Anderita Beach Hotel.
- Main Destination:
- Entebbe (City, Uganda)
- Accommodation:
- Anderita Beach Hotel
- Meals & Drinks:
Rhino Tracking | Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park
Pick up time 6:30 am at your hotel or place of residence. After breakfast we begin our journey driving northward to Murchison Falls National Park through Masindi it will take us through Kampala’s busy and overpopulated towns of Bwaise and Kawempe. Proceed through Luwero Triangle, famous for Uganda’s past dictatorial regime. Break off from the main road to Nakitoma town heading to the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary for the Rhino Tracking experience at a close range, which takes one and a half hours depending on how close the rhinos are. Lunch at Kabalega Diner / Masindi Hotel, then proceed to Murchison Falls. If the selected lodge is at the northern side of the park, you will cross the Victoria Nile with a ferry.
- Main Destination:
- Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary (Uganda)
- Accommodation:
- Fort Murchison (Tent)
- Meals & Drinks:
Murchison Falls National Park (Game drive and Boat cruise)
Early morning game drive at 6:30 am, after your breakfast. Take pictures and view amazing leopards, giraffes, African elephants, hyenas, buffaloes, and lions in the grassland and hippopotami. A lot of bird species can be spotted including the rare shoebill at the delta. The game drive will take 3 hours. Lunch at the lodge.
In the afternoon at 2:30 pm you will take an exciting panoramic view on a boat cruise on the Victoria Nile to the bottom of the powerful Murchison Falls. It will give you a great opportunity for you to view families of hippos, Nile crocodiles at their meeting point, colobus and vervet monkeys, and birds along the river such as African fish eagle among others.
Afterwards, hike to the top of the falls with a ranger guide. You will see the Nile's perfected beauty and marvel as it squeezes through a 7-metre-wide gorge, and the 45-metre drop of the falls creates a thunderous roar and a beautiful rainbow in the spray. Transfer you to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
- Main Destination:
- Murchison Falls National Park (Uganda)
- Accommodation:
- Fort Murchison (Tent)
- Meals & Drinks:
Murchison Falls to Kibale National Park
Cross with the first ferry at 7 am after your early morning breakfast and depart to Kibale National Park. We drive southwestwards through the Albertine Escarpment of the Great Rift Valley. You pass through different villages, where you see people at work with their crops like sorghum, millet, beans and maize, and banana plantations. Reaching Hoima town and having lunch at Kontiki Hotel, and then continue to Fort Portal the beautiful and colourful town, the capital city of Tooro Kingdom. This rural Ugandan town is locally famous for its weaving and basketry, situated in the shadow of the fabled “Mountains of the Moon”, the Rwenzori. Heading to the Kibale Forest National Park.
- Main Destination:
- Kibale National Park (Chimps)
- Accommodation:
- Kibale Forest Camp (Camping)
- Meals & Drinks:
Chimpanzee Trekking in Kibale Forest
Early morning breakfast and drive to UWA headquarters for a briefing with rangers at Kanyankyu River camp at 8 am, and set off for chimpanzee tracking, which is the main activity in Kibale National Park. Chimpanzees are our closest relatives though they are among the endangered species in the world. You will be able to see other primates like black-and-white colobus monkeys, L’Hoest monkeys, grey-cheeked mangabey, red-tailed monkeys, bush babies, pottos and many bird species like the yellow-spotted nicator, rumped tinkerbird, little greenbul, green breasted pitta, the crowned eagle, black bee-eater and mammals like elephants can be seen in this walk.
In the afternoon we visit Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary which is located at the eastern edge of Kibale forest and maintained by the local communities which are surrounding the park. You will be able to spot birds like the great blue turaco, primates like blue monkeys, baboons, other mammals like otters, mongooses, bush pigs among others.
- Main Destination:
- Kibale National Park (Chimps)
- Accommodation:
- Kibale Forest Camp (Camping)
- Meals & Drinks:
Kibale to Queen Elizabeth National Park
After breakfast, we take the 2-hour plus drive to Queen Elizabeth Park; before checking into the lodge of your choice we take the scenic explosion crater drive with its craters and lakes, and stunning views at the highest point in the park. We check in by lunchtime at The Bush Lodge.
Afternoon game drive on the Kasenyi plains of Queen Elizabeth National Park where you have some excellent opportunities to see lions, leopards, elephant herds, buffaloes, antelopes while slowly moving down a game track with a Uganda Wildlife Authority Ranger on board along with your driver guide. Each game drive is about 2 1/2 to 3 hours in length; you have a pop-up roof for best wildlife viewing while on a game drive. Dinner and overnight at your selected lodge.
- Main Destination:
- Queen Elizabeth National Park (Uganda)
- Accommodation:
- The Bush Lodge (Tent)
- Meals & Drinks:
Queen Elizabeth National Park (Game drive and Boat cruise)
After an early breakfast set off for a morning game drive at Kasenyi sector. This game drive will take 3 hours. There is a lot to see like leopards, lions, Uganda kobs, African buffaloes, African elephants, waterbucks, bushbucks, hippopotami in savannah ponds among others. Afterwards, lunch and refreshment at your lodge later set off for an evening boat cruise at 3 pm on Kazinga channel between lake George and lake Edward, which takes 2 hours. Here you will have an opportunity to view over 500 species of birds including the flamingos, mammals at a close range, the highest concentration of water submerged Nile crocodiles, hippopotami, African elephants, waterbucks, bushbucks, warthogs among others.
