12-Day Best of Uganda Wildlife and Adventure Safari allows you to experience the best of a Ugandan safari as well as adventure activities such as hiking, ziplining and quad biking in scenic areas outside of the wildlife parks. This tour takes you to Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, Murchison Falls National Park (MFNP) and Queen Elizabeth National Park (QENP) for an opportunity to spot the ‘’Big five’’ African animals (elephant, rhino, buffalo, lion (including the famous tree-climbing lions of Ishasha) and leopard) by land. By boat, on the Nile River at MFNP and through Kazinga channel in QENP you will have a close-up experience with one of the world’s largest concentrations of hippos, as well as Nile crocodiles, elephants, buffalos and other wildlife along the banks of the water. For your unique primate experience, you will trek to find chimpanzees in Kalinzu forest, Golden monkeys in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park and finally, you will have the ultimate experience of spending time with endangered Mountain Gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park (a UNESCO World heritage site and home to half of the world’s remaining Mountain Gorillas). At Lake Mburo National Park, in addition to game drives, you will have the opportunity to have a more intimate experience with the wildlife of the savannah as you walk within the park with an experienced armed ranger. You will also hike through diverse and beautiful landscapes including the crater lakes region and the culturally important Amabere Ga Nyina Mwiru caves near Fort Portal. Closer to Kampala, you will visit the historic Ssezibwa waterfalls and go hiking and zip-lining in the Mabira rainforest. Finally, you visit the city of Jinja, located on the shores of Lake Victoria, for a boat cruise to the source of White or Victoria Nile River and to explore the trails in the area on four-wheel vehicles (quad bikes).
Day 1: Airport pick up and optional City tour.
On this day, you will be warmly welcomed at the airport by one of our professional tour guides. From the airport, you will be transferred to your hotel for check in, have lunch and relax. You may go for a city tour to see how busy Kampala is and also buy some few locally made items like Ugandan branded Jerseys, huts and other items that you may love at the Kampala craft market. You will later head back to the hotel in the evening to have dinner and overnight stay. Since you will have a night in Kampala, you may opt to have a night out in one of the clubs in Kampala to explore the night life in Kampala, Uganda’s capital.
Destination: Kampala
Accommodation:
- Kampala Serena Hotel
- Fairway Hotel
- Bushpig backpackers
Meal Arrangement: Lunch and Dinner.
Day 2: Transfer to Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, then Murchison falls National Park and Top of the falls visit.
You will be picked up from the hotel early in the morning after your breakfast and set off for Murchison Falls National Park. On your way to the park, you will branch off to Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary. In Nakasongola District, near Nakitoma Village is where you will get a moment to track these beautiful animals. The white Rhinos became extinct in Uganda’s national parks in 1980, but conservationists and the government through Uganda wildlife authority took the few that had remained and transferred them to the sanctuary for better protection. There are about 18 rhinos in the sanctuary at the moment and there is a plan to reintroduce them in Uganda’s game parks in the future.
Lunch will be at the sanctuary before proceeding to Murchison falls national park and drive straight to the top of Murchison Falls “also known as Kabalega Falls”. This is where the Nile forces its way through a gap in the rocks that is only 8 meters wide, and tumbles 43 meters before flowing westward into Lake Albert. You will have a clear and closer view of the falls from the top. Later after the endless videos and pictures, you will head to your lodge for dinner and rest till the next day.
Destination: Murchison Falls National Park
Accommodation:
- Chobe Safari Lodge
- Pakuba Safari Lodge
- Red chili rest camp
Meal Arrangement: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 3: Morning Game Drive and an afternoon Boat Cruise.
After an early morning breakfast, you will leave for an early morning game drive looking for the early morning riser. As you head out for the game drive, you will be in position to spot animals like the buffaloes, elephants, lions, leopards, hyenas, Rothschild giraffes, Oribi, Kobs and waterbucks together with some bird species along the way with some feeding together with the big animals.
Later you will return to your lodge for lunch and relaxation as you wait for afternoon boat cruise. You will head for the boat at Paara cruising point for a boat cruise along the Victoria Nile. This Boat ride on Victoria Nile goes for 3 hours and you will be able to see some Nile crocodiles, numerous hippos, as well as various bird species.
After your boat cruise experience, you will drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
Destination: Murchison Falls National Park
Accommodation:
- Chobe Safari Lodge
- Pakuba Safari Lodge
- Red chili rest camp
Meal Arrangement: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 4: Transfer to Fort Portal
On this day, you have your morning breakfast and drive out of the park through the southern gate heading southwards to Fort Portal, which is known as Uganda’s tourism city.
On arrival in Fort Portal, you will have lunch and there after head into the Crater lakes region for the crater lakes exploration found in this beautifully gifted land. Fort portal is known to have over 50 crater lakes that attract a number of tourists all over the world to come and view these beautiful sceneries. You will visit the famous Kasenda crater lakes regions together with another unique place called “Top of the world”. You will then proceed to Mahoma Falls and have a moment to stand under the falls while a stream of water from the Rwenzori mountains is rushing down on the ground. This will sum up your day adventure and later in the evening you will return to fort portal town at your accommodation for dinner and overnight stay.
Destination: Fort Portal
Accommodation:
- Kyanyinga Lodge
- Nyaika Hotel
- Koi Koi Hotel
Meal Arrangement: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 4: Amabere caves and transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park
On this day, you will wake up on a morning breakfast and drive to the Tooro kingdom palace. The palace stands on Harukoto hill, the tallest hill within the heart of Fort Portal city giving a clear and scenic view of the entire palace building and the city. After this brief visit, you will drive to Amabere Ga Nyina Mwiru caves, which is a unique tourist attraction that is located 10 km away from Fort Portal town in Kabarole near Nyakasura School. The direct translation of Amabere ga Nyina mwiru is “breasts of the mother of a slave”. According to legends, the caves acquired the name after King Bukuku of Bunyoro chopped off the breasts of his daughter Nyinamwiru and had them thrown inside these caves, following a prophecy that the daughter would one day get married and have a son, Ndahura, who would kill the king and take over his throne.
The king was not pleased to hear this prophesy so cutting off her daughter’s breasts was an attempt to deform her so men wouldn’t be attracted to her, little knowing that she was already pregnant with a boy child. Upon giving birth, the king made a second attempt to avert this prophecy by ordering the child to be killed. However, the people who were instructed to execute these orders just dumped the child in the caves where her mother’s breasts had been earlier dumped. You will explore this cultural-historical caves together with the Mabere waterfalls that are found there with fresh and very cold waters.
Later you will leave fort portal and head to Queen Elizabeth National Park, check in at your accommodation and rest for the next day.
Queen Elizabeth National Park is the most visited national park in Uganda with thousands of hippos that populate shorelines of Kazinga Channel