10 Days Uganda, Rwanda and Congo Safari

10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari will start from Kampala and end in Kigali. During the safari you will take part in breathtaking activities such as chimpanzee trekking in Kibale national park, game drive and boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth national park which is the second largest national park in Uganda and canoeing on Lake Bunyonyi, the deepest lake in Uganda. You will also visit Volcanoes national park where you will engage in gorilla trekking, golden monkey trekking, and Ibyiwacu cultural tour. From Volcanoes national park you will connect to Goma to climb Nyiragongo volcano which is an active volcanic mountain in the Virunga ranges.

Highlights of the 10 Days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari

Day 1: Pick up and transfer to Kibale national park
Day 2: Chimpanzee trekking and transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park
Day 3: Morning game drive and afternoon boat cruise
Day 4: Transfer to Lake Bunyonyi
Day 5: Transfer to Volcanoes national park
Day 6: Gorilla trekking
Day 7: Golden monkey trekking and cultural tour
Day 8: Transfer to Gisenyi, Lake Kivu
Day 9: Transfer to Goma and climb Nyiragongo volcano
Day 10: Descend the volcano and departure to Kigali

Detailed itinerary

Day 1 of the 10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari

Arrival and transfer to Kibale national park, upon arrival at Entebbe airport on day 1 of the 10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari, you will be welcomed by our driver guide who will brief you about the safari and then start the journey to Kibale national park in southwestern Uganda. The journey takes about 5 to 6 hours’ drive and on the way you will have a stopover at the Equator where you will buy souvenirs, take pictures and continue the journey with en-route lunch at Igongo cultural center. After lunch you will proceed the journey with impressive views of the beautiful landscapes, tea and banana plantations, traditional homesteads, local people, farmlands, crater lakes, Rwenzori Mountains among others. Upon arrival in the park you will check into the lodge and prepare yourself for an optional swamp walk in case you reach early.
Guided nature walk, in the evening you will go for Bigodi swamp walk a sanctuary that is located outside Kibale national park. Bigodi sanctuary harbors different wildlife species which include primates like olive baboons, black and white colobus monkeys, vervet monkeys, red tailed monkeys, l’hoest monkeys, animals like bush pigs, otters, Sitatunga, bushbucks, different bird species like the great blue turaco, papyrus Gonolek, white winged warbler, plant and tree species among others. After the swamp walk you will meet up with your guide and return to the lodge for dinner and overnight.

Day 2: Chimpanzee trekking and transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park

Chimpanzee trekking, after an early breakfast on day 2 of the 10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari, your driver guide will pick you up to transfer to Kanyachu Visitors Centre for the briefing about the rules and regulations of chimpanzee trekking. After the briefing you will be grouped into 6 people, allocated a chimpanzee family to trek and a park guide who is well conversant with trails in the forest. Trekking of chimpanzees in Kibale national park takes about 30 minutes to 4 hours depending on where the chimpanzees are located because they like to move deep into the forest in search of food especially during the dry season. During trekking you will be able to other primates like black and white colobus monkeys, vervet monkeys, red tailed monkeys, grey cheecked mangabey, bird species like slender billed weaver, tropical boubou, great blue turaco, African pied wagtail, plant species, animals like elephants, antelopes, buffaloes among others. Once the chimpanzees are found you will be able to spend one hour with them in their natural habitat which gives you a chance to learn more about their lifestyle, behaviors, watch them feed, play, hunt, rest, take photos and record the moments to show people back home. After the one hour with the chimpanzees, you will trek back to the park headquarters where you will meet your driver guide to transfer to the lodge for lunch.
Transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park, after lunch you will check out of the lodge and meet up your driver guide to start the journey to Queen Elizabeth national park which takes about 3 hours drive. Upon arrival in the park you will have great views of different animals like elephants, buffaloes, Uganda kobs among others as you drive through the park to the lodge where you will check in, have dinner and overnight.

