8 Days Uganda Rwanda gorilla trekking safari

The 8 days Uganda Rwanda gorilla trekking safari will take you to Kibale national park where you will participate in chimpanzee trekking an incredible activity that allows you to spend time with the chimpanzees, Queen Elizabeth national park which is the second largest national park in Uganda harboring abundant wildlife species like elephants, lions, buffaloes, leopards, warthogs, bushbucks, waterbucks, hippos, crocodiles among others which will be seen during the game drive and boat cruise. You will also visit Bwindi impenetrable national park where you will engage in gorilla trekking activity which gives you an opportunity to spend one hour with the endangered mountain gorillas in their natural habitat. From Bwindi impenetrable national park you will connect to Volcanoes national park in Rwanda where you will participate in gorilla trekking and Kigali city tour as you wrap up your safari.
Highlights of the 8 days Uganda Rwanda gorilla trekking safari
Day 1: Pick up and transfer to Kibale national park
Day 2: Chimpanzee trekking and Bigodi swamp walk
Day 3: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park
Day 4: Game drive and boat cruise
Day 5: Transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park
Day 6: Gorilla trekking and transfer to Volcanoes national park
Day 7: Gorilla trekking
Day 8: Transfer to Kigali for a city tour
Detailed itinerary
Day 1 of 8 days Uganda Rwanda safari
Transfer to Kibale national park, depending on the time of arrival on day 1 of the 8 days Uganda Rwanda safari you will be welcomed by our driver guide at Entebbe international airport and then start the journey to Kibale national park. The journey takes about 5 to 6 hours drive with a stopover at the equator where you will buy souvenirs and take photos. From the Equator you will proceed the journey with en-route lunch and great views of the landscape, tea plantations, traditional homesteads among others. Upon arrival you will check into the lodge, have dinner and overnight.
Day 2: Chimpanzee trekking and Bigodi swamp walk
Chimpanzee trekking, after an early breakfast on day 2 of the 8 days Uganda Rwanda safari you will meet up with your driver guide and transfer to Kanyachu Visitors Centre for a briefing about the rules and regulations of chimpanzee trekking. After the briefing you will be grouped into 6 people where each group is allocated a chimpanzee family to trek and a park ranger who is well conversant with the trails in the forest. Chimpanzee trekking in Kibale forest national park starts at around 8:00am and takes about 30 minutes to 4 hours depending on the location of the chimpanzees because they like to move from one place to another in search of food.
During trekking you will have views of other primates like black and white colobus monkeys, red tailed monkeys, l’hoest monkeys, bird species, animals, plants among others and once the chimpanzees are found, you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural habitat where you will be able to learn more about their life style, behaviors, watch them breastfeed, feed, play up in the trees, take photos and record the moments with a flash less camera to show people back home. After the one hour with the chimpanzees, you will trek back to Kanyachu Visitors Centre where you will meet up with your driver guide to transfer to the lodge for lunch.
Bigodi swamp walk, after lunch you will go for a nature walk in Bigodi wetland where you will have spectacular views of different bird species like the great blue turaco, papyrus gonolek, primates like the black and white colobus monkey, blue monkeys, vervet monkeys, red tailed monkeys, plant species, butterflies among others. You will also walk around the communities living near the sanctuary which gives you an opportunity to interact with the local people, learn about their culture, tradition, visit the farmlands among others. After the swamp walk you will meet up with your driver guide and drive to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 3: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park
On day 3 of the 8 days Uganda Rwanda safari you will have breakfast, check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park which is the second largest national park in Uganda. The journey takes about 3 to 4 hours’ drive and on your way you will have great views of the Rwenzori Mountain, beautiful landscape, tea plantations, crater lakes among others. Upon arrival in the park you will go for an evening game drive where you will view various animals like Uganda kobs, elephants, buffaloes among others and later drive to the lodge for an evening relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Day 4: Morning game drive/ lion tracking and afternoon Boat cruise
Game drive/ lion tracking experience, after an early breakfast on day 4 of the 8 days Uganda Rwanda safari you will meet up with your driver guide and transfer to Kasenyi plains for the morning game drive or lion tracking experience. During the game drive you will should look out for animals like elephants, buffaloes, lions, leopards, waterbucks, bushbucks, Uganda kobs, warthogs, bird species among others. After the game drive you will drive to Lake Katwe a crater lake where rock salt is mined. Lake Katwe is situated in the northern part of Mweya peninsular and while at the lake you will interact with the local people who extract rock salt from the lake and sell it to traders in Uganda and other countries like Congo. You will also have views of some bird species like flamingos and after drive back to the lodge for lunch.
Boat cruise, after lunch you will meet up with your driver guide and drive to the landing site near Mweya safari lodge for a scheduled boat cruise. The boat cruise is done on Kazinga channel a water body that joins Lake George and Lake Edward and takes about 2 hours. During the boat ride you will be able to ride close to the animals such as elephants, buffaloes, waterbucks among others which will be drinking water along the shores, view large concentrations of hippos and Nile crocodiles in water, aquatic birds like martial eagle, papyrus gonolek, pelicans, African skimmers, cormorants, African spoonbills, fish eagles, king fisher’s among others. After the amazing boat cruise, you will drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 5: Transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park
On day 5 of the 8 days Uganda Rwanda safari you will have breakfast, check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable forest national park which takes about 4 hours’ drive. On your way you will pass via Ishasha sector in the southern part of Queen Elizabeth national park where you will view the tree climbing lions lying up in the acacia, fig tree branches. Lions in Ishasha sector are believed to climb trees due to various reasons like running away from biting insects, run away from ground heat and to have a clear view of the antelopes which will be grazing in the open savannah plains. During the game drive in Ishasha sector you will also view other animals such as the buffaloes, elephants, antelopes and some bird species. After the game drive you will have en-route lunch and then proceed the journey to Bwindi impenetrable national park where you will check into the lodge, have dinner and overnight.
Day 6: Gorilla trekking in Bwindi impenetrable national park
Gorilla trekking, after an early breakfast on day 6 of the 8 days Uganda Rwanda safari you will carry packed lunch and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to the park headquarters for a briefing about the rules and regulation of gorilla trekking. After the briefing you will be grouped into 8 people where each group will be allocated a habituated gorilla family to trek and a park guide who is well conversant with trails in the forest. Grouping of individuals is done according to personal interests, age and physical fitness therefore in case you are not physically fit you are advised to communicate with your guide so that you are allocated a gorilla family that is near to trek.
Gorilla trekking takes about 30 minutes to 7 hours depending on where the gorilla family is located and during trekking you will have views of various plant and tree species, bird species and primates like l’hoest monkeys, vervet monkeys among others. Once the gorillas are found, you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural habit where you will learn more about their lifestyle, behaviors, take photos and record the moments to show people back home. After having a face to face encounter with the gorillas, you will trek back to the park headquarters where you will be awarded a certificate for participating in gorilla trekking and then meet up with your guide to transfer back to your lodge for late lunch.
After lunch you will check out of the lodge and your driver guide will pick you up to transfer to Volcanoes national park passing via Cyanika border in Kisoro. The journey takes about 3 to 4 hours drive and offers you with spectacular views of the rolling hills in Rwanda, beautiful landscape, Kigezi hills among others. Upon arrival you will check into the lodge, have dinner and overnight.
Day 7: Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park
Gorilla trekking, after an early breakfast on day 7 of the 8 days Uganda Rwanda safari you will carry packed lunch and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kinigi park headquarters for the briefing about the rules and regulations of gorilla trekking. Gorilla trekking is done in groups of 8 people where each group is allocated a gorilla family to trek and a park guide who is well conversant with the trails in the jungle. After the briefing you will start trekking which takes 30 minutes to 6 hours depending on the location of the gorillas.
Once the gorillas are found you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural environment which gives you an opportunity to take photos, record videos, learn more about their lifestyle, behaviors, watch them carry out their daily activities among others. After the one hour encounter with the gentle giants, you will trek back to the park headquarters where you will meet up with your driver guide to transfer to the lodge for an evening relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Day 8: Departure to Kigali
Kigali city tour, on day 8 of the 8 days Uganda Rwanda safari you will have a relaxed breakfast, check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kigali for a city tour. Kigali is the cleanest city in Africa and during the city tour you will visit Kigali genocide centre where you will be able to know more about the blood shading of the 1994 Rwanda genocide between the Hutus and Tutsi. You will also visit the craft markets where they make and sell paintings, sculptures, visit Kimironko local market where you will interact with the local market vendors selling fruits, vegetables, handmade crafts like mats, baskets, sandals among others.
Transfer to Kigali airport, after the city tour you will go for a buffet in one of the hotels in Kigali which gives you an opportunity to taste different Rwandan dishes and after transfer to Kigali international airport where you will be dropped off for your next flight.
End of 8 days Uganda Rwanda safari
Tour includes
- Gorilla trekking permits
- Chimpanzee trekking permit
- Bigodi swamp walk
- Park entrance fees
- Boat cruise fees
- Lake Katwe visit
- Kigali city tour
- An English speaking driver guide
- 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.
