5 Days gorilla and white water rafting safari
The 5 days gorilla and white water rafting is an interesting luxury safari that will take you to Bwindi impenetrable national park where you will have a face to face encounter with the endangered mountain gorillas in their natural habitat. From Bwindi impenetrable national park you will transfer to Jinja where you will participate in an adventurous and exciting white water rafting activity on Itanda falls.
Highlight of the 5 days gorilla and white water rafting safari
Day 1: Fly to Bwindi impenetrable national park
Day 2: Gorilla trekking
Day 3: Transfer to Kampala
Day 4: Transfer to Jinja and white water rafting
Day 5: Departure to Kampala
Detailed itinerary
Day 1 of the 5 days gorilla and white water rafting safari
Transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park, on the first day of your 5 days gorilla and white water rafting safari you will be welcomed by our driver guide who will give you a short briefing about your safari and then transfer to Entebbe international airport for your domestic flight to Kihihi airstrip in Kanungu district. there are various scheduled flights which travel to Bwindi impenetrable national park on a daily basis and the first flight departs Entebbe airport at 7:00am and arrives at Kihihi airstrip at 8:45am, the second scheduled flight departs at 10:15am and arrives at 11:25am while the last flight departs at 12:00noon and arrives at 14:40pm.
Upon arrival at Kihihi airstrip you will be picked up by your driver guide and then transfer to the park by road transport. Upon arrival you will check into the lodge and have lunch. After lunch you will go for cultural tour in the neighboring community where you will visit the Batwa or pygmies that live around the park. The cultural tour takes about 2 to 4 hours and gives you an opportunity to walk through the Batwa farmlands, village centers where you will view their homesteads, also walk through the forest where the Batwa used to live before it was gazetted as a national park, view different plant species which were used as medicine to cure various illness, visit the coffee and tea plantations where you will participate in tea harvesting and view the local people grinding, roasting, drying coffee and packing. You will also be able to see how local brew is made from bananas and also be entertained through music and dance of the Batwa women, listen to ancient stories among other. During the community tour you will interact with the local people which give you an opportunity to learn about their lifestyle, culture, tradition among others. After the cultural tour you will drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 2: Gorilla trekking in Bwindi impenetrable national park
Gorilla trekking, after an early breakfast on the second day of your 5 days gorilla and white water rafting safari you will carry packed lunch, meet up with your driver guide and transfer to the park headquarters for a briefing about the rules, regulations and expectations of gorilla trekking. After the briefing you will be grouped into 8 people, allocated a gorilla family to trek and a park guide who is well conversant with the trails in the forest. Grouping of individuals is done according age, personal preferences and physical fitness therefore incase you are not physically fit you are advised to inform your guide so that they allocate you a gorilla group that is near to trek.
Trekking of gorillas in Bwindi impenetrable national park starts at around 8:00am and takes 30 minutes to 7 hours depending on the location of the mountain gorillas because they like to move from one place to another in search of food. During trekking you will have great views of the bird species, animals, plants, primates like the L’hoest monkeys among others and when the gorillas are found, you will be allowed to spend one hour with the gorillas in their natural habitat learning about their habits, behaviors, taking photos and recording videos. After the one hour encounter with the mountain gorillas you will trek back to the park headquarters where you will be awarded a certificate for participating in gorilla trekking, meet up with your driver guide and transfer to the lodge for an evening relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Day 3: Transfer to Kampala
On the third day if the 5 days gorilla and white water rafting safari you will have breakfast, check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kampala. You will have en-route lunch at Igongo cultural centre in Mbarara and then continue the journey with a stopover at the Equator where you will take photos, buy souvenirs among others. From the Equator you will proceed with the journey to Kampala and upon arrival you will check into the lodge, have dinner and overnight.
Day 4: Transfer to Jinja for white water rafting
After an early breakfast on day 4 of your 5 days gorilla and white water rafting safari your driver guide will pick you up from the lodge to start the journey to Jinja which is located in southeastern Uganda. On your way you will have a stopover at Mabira forest where you will engage in an interesting forest walk where you will view various bird species, primates, tree and plant species. After the guided nature walk you will proceed to Jinja town for lunch.
White water rafting, after lunch you will go for white water rafting experience which will be carried out on Itanda falls along the River Nile. White water rafting is an amazing and breathtaking activity that shouldn’t be missed on your safari in Uganda. The activity is done according to grades ranging from grade 1 to grade 5 by use of a small paddle raft filled with air and with a trained guide who will be showing you what to do. After white water rafting activity you will meet up with your driver guide and transfer back to Kampala.
Day 5: Departure TO Entebbe
On the last day of your 5 days gorilla and white water rafting safari you will have a relaxed breakfast at the lodge and in case you have an evening flight you will go for an optional city tour in Kampala where you will visit various attractions like the Uganda Museum, Uganda Martyrs Shrine Namugongo, Kabaka’s Palace, Owino market among others. During the city tour you will have lunch in one of the hotels in Kampala where you will taste different dishes prepared in Uganda. After lunch you will transfer to Entebbe international airport for your next flight.
End of 5 days gorilla and white water rafting safari
Tour includes
- Gorilla trekking permit
- White water rafting
- Nature walk in Mabira forest
- An English speaking driver guide
- Domestic flight fare
- Full board accommodation
- Pick up and drop off
- Vehicle and fuel
- Bottled water
Tour excludes
- Air flight tickets
- Visas
- Optional activities not included on the itinerary
- Personal expenses like buying souvenirs, crafts, drinks, laundry services, hiring a porter, tips among others.