Day 3: Morning game/lion tracking experience drive and afternoon boat cruise

Morning game drive/ lion tracking experience, on day 3 of the 10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari you will have an early breakfast and meet up with your driver guide to go for a morning game drive/ lion tracking experience in Kasenyi plains. The game drive starts as early as 7:00am so as to catch up with the early risers and predators which will be going back to their hiding areas. During the morning game drive you should look out for animals like elephants, lions, buffaloes, leopards, Uganda kobs, giant forest hogs, waterbucks, bushbucks, warthogs, bird species like grey crowned cranes, yellow throated long crow, red throat spur fowl, African white backed vulture, African wattled plover, black bellied bustard, black headed gonolek among others, enjoy beautiful views of the landscape, sunrise, take pictures among others. After the game drive you will drive out of the park to Katwe Crater Lake where will see the local people extracting rock salt rock salt, views migratory birds such as flamingos, sick animals which will be licking salt from the lake among others. After the crater lakes tour, you will return back to the lodge for lunch.
Boat cruise, after lunch you will drive to a landing site near the luxurious lodge Mweya safari lodge for an exciting boat cruise on the Kazinga channel. Kazinga channel is a water body that joins Lake George and Lake Edward and offers scheduled boat rides which take 2 to 3 hours ride. During the boat ride you will have spectacular views of animal like elephants, buffaloes, waterbucks, monitor lizards among others which will be drinking water and resting along the water shores, large concentrations of hippos and Nile crocodiles in water, aquatic bird species such as martial eagle, papyrus gonolek, pelicans, African skimmers, cormorants, African spoonbills, fish eagles, king fisher’s, view fishermen preparing their fishing gears for night fishing, take clear pictures among others. After the amazing boat cruise you will drive to the lodge for an evening relaxation, dinner and overnight.

Day 4: Transfer to Lake bunyonyi

Transfer to Lake bunyonyi: After breakfast on day 4 of the 10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari, you will check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to start the journey to Lake Bunyonyi in Kabale district. On the way you will have great views of the Kigezi hills, terraced farmlands, Rwenzori Mountains, smiling people, homesteads among others. Upon arrival at Lake Bunyonyi you will check into the lodge and have lunch.
Canoeing, after lunch you will go for a boat cruise on the lake which is done in a wooden dugout canoe, during the boat cruise you will be able to explore some of the 29 islands like the punishment island where they used to take girls who got pregnant to die, have spectacular views of the terraced farmlands, bird species like malachite kingfisher, herons, egrets, African harrier hawk, pied crow, animals like zebras, antelopes, take photos, enjoy the beautiful landscapes among others. After the canoeing you will drive back to the lodge, have dinner and overnight.

Day 5: Community tour and transfer to Volcanoes national park

Community tour, after breakfast on day 5 of the 10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari your driver guide will pick you up to go for a community tour in the neighboring villages. During the community tour you will visit the Batwa and Bakiga where you will be able to interact with them so as to learn more about their culture, tradition, visit their schools, health centers, farm lands, market centers, taste their local dishes among others. After the community tour you will return to the lodge for lunch.
Transfer to Volcanoes national park, after lunch you will check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Volcanoes national park in northwestern part of Rwanda. The journey takes about 3 to 4 hours drive passing via Cyanika border in Kisoro or Katuna border in Kabale. On the way you will have spectacular views of the rolling hills in Rwanda, beautiful landscape, Kigezi hills, terraced farmlands, homesteads, roadside markets, smiling people among others. Upon arrival in the park you will check into the lodge, have dinner and overnight.

Day 6: Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park

Gorilla trekking, after an early breakfast on day 6 of the 10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo 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. After the briefing you will be grouped into 8 people, allocated a gorilla family to trek and a park guide who will be sharing information about the mountain gorillas and also conversant with trails in the jungle. Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park takes about 30 minutes to 7 hours depending on where the gorillas are located and during trekking you will have great views of primates like the L’hoest monkeys, chimpanzees, red tailed monkeys, different bird species, plant and tree species, mammals among others.
Once the mountain gorillas are found you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural habitat which gives you an opportunity to learn more about their lifestyle, behaviors, watch them carry out their daily activities like feeding, breastfeeding, take photos, record videos among others. After the one hour with the gentle giants you will trek back to the starting point where you will be awarded a certificate for participating in gorilla trekking, meet up with your driver guide and return to the lodge for an evening relaxation, dinner and overnight.