- Main Destination:
- Queen Elizabeth National Park (Uganda)
- Accommodation:
- The Bush Lodge (Tent)
- Meals & Drinks:
Queen Elizabeth to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
After breakfast at the lodge, we go for an early morning game drive through Ishasha sector to see the tree-climbing lions, African elephants, leopards, cape buffaloes, topis, Uganda kobs, waterbucks, warthogs, hyenas, and a lot of birds among others. Later proceed to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Lunch en-route, in the late afternoon, check into your selected lodge for overnight and dinner.
- Main Destination:
- Ishasha Sector (Queen Elizabeth NP, Uganda)
- Accommodation:
- Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge
- Meals & Drinks:
Gorilla Tracking
An early morning breakfast, and drive to the park headquarters at 8 am for a briefing with the park rangers. Afterwards set off for gorilla tracking. This may take half or all day tracking depending on the location where the gorillas are. You will be able to spend an hour interacting with these awesome primates as you take photographs. Return to the lodge for your late lunch and later in the evening you visit the Batwa (Pygmies) community for unique cultural styles and entertainment and a community walk.
- Main Destination:
- Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (Gorillas)
- Accommodation:
- Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge
- Meals & Drinks:
Bwindi National Park to Lake Bunyonyi
After your breakfast, you will start off your journey to Lake Bunyonyi found in Kabale which is the second deepest lake in Africa and a great place for birders. You will be welcomed by the sweet sounds of the birds, the word Bunyonyi means small birds in the local language. Upon arrival, you will go for a canoe trip on the lake whereby you will be able to see various birds, communities, landforms such as the islands (around 29 islands are in the lake). Take as many photographs as you can. After the canoe, have lunch and in the evening visit the Abaheesi community.
- Main Destination:
- Lake Bunyonyi (Uganda)
- Accommodation:
- Bunyonyi Safaris Resort
- Meals & Drinks:
Lake Bunyonyi to Volcanoes National Park (Rwanda) | Musanze Caves
After breakfast, drive to Rwanda as you enjoy the rolling hills for which Rwanda is well known, driving via Ruhengeri arriving in Kinigi. Check in at La Locanda for lunch and refreshment.
Afterwards, transfer to Volcanoes National Park headquarters for a briefing. From here you will start your tour to Musanze caves. A Rwanda safari without a tour to Musanze caves is undeniably incomplete. Situated in the heart of Volcanoes National Park in northwestern Rwanda, Musanze caves are surely worth visiting. The caves are 2 kilometres long underneath, with 31 entrances, formed by centuries of geologic activity centred around the Virunga volcanoes. During the 2 to 3 hours tour expect to see bats hanging upside down and different wild plants grown on the walls. Some water drips through the overhanging walls. Dinner and overnight at the selected lodge.
- Main Destination:
- Volcanoes National Park (Gorillas)
- Accommodation:
- La Locanda
- Meals & Drinks:
Dian Fossey Trekking
After an early breakfast, you will again transfer to the park headquarters for registration and briefing about the Dian Fossey grave trekking. You will go for Dian Fossey grave trek. Information about her will be given to you on your way and you should be aware that she was an American zoologist who was murdered in 1985 while on her research about the rare species of mountain gorillas and other primates in Parc des Volcanoes (Volcanoes National Park). Her grave is close to her research centre.
After the trek, you will visit the Iby’iwacu Cultural Village where you will learn a lot about Rwanda culture and participate in interesting activities like playing king and queen! Return for dinner and overnight to La Locanda.
- Main Destination:
- Volcanoes National Park (Gorillas)
- Accommodation:
- La Locanda
- Meals & Drinks:
Golden Monkey tracking and transfer to Lake Kivu
After an early breakfast, you will again transfer to the park headquarters for registration and briefing about the golden monkey tracking. Golden monkeys are a rare species of primates in Africa and only a few populations can be seen in the Virunga forests of Volcanoes National Park and Mgahinga National Park on the Ugandan side. Later on, transfer to Lake Kivu for dinner and overnight at Palm Garden Lodge.
- Main Destination:
- Volcanoes National Park (Gorillas)
- Accommodation:
- Hakuna Matata Lodge
- Meals & Drinks:
Transfer to Kigali City & Departure
Breakfast will be served early and transfer to Kigali city where you will visit the Kigali museum and the Kimironko market – one of the largest local markets in Africa.
Have lunch at Hotel Rwanda (Hôtel des Mille Collines).
It became famous after 1,268 people took refuge inside the building during the Rwandan Genocide of 1994. The story of the hotel and its manager at that time, Paul Rusesabagina, was later used as the basis of Terry George's film Hotel Rwanda in 2004.
Afterwards transfer to the airport for your onward flight ending your 14 Days Best of Uganda and Rwanda Safari.
- Main Destination:
- Kigali (Rwanda)
- Accommodation:
- No accommodation (End of tour)
- Meals & Drinks: