5 Days Uganda Gorilla and Wildlife Safari
This 5 days Uganda gorilla and wildlife safari is an interesting package that will take you to Queen Elizabeth national park which is the second largest and most visited national park in Uganda. Queen Elizabeth national park is located in south western Uganda and offers interesting activities such as game drive in Kasenyi plains and boat cruise at Kazinga Channel. The 5 days Uganda gorilla and wildlife safari will also take you to the famous Bwindi Impenetrable forest national park which harbors the highest number of mountain gorillas in Africa. While in Bwindi Impenetrable forest national park you will have a face to face interaction with the mountain gorillas during gorilla trekking which gives you breathtaking and unforgettable experiences on your safari.
Activities involved
- Game drive/lion tracking
- Boat cruise
- Cultural tour(optional)
- Gorilla trekking
Trip highlights
Day 1: Pick up and Transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park
Day 2: Game drive/ lion tracking and boat cruise
Day 3: Transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable forest national park
Day 4: Gorilla trekking
Day 5: Departure to Kampala
Detailed itinerary
Day 1: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park
Depending on your location in Kampala, our driver guide will pick you up brief you about your 5 days Uganda gorilla and wildlife safari and then start the journey which takes about 6 to 7 hours’ drive. On your way you will have a stopover at the equator which is a great place for photos and also a gift spot because they sell art and craft items therefore in case you want to buy handmade items or art pieces the equator is a great place for craft items. From the equator you will continue the journey with another stop over at Igongo Cultural Centre for en-route lunch. Igongo Cultural Centre is a great place which offers spectacular views of animal and people sculptures, visit the museum, book shop among others.
After lunch you will proceed the journey via Mbarara town, Bushenyi where you will view tea plantations along the road sides as you continue to Fort Portal town and then Queen Elizabeth national park. Upon arrival, you will go for an evening game drive in Kasenyi plains where you will view animals like elephants, buffaloes, Uganda kobs, waterbucks, warthogs, giant forest hog and various bird species. After the game drive you will drive to the lodge check in, have dinner and overnight.
Accommodation options include Mweya Safari Lodge (luxury), Park View Safari Lodge (midrange) or Pumba Safari Lodge (budget).
Day 2: Morning game drive (lion tracking) and afternoon Boat cruise
On your second day, you will wake up early have breakfast and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kasenyi plains for the morning game drive or lion tracking experience. During the game drive you will see animal species such as the leopards, lions, elephants, Uganda kobs, waterbucks, buffaloes, bushbucks, warthogs, hyenas, bush pigs, and various bird species such as the papyrus gonolek, white backed night heron, yellow throated cuckoo, red chested sunbird, white winged warbler among others. After the game drive which takes about 4 to 5 hours, you will drive to the lodge for lunch.
After lunch you will meet up with your driver guide and transfer for the afternoon boat cruise. The boat cruise in Queen Elizabeth national park is done on Kazinga channel, a water body that joins Lake George and Lake Edward. The boat cruise starts at 2:00pm at the landing site near the luxury lodge Mweya safari lodge and takes about 2 hours. Boat cruise is an exciting and adventurous activity on Kazinga channel where you will be able to cruise close to the animals such as elephants, buffaloes, hippos, Nile crocodiles, waterbucks which will be viewed along the water banks and various water birds such as martial eagle, papyrus gonolek, pelicans, African skimmers, cormorants, African spoonbills, fish eagles, king fisher’s among others. After the boat cruise you will drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Accommodation options include Mweya Safari Lodge (luxury), Park View Safari Lodge (midrange) or Pumba Safari Lodge (budget).
Day 3: Transfer to Bwindi impenetrable forest national park
You will wake up early have breakfast, check out of the lodge and meet 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 which is found in the southern part of Queen Elizabeth national park and a habitat for the famous tree climbing lions. The tree climbing lions in Ishasha sector will be viewed during the game drive where you will see them lying up in the acacia fig trees looking down on the antelopes grazing in the savannah plains. It’s believed that the tree climbing lions in Ishasha sector climb trees due to heat from the ground during afternoon hours and to also run away from the tsetse flies. 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 in Ishasha you will continue the journey with en-route lunch at Savannah Resort Hotel in Kihihi. After lunch you will proceed to Buhoma sector check in into the lodge and relax as you prepare for an evening community tour. During the community tour you will visit the Batwa community who used to live in the forest many years ago before it was gazetted as a national park. You will interact with the Batwa also known as pygmies as they share their lifestyle, narrating stories of how they lived in the forest, show you plants which acted as medicine to treat different illnesses among others. After the cultural tour you will transfer back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Accommodation options in Buhoma Sector are Buhoma Lodge (luxury), Buhoma Community Haven Lodge (midrange) or Buhoma Rest Camp (budget).
Day 4: Gorilla trekking
You will wake up early have breakfast at the lodge and with your packed lunch meet up with your driver guide and transfer to the park headquarters for the briefing about the expectations, rules and regulations of gorilla trekking. After the briefing you will be grouped into 8 people for each habituated gorilla group depending on your interests and physical fitness. Each group of 8 people will be allocated a park guide at 8:00am you will start trekking in the jungle where you will have views of the vegetation, tree species, bird species among others.
Gorilla trekking will take about 2 to 8 hours depending on where the gorilla family is located and once the gorilla family has been found you will spend one hour with the gorillas in their natural habit learning more about their lifestyle, behaviors, taking photos with flash less camera, recording videos among other.
After having an encounter with the gorilla family you will trek back to the starting point where you will be awarded a certificate for participating in gorilla trekking and then meet up with your driver guide and drive to the lodge for an evening relaxation dinner and overnight.
Accommodation options in Buhoma Sector are Buhoma Lodge (luxury), Buhoma Community Haven Lodge (midrange) or Buhoma Rest Camp (budget).
Day 5: Transfer to Kampala
You will wake up have a relaxed breakfast check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kampala with a stopover in Mbarara district for lunch.
After lunch you will continue the journey to the equator for photos, views of craft shops which sell hand made products, Art pieces and souvenirs and then proceed to Kampala. You will reach in Kampala early evening and you driver guide will drop you off at any place of convenience or drop you off at Entebbe airport for your next flight.
End of 5 days Uganda gorilla and wildlife safari
Tour includes
- Gorilla trekking permit
- Park entrance fees
- Boat cruise
- Lion tracking
- Cultural tour(optional)
- 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.
Gorilla trekking tip
Bwindi Impenetrable forest national park is a tropical rain forest therefore it can rain anytime of the day during trekking hence you need to packs or carry essential items for your gorilla trekking safari such as
- Gorilla trekking permit
- Hiking shoes
- Garden gloves
- Long sleeved shirt and trouser
- Insect repellent
- Water proof rain jacket
- Warm sweaters
- Cotton stockings
- Water proof back pack to carry your equipment’s
- camera
- Drinking water and packed lunch from the lodge
- Porter who will carry your backpack and also give you a pull and push in steep and slippery areas.
