Uganda & Rwanda Wildlife Holiday – 20 Days.

Our driver/guide will be waiting at Entebbe International Airport to pick you up and then transfer you to your accommodation for the night.

Accommodation: The Boma Hotel

Meal plan: Dinner

Early in the morning, after your breakfast, you will be driven to Jinja for a white water rafting experience which can either take a full day or half-day depending on your choice.

This is one of the most exciting rafting trips on earth going up to 31 km and includes a fantastic barbeque lunch and complimentary drinks after the trip. 

Accommodation: Jinja Nile Resort

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Your day will begin with a scenic drive to Murchison Falls National Park – northwest of Jinja. The journey will take approximately 8 to 9 hrs with a stopover at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary for Rhino Tracking. From Ziwa, you will stop for lunch in Masindi Town.

After your lunch, you will continue to Murchison Falls National Park and have a chance to stop by the ‘top of the falls’ where you can see the Nile’s beauty perfected. This is where the Nile compresses from a width of 50 meters into a 7-meter canyon that forms the waterfall after which the park is named.

From here, you will continue to your accommodation where you will rest for the night.

Accommodation: Pakuba Safari Lodge

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Early morning, your guide will take you for a wildlife safari game drive on the northern bank of the River Nile. Here, you will spot Elephants, Lions, Cape buffalo, Rothschild’s giraffe, hartebeest, Waterbuck, Oribi, Bushbuck, Bohor reedbuck, hyena, and if you are lucky, the leopard.

You will return to your lodge for breakfast, rest, and lunch before heading out for the afternoon boat cruise. The boat cruise takes you upstream on the calm Victoria Nile to the base of the falls stopping just a few meters from the bottom of the falls.

While on the boat cruise, you will have a chance to marvel at the hippos floating in the water, and crocodiles as well as elephants, waterbuck, Uganda kob, and many other animals over this 19 km stretch of the Nile.

For bird-watching enthusiasts, there are many chances of seeing bird species like the Goliath heron, Egyptian goose, Brown pelican, Red-throated bee-eater, various kingfishers, Fish eagles, cormorant, and the rare shoebill stork. 

After the boat cruise, you will return to your accommodation.

Accommodation: Pakuba Safari Lodge

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

After early morning breakfast, you will be driven to Kibale National Park via Hoima and Fort Portal. This drive will take a total of around 6 hours with interesting landscapes, green countryside, traditional homesteads, tea plantations, and much more.

You will have lunch in Fort Portal and then continue to your accommodation where you will relax and await the next day’s activities.

Accommodation: Turaco Treetops

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

After early morning breakfast, your driver/guide will drive you to the Kibale National Park office where you will be briefed about the activity of tracking chimpanzees in the wild.

You will then go on a guided primate walk in search of chimpanzees and 12 other primates including l’ Hoestes, Red colobus, blue, red-tailed monkeys, brown monkeys, and grey-cheeked mangabey.

The park rangers will provide detailed explanations, not only on primates but on all the forest fauna and flora, and will ensure that your walk is informative and enjoyable.

After finding the chimps, you will spend 1 hour with them before heading back to the park offices.

You will go back to the lodge for lunch & refreshments.

After lunch, you will visit the community and take a walk in Bigodi Swamp – which is the home of the great blue Turaco bird. The swamp is home to around 200 bird species and 8 primate species. Later, return to your accommodation for dinner & overnight stay.

Accommodation: Turaco Treetops

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

After breakfast, you will start the day with a cultural tour of the Amabere ga nyina mwiru caves – a great historic site located 10km from Fort Portal town.

You will be accompanied by an informed guide who knows more about this place. remember to carry along a flashlight, hiking boots, long trousers, etc since you are going to enter the caves. Thereafter, you will hike the explosion crater lakes surrounding this area and then return to Fort Portal town for lunch and a visit to the Tooro Kingdom Palace.

In the evening, drive to Uganda’s second-largest park, Queen Elizabeth National Park while enjoying the changing views of the mystical Rwenzori Mountain ranges.

Accommodation: Kasenyi Safari Camp

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

After breakfast, you will go for an early morning wildlife safari game drive in this park. Queen Elizabeth National Park’s diverse ecosystem of grassy plains, tropical forests, rivers, swamps, lakes, and volcanic craters is home to an incredible abundance of wildlife.

With the massive Rwenzori Mountains as a backdrop, you will have excellent opportunities to see lions, leopards, giant forest hogs, cape buffalos, elephants, defassa waterbuck, Uganda Kobs, Topi, and bushbuck

After lunch, you will go for a 2-3 hour boat cruise along the Kazinga Channel and into Lake Edward. This take will take you through possibly the highest concentration of hippos. Many animals may be seen drinking at the water’s edge.

This launch cruise offers great opportunities for photography, bird watching, and game viewing. The prolific bird life is colorful and stupendous with more than 600 different species.

Accommodation: Kasenyi Safari Camp

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

After your breakfast, you will go the south to Ishasha sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park. Ishasha is well known for its tree-climbing lions which like to take their daily rest in the trees.

Your drive through the park will present more wildlife viewing opportunities and you will reach the lodge in time for lunch. 

You will later go for an evening game drive in search of the tree-climbing lions as well as other animals such as elephants, buffalos, antelopes, and more.

Accommodation: Enjojo Lodge

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

After an early morning breakfast, you will leave Ishasha for Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. This is a 6 hours journey passing through the Kigezi Highlands an area known as the “Switzerland of Africa”.

The journey takes you through terraced hills and winding roads to the Bwindi forest. You will have a stop-over along the way for lunch.

Accommodation: Rushaga Gorilla Lodge / Buhoma Haven Lodge

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Today is the big day! Prepare yourself for an encounter with the gentle giants; the rare mountain gorillas.

For most people, this is the absolute highlight of their tour. You will go into the forest in groups of not more than 8 in search of mountain gorillas. En route, your guide will point out previous signs of gorilla activity such as dung, nests, and chewed bamboo shoots.

Your trek will be an exciting journey along forested slopes, entwined vines, bushes, and bamboo. Upon finding the gorillas, you will spend a maximum of 1 hour with them after which you will be led back to the starting point.

Accommodation: Rushaga Gorilla Lodge/ Buhoma Haven Lodge

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

After breakfast, you will leave Bwindi and go to Lake Bunyonyi. Lake Bunyonyi is located in the Kigezi region and is also the deepest lake in Uganda with more than 20 small islands.

Here you will get to enjoy swimming, dug-out canoeing, sunbathing, hill climbing or mountain bike riding, and cray fishing.

Accommodation: Arcadia Cottages

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Today you shall drive northeast to the town of Musanze close to the Virunga Volcano range. This beautiful area represents the gateway to gorilla tracking.

The spacious rooms give you a homely feeling. In the evening, enjoy a campfire and some entertainment from some local dance groups.

Accommodation: Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

Rise early! From the lodge, you drive into the park about 30 minutes to the Office Rwandais du Tourisme et Des Parc Nationaux (ORTPN). Today you will decide what activity you will go for between Visiting the Dian Fossey Grave and Gorilla tracking.

Accommodation: Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

Today after a relaxed breakfast you will be transferred by your driver/guide back to Kigali.

Depending on your arrival time you may be able to visit some of Kigali’s craft markets to browse amongst the pottery, carvings, batik, weaving, sculpture, musical instruments, leather, and fabrics on offer.

Prepare to use your haggling skills. All activities and purchases today are at your own cost. You will sleep at a comfortable hotel located in a quiet suburb of Kigali.

Accommodation: Flame tree Village

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

After a relaxed breakfast, you head to Akagera National Park. Akagera National Park covers 2500 km² of savannah west of the Kagera River, in the northeast of Rwanda.

The park has a variety of wildlife and is a habitat for over 500 different species of birds. Herds of elephants and buffalo emerge from the woodland to drink at the lakes, while you might stumble across a leopard, a spotted hyena, or even a lion.

Giraffes and zebra haunt the savannah, and more than a dozen types of antelope inhabit the park. You will have lunch and in the afternoon you will go for a long game drive in the national park.

Accommodation: Akagera Game Lodge

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

This morning you go for a boat safari on the Akagera River to spot the many waterbirds like Cormorants, Fish eagles, and kingfishers. It is then time to head back to Kigali.

After lunch, you will drive to the Bugesera district, south of Kigali, through the beautiful countryside not often visited by tourists. In the small town of Nyamata, you will visit a genocide memorial church.

You shall then head back to Kigali where you shall visit the Genocide Memorial in the city center to learn more about this tragedy.

Accommodation: Flame tree Village

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

Today, you will set off toward the famous Nyungwe Forest, one of the largest forests in East and Central Africa. The forest is abundant with flora and fauna including 13 primate species from colobus monkeys, mangabeys, Uganda and Rwanda Wildlife Holiday, blue monkeys, and, of course, our cousins the chimpanzees.

Nyungwe Forest is also a famous location for birders. With about 310 recorded bird species, 26 of which are endemic, this is one of the most important – and still little-known – bird-watching destinations in Africa.

On the way, you will have lunch in Butare. You’ll be staying at a very nice lodge located on top of a small hill near Nyungwe Forest.

Accommodation: Top Hill View Lodge

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

After a very early morning start, you shall proceed to the chimpanzee tracking trail in either the Cyamudongo or Uwinka sections.

The total population between the two groups is a healthy 80 individuals. This exciting up-close encounter with a human’s closest relative you will not soon forget.

In the afternoon, you go for East Africa’s only canopy walk. This walk takes place above a deep gorge cutting across the massive forest. Lasting about 1½ hours, the walk takes you through some beautiful foliage and animal habitats and you’ll have the chance to spot blue monkeys and unique birds that dwell in the upper levels of the forest canopy.

In the afternoon you will go for the Waterfall hike. This hike takes between 3 and 6 hours round trip, depending upon how frequently you stop to sightsee and whether you choose to drive a little further or walk from the ORTPN offices.

The first part of the trail is basically following the road to the vehicle park before delving into the forest. You will have to cross various streams before making a steep descent to the base of the small, refreshing waterfall.

Monkeys are frequently seen along the way and the steep slopes provide excellent views into the canopy.

Accommodation: Top Hill View Lodge

Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.

Today after a relaxed breakfast you will be transferred by your driver/guide back to Kigali in time to catch your flight back home. This will mark the end of your Uganda and Rwanda wildlife holiday with us.

Meal plan: Breakfast & Lunch.