Day 7: Golden monkey trekking and cultural tour

Golden monkey trekking, on day 7 of the 10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari you will have an early breakfast and your driver guide will pick you up from the lodge to transfer to the park headquarters for a briefing about the rules and regulations of golden monkey trekking. After the briefing you will be allocated a golden monkey family to trek and a park guide who will be showing you the golden monkey trails to follow as well as sharing information about the golden monkeys. Golden monkey trekking is an active activity that takes about 30 minutes to 4 hours or even longer depending on where the golden monkeys are located because they like to move from one place to another in search of food. During trekking of the golden monkeys you will follow trails of the left over bamboo shoots, leaves and once the golden monkey family is found you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural environment which helps you to learn more about their behaviors, habits, watch them jump up in trees, take photos and record the moments to show people back home. After having an encounter with the golden monkeys you will trek back to the park headquarters, meet up with your driver-guide to transfer back to the lodge for lunch.

Cultural tour, after lunch you will go for a cultural tour where you will visit Ibyi’wacu cultural village in the neighboring community around the park. During the Ibyi’wacu cultural tour you will be able to interact with the local people in the community which gives you an opportunity to learn more about their tradition, culture, way of living, visit their farmlands, taste different Kinyarwanda dishes, learn how local beer is made from bananas, enjoy entertainment by women as they perform Kinyarwanda dance, songs, listen to ancient stories about their tradition among others. After the interesting cultural tour, you will transfer back to the lodge have dinner and overnight.

Day 8: Transfer to Gisenyi

Transfer to Gisenyi: On day 8 of the 10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari, you will have breakfast, check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Gisenyi, Lake Kivu. Lake Kivu is the largest and most beautiful fresh water lake in Rwanda and upon arrival you will have lunch, relax on the shores and enjoy spectacular views of the beautiful scenery, sunset, steep terraced hills, different bird species like malachite kingfishers, majestic crowned cranes, view fishermen who will be fishing in dugout canoes among others. After the breathtaking moment on the lake shores you will transfer to the lodge for dinner and overnight.

Day 9: Hiking Nyiragongo Volcano

Nyiragongo volcano hike, on day 9 of the 10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari you will have an early breakfast and meet up with your driver guide to cross to Democratic Republic of Congo. You will pass via Goma Grande Barrier border and connect to the trail head at Kibat patrol post for a briefing about the safety precautions, guidelines, expectations, stopping points and what to carry during hiking. After the briefing you will be grouped, allocated guides, cooks and then start hiking mount Nyiragongo which takes about 4-6 hours to reach the summit depending on your hiking speed. During hiking you will pass through high altitude areas, lava rocks, slippery stones, have stopovers and enjoy spectacular views of the beautiful scenery, landscape, colorful bird species, mammals, plant and tree species among others. When you reach on top of the volcano you will have incredible views of the boiling lava lake and the cooks will help you to prepare hot coffee, dinner. You will spend an overnight in a cabin which is comprised of 2 single beds, mattresses, pillow as you smell the boiling and bubbling lava.

Day 10: Descend from Nyiragongo Volcano and departure to Kigali

Descend from Nyiragongo Volcano, after an ultimate breakfast on the last day of the 10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari, you will meet up with your guides and start descending from the peak of the mountain to the starting point which takes about 3 hours to reach Kibat patrol post. You will have amazing views of Virunga national park, Rwenzori Mountains, Lake Kivu, other volcanic mountains among others as you descend. Upon arrival at the trail head you will meet up with your driver guide and transfer to Gisenyi passing via Goma Grande Barrier border. Upon arrival in Gisenyi you will have lunch and then continue the journey where your driver guide will drop you off at any place of convenience or drop off at Kigali international airport for your departure flight.

End of 10 days Uganda Rwanda and Congo safari

Tour includes

Gorilla trekking permit
Chimpanzee trekking permit
Golden monkey trekking permit
Bigodi nature walk
Ibyi’wacu cultural tour
Park entrance fees
Boat cruise fee
Canoeing on Lake Bunyonyi
An English speaking driver guide
Full board accommodation
Pick up and drop off
Vehicle and fuel
Bottled water

Tour excludes

Air flight tickets
Visa
Personal insurance
Optional activities not included on the itinerary
Personal expenses like buying souvenirs, crafts, drinks, laundry services, hiring a porter, tips among others.