Visit Uganda Safaris

17 Days Pearl Of Africa

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Visit Uganda Safaris Overview

Visit Uganda Safaris – This 16-day safari is for people who have extra time to explore and discover Uganda, which is also called ‘The Pearl of Africa’. This safari will take you through four Savannah parks in Uganda: Kidepo Valley National Park, Murchison Falls National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park, and Lake Mburo National Park. It gives you the opportunity to go on drives and boat rides. You will get to go on a boat ride in Murchison Falls National Park to see the beautiful Falls. There will also be a boat ride on the Kazinga Channel in Queen Elizabeth National Park, and another boat ride in Lake Mburo National Park.

Visit Uganda Safaris Highlights

Wildlife of Uganda

Day 1: Transfer to Budongo Forest - Visit Uganda Safaris

Begin your 16-day tour by driving to Zziwa Rhino Sanctuary to locate and observe the rare White Rhinos that are being reintroduced into the country. Take a little bit of time looking for the Rhinos in their natural habitat and then, go for a drive to Budongo Forest, which is found in Murchison Falls National Park Conservation area. You will spend the night at Budongo Eco-Lodge and will be provided with all meals.

Day 2: Chimpanzee Trekking and Top of the falls Visit - Visit Uganda Safaris

On the second day, we will go trekking to find chimpanzees in Budongo forest. After that, we will visit the top of the waterfalls.
After you eat breakfast, you will go to the forest headquarters. There, they will tell you what you should and shouldn’t do during the chimpanzee trek. After that, begin walking like a primate in the Budongo Forest with the help of knowledgeable rangers. When you go for a walk in the forest, you will see other animals like monkeys and birds, as well as many different types of plants. When you get close to the chimps or a group of trained chimps, you can watch and take pictures of them for one hour before going back to the Lodge. 

You have two options for lunch: you can bring your own food from home or you can order a hot meal to eat when you come back to the lodge. In the afternoon, you will go for a short drive to Murchison Falls National Park. We will first visit the top of the falls to see how the Nile River flows through a small space before becoming one of the strongest and most powerful waterfalls on Earth. Afterwards, you will go to either Murchison River Lodge or Pakuba Safari Lodge to spend the night.

Day 3: Game Drive and Boat Cruise - Visit Uganda Safaris

Your 16-day trip to visit primates, play games, and experience different cultures will be filled with exciting activities. To go on a morning game drive to Paraa on the northern banks of the River Nile, you will have to wake up early and take a ferry. If you go to the north side of the park, you can see many antelopes, hippos, buffaloes, and giraffes. If you’re lucky, you might even see leopards and lions. 

Come back to the lodge for lunch and then take a boat ride to the bottom of the Falls. On your way from the boat dock to the bottom of the waterfall, you will see many groups of buffalo, crocodiles, hippos, and other animals. Many birds go to the River Nile to drink water and some bird species that like to be in water also go there. 

You will go against the current until you reach the bottom of the Falls. There, you can see how the water flows through a small, tight passage before bursting out and creating the most forceful and powerful waterfalls on Earth. Go back to the Lodge to spend the night.

Day 4: Morning Game Drive and Afternoon Delta Cruise - Visit Uganda Safaris

After eating your breakfast, you will go back to the north side of the River Nile for another drive to look for wild animals that you may have missed seeing before. Go back to the lodge for lunch and then take a boat ride to the Albert delta in the late afternoon. If you’re lucky, you might see elephants, buffaloes, and hippos crossing the delta. However, crocodiles are also using this chance to catch the vulnerable animals. You might also have a very good chance of seeing the rare Shoebill bird.

Day 5: Transfer to Hoima and Cultural Walk - Visit Uganda Safaris

After you eat breakfast, you will travel to Hoima town. It will take about 3 hours to drive there from Murchison Falls National Park. Depending on how the road is, you can go through Lake Albert for a beautiful drive to the cliffs and then to Hoima town. After you have checked into your hotel, you can take a walk to explore the local culture or watch cultural performances at the lodge to learn about the traditions of the people living here.

