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6-Day Uganda Gorilla Trekking & Safari Tours

4.3/5  –  300 Uganda Reviews

Uganda isn’t your stereotypical safari destination. Where most of Africa’s top safari countries support a cover of dusty, dry savannah and associated plains wildlife, Uganda is fertile, well-watered and best known for its lush jungles and wealth of forest-dwelling birds and primates. Tracking mountain gorillas is the headline attraction, followed closely by the opportunity to hang out with some of Africa’s most habituated chimp communities. Yet, despite this, Uganda’s moist savannah also scores highly when it comes to more conventional safari icons such as lion, elephant and hippo. A 6-day safari allows you to explore more than one ecological facet of this compact and biodiverse equatorial country.

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1-20 of 75 Uganda 6-day gorilla & safari trips, holidays, vacations and packages

6 Questions About 6-Day Uganda Safaris

 
 

6 Questions About 6-Day Uganda Safaris

Answered by Philip Briggs

Is 6 days enough time for a trip in Uganda?

“A 6-day Uganda safari gives you time to enjoy several of the country’s key highlights. You can easily slot gorilla trekking and chimp trekking into a 6-day itinerary, and it also allows you to visit at least one savannah reserve and see some of the Big Five. That said, 6 days is not enough to cram in all of Uganda’s highlights, and we would recommend avoiding an itinerary that tries to do too much in that time, or things will become very rushed.”

1

Where should I go on a 6-day safari in Uganda?

“That depends on whether you want to include gorilla trekking. Assuming that you do, then your itinerary will concentrate on the southwest, which is where you’ll find both of the national parks in which gorillas can be seen. The more popular of the two gorilla trekking destinations is Bwindi Impenetrable NP, where more than 100 tracking permits are available daily. The alternative is Mgahinga Gorilla NP, which has a more scenic location on the slopes of the Virunga Mountains, but is home to just one habituated gorilla group and can issue only eight permits daily. Most 6-day itineraries to the southwest pair Bwindi/Mgahinga with Queen Elizabeth NP, which protects a lush mosaic of forest, savannah and wetlands. Highlights of Queen Elizabeth include the tree-climbing lions of Ishasha, the prolific wildlife along the Kazinga Channel and the distant views of the snowcapped Rwenzori peaks. Many 6-day safaris to the southwest include a chimp-trekking excursion in Kalinzu Forest, Kyambura Gorge or Kibale National Park. Another popular stop is Lake Mburo NP, which lies roughly halfway to Bwindi/Mgahinga coming from Entebbe International Airport. If gorillas are not on your Uganda wish list, then our top recommendation for a 6-day Uganda safari would combine Murchison Falls National Park and Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary with chimp trekking in Budongo Forest. A more remote alternative is Kidepo Valley National Park, which can also be combined with Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary.”

2

Which animals am I likely to see?

“Exactly which animals you see on a 6-day safari in Uganda will depend greatly on which parks and forests you visit. On a southwestern safari, assuming that you opt to track both, you can be all but certain of seeing gorillas, while the odds of encountering chimps stand at around 80%. Queen Elizabeth, Murchison Falls and Kidepo Valley are all home to four of the Big Five, the exception being rhinos. If your itinerary includes any of these three parks, you can be reasonably confident of spotting elephants, buffalos and lions, but you are less likely to see a leopard. Boat trips in Queen Elizabeth and Murchison Falls are great for hippos, crocodiles and aquatic birds, while giraffes are common in Murchison Falls, Kidepo Valley and Lake Mburo. Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary protects Uganda’s only white rhinos, which can be tracked on foot and are almost invariably seen, even on a short day visit. The country’s most characteristic antelope is the endemic Uganda kob. Uganda is renowned for its diversity of monkeys. Among the more commonly seen species are olive baboon, Uganda mangabey, Uganda red colobus, Rwenzori colobus and vervet, patas, red-tailed and l’Hoest’s monkeys. Uganda is also home to more than 1,000 bird species, with aquatic and forest specialists being particularly well represented.”

3

What are the options to extend my 6-day Uganda safari?

“A popular extension to a 6-day Uganda safari is a white-water rafting outing on the Nile River shortly downstream of Jinja, where it exits Lake Victoria. If you have a day or two spare in Entebbe, which is the site of the country’s only international airport, you could take a boat trip across Lake Victoria to Ngamba Island Chimp Sanctuary. A more low-key option out of Entebbe is a dugout excursion into Mabamba Swamp to look for the shoebill, a prehistoric-looking swamp-dweller that many would regard to be the most alluring of Ugandan birds. If you are thinking of combining a 6-day Uganda gorilla trekking tour with some travel elsewhere in East Africa, a recommended option would be a Big Five safari in Tanzania or Kenya, both of which are a short hop from Entebbe by plane. Another justifiably popular option is the magical Indian Ocean ‘spice island’ of Zanzibar, a stronghold of traditional Swahili coastal culture that also happens to host some of East Africa’s finest beaches.”

4

What is the best time of the year for a trip in Uganda?

“Although gorilla trekking and chimp trekking run 365 days a year, and other national parks are also permanently open, most visitors aim to travel in the relatively rain-free months of June to August or December to February. This is when trekking conditions tend to be easiest and also when wildlife is most conspicuous in the savannah reserves. Weather-wise, the least favorable time to be in Uganda is the peak rainy season, which runs from March to May.”

5

How much will this safari cost?

“A 6-day Uganda safari that includes gorilla and chimp trekking will typically cost in the ballpark of US$1,800 to US$3,000, depending largely on the quality of accommodation. This price should be inclusive of gorilla and chimp trekking permits, other park and activity fees, and accommodation, meals and transport. Tours that do not include gorilla trekking are generally significantly cheaper than this. Conversely, if the safari uses luxury accommodation and/or incorporates domestic flights, it will probably be a lot more expensive.”

6

Uganda Reviews

4.3/5 300 Reviews
Expert
Mark Eveleigh  –  
United Kingdom UK

Mark is a travel writer who grew up in Africa and has written over 700 titles for CNN Traveller, Travel Africa, BBC Wildlife and others.

Fantastic wildlife and some of the friendliest people in Africa make Uganda unbeatable
5/5

I spent a month travelling around Uganda with a self-drive, expedition-prepared Landcruiser and visited almost every national park in the country. Uganda was a revelation! I had not expected such a richness of wildlife or such great...

Full Review

Expert
Stuart Butler  –  
United Kingdom UK

Stuart is a travel writer and author of numerous Lonely Planet guidebooks, including 'Kenya', 'Rwanda' and 'Tanzania'.

The Beautiful Heart of Africa
4/5

It’s been said by better people than me (Sir Winston Churchill for one, who famously described Uganda as “The pearl of Africa”), that Uganda is one of the most beautiful countries in Africa. In fact, as far as I am concerned, it’s...

Full Review

Sergio Ypiranga dos Guaranys  –  
Brazil BR
Reviewed: May 18, 2023
Exceeded my expectations
5/5

Uganda exceeded my expectations. It was quite clean and organized and very very indeed very much green! And that pleased me much. Many nice places to go: Islands in Victoria and bunyoni lake among others. Of course traffic is a big problem,...

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Jennifer Luanda  –  
Papua New Guinea PG
Reviewed: May 16, 2023
Uganda is rich and diverse in all it nature.
5/5

My trip to Uganda was drying the month of April. I was told it was going to be raining but quite the opposite happened and it turned out to be mostly sunny the entire week. I did my tour with Home to Africa and my tour guide was William....

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Christopher Niebuhr  –  
United States US
Reviewed: May 5, 2023
Majestic
5/5

The gorilla Leisure Lodge is the absolute best lodge to stay at for the Gorilla Trekking. It's the same price as all the others but since it has only been open since Nov. 2022 the facilities are still like brand new. Everything about it...

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Caroline  –  
United Kingdom UK
Reviewed: Apr 20, 2023
Totally awestruck
5/5

Uganda was a perfect Safari destination for us - lush green scenery, friendly people and the Big Five plus gorilla trekking. We chose to go low season for less crowds and cooler weather which was perfect. Our tour operator Kajie Safaris put...

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