Day 6: Transfer to Kibale Forest National Park - Visit Uganda Safaris

You will go to Kibale Forest National Park by driving through Fort Portal town. You will stop in the town of Fort Portal to have lunch before going to check-in at the Rwenzori View Guest House. There aren’t any big plans for today, but if you have time, you can drive around Fort Portal town to see the sights.

Day 7: Chimpanzee Trekking and Bigodi Walk - Visit Uganda Safaris

After you eat breakfast, you will be taken to Kibale National Park headquarters in Kanyanchu. Here, you will meet up with other hikers to get important information before you go into the forest to look for chimpanzees. A knowledgeable and experienced ranger/guide will lead you on a guided primate walk in Kibale Forest National Park. This forest lets you visit a group of chimpanzees that are used to having visitors. You can watch these amazing apes and see what they do for one hour. You can take pictures. So remember to keep your cameras close by. 

Kibale National Park also has 13 other types of animals that are similar to monkeys. You can see them too when you go on a walk to find the chimpanzees. There are many different types of birds that live in forests. Actually, this is another paradise for people who love birds.
After you finish eating lunch, you will go for a walk in Bigodi Village, which is a wetland area. 

This walk is planned and taken care of by the people who live near the park. All the money you pay for this goes directly to help the local community near Kibale Forest National Park. At Encounter Africa Safaris, we want our clients to join the walk because it helps the communities take care of and use the wetland in a way that lasts. The money raised from the walk goes towards supporting these efforts.

Day 8: Transfer to Queen Elisabeth National Park - Visit Uganda Safaris

After you eat breakfast, you will drive for around 3-4 hours from Kibale National Park to Queen Elizabeth National Park. In simple words, you will get a chance to visit small towns, see some hills of Mountain Rwenzori, pass by small rivers that come from the Rwenzori mountains, and also cross the Equator at Kikorongo. You will go to Bush Lodge and get settled in. 

Take it easy and get ready for a game drive in Mweya later in the day. This part of Queen Elizabeth National Park has a lot of different animals like antelopes, buffaloes, warthogs, elephants, lions, and leopards. Please be aware that we cannot guarantee the opportunity to see lions and leopards. Go back to the Lodge to spend the night.

Day 9: Game Drive and Boat Cruise - Visit Uganda Safaris

After having a cup of coffee in the morning, you will go back to Kasenyi plains to watch animals in their natural habitat. At this time in the morning, the large cats are usually looking for food. You may have a good possibility of seeing lions or leopards while they are hunting or eating their prey. However, we cannot promise or ensure it. Of course, you will definitely see buffaloes, hippos, and different kinds of antelopes, and even more animals. 

You can go back to the lodge to eat or go straight to Mweya jetty for a boat ride on the Kazinga Channel in the afternoon. This boat ride is one of the best things to do in Queen Elizabeth National Park and it lasts for two hours. You can see more than half of the 600 water bird species, as well as antelopes, crocodiles, elephants, buffaloes, and hippos. Go back to the lodge for the night.

Day 10: Chimp Trekking at Kyambura and Katwe Salt Mine

After you finish eating breakfast, someone will take you to Kyambura where you will meet other people who are going on a walk to see chimpanzees. They will give you some information and then you will begin your walk in the gorge to find the chimpanzees. 

Your knowledgeable guide will assist you in recognizing various plants and animals that live in this deep, narrow valley. When you discover a group of chimpanzees, you can spend an hour with them to take pictures. Come back from the hike to eat and take a break at the lodge before going to see Lake Katwe salt mines. Lake Katwe is a special kind of lake that has a lot of salt in it. 

The people in this area have been taking out salt from this lake for many years. You will meet a person from the local community who will show you around the salt mines. They will explain how salt is taken out of the mines, the difficulties they face, and the chances they have. The Lake Katwe salt extraction project is a place where people and animals are living together peacefully. It is an example of how humans and nature can coexist in harmony. Go back to the Lodge to stay the night.

Day 11: Transfer to Bwindi Forest

After you eat breakfast, you will ride in a car to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. This park is in the southwest part of Uganda and is split between three areas: Kabale, Kanungu, and Kisoro. Your trip to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park will go through hilly areas with potato gardens and sometimes tea. You will come to the Lodge in the late afternoon and stay overnight. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is a place where almost half of the world’s at-risk mountain gorillas live. It is also the only park where wild chimpanzees and mountain gorillas live together.

Day 12: Gorilla Trekking and Village Walk

After you finish eating in the morning, you will go to the park headquarters. There, you will meet other people who are also going trekking. The park staff will assign you to a specific group of gorillas that you will go searching for. Certainly, the park staff will provide you with a thorough explanation of what you should and shouldn’t do when you are near the gorillas. After that, someone will take you to the beginning of the area where your group of gorillas is living. 

Then, you can begin walking through the pretty and dense Bwindi Forest. This hike can last from 30 minutes to most of the day, depending on where the Mountain Gorillas are located. Please be aware that gorilla trekking can be difficult and demanding, so you need to be reasonably fit. After you locate the gorillas, you will have the opportunity to spend an hour watching them and taking pictures. Even though it might feel like a short amount of time, the knowledge and skills you gain will be valuable. After that, you will go back to the park office where you will receive a certificate as a reward for helping to protect and save the endangered mountain gorillas. Go back to the lodge to relax.

 After that, take a walk in the village in the evening to learn about the people who live near Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. This walk will help you see and understand how these people are working hard to protect the forest and the gorillas. You can choose to help them by donating items instead of money. Please remember that this is something you choose to do on your own.

Day 13: Transfer to Lake Bunyonyi

Go from Bwindi Impenetrable National Park to Lake Bunyonyi in Kabale District by car. Lake Bunyonyi is a lake in Uganda that was formed by a volcano eruption. The Lake was created when hot, liquid rock from a volcano stopped a river from flowing, which caused the water to go back and fill the empty space, making Lake Bunyonyi. Bunyonyi means small birds in the local language. The Lake was named after the many small birds that lived there. Lake Bunyonyi is known as the deepest lake in Uganda and the second deepest in East Africa. You will definitely be impressed by the beauty of Lake Bunyonyi. This is one of the greatest spots in Uganda to unwind after your gorilla hike.

Day 14: Hiking or Canoeing

After you eat breakfast, you can enjoy looking at the pretty lake and the hills around it. You can choose to ride in a canoe on the lake and visit the islands, which each have interesting histories. For instance, you can go to Punishment Island. This story is about an island where unmarried girls who became pregnant would be abandoned and left to die. This activity lasts for the entire day and you will definitely have fun. Instead, you can go for a walk up one of the hills near Lake Bunyonyi. Encounter Africa Safaris helps out with projects in this area as part of our responsibility to the community. If you want to help out in the community during your trip, here’s a chance for you to volunteer. Go back to the Lodge to spend the night.

Day 15: Transfer to Lake Mburo National Park

After you have eaten breakfast, you can go for a drive to Lake Mburo National Park. On your way, you can visit the Great Lakes Museum or the Igongo Cultural Center. These places will teach you about the different cultures of the ethnic groups in western Uganda. You will be given lunch during the journey. You will get to Lake Mburo National Park just in time for a sunset safari drive. Lake Mburo National Park is well-liked for its various animals, including Impalas, Giraffes, Zebras, and many others. Go back to the Lodge and stay there for the night.

Day 16: Transfer Back to Entebbe for Departure

Today is the last day of your 16-day Safari with Encounter Africa Safaris. However, if your flight is in the morning, you can choose to go on a walking Safari before heading to Entebbe International Airport. Yes, you will stop at the Equator crossing in Kayabwe to take photos and stretch.
How long it takes to drive: About 5-6 hours.
Food Schedule: Morning and Midday Meals

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

Great trip and experience with my kids. Loved the safari and falls and Tony was a great guide and driver! Highly recommend.

Rachael

Isaac's House

The communications and service rendered was top notch...the tour lived up to my expectations as the tour guide kept explaining to us every step of the way of the tour

Jonathan

Isaac's House

GORILLA TREKKING IN UGANDA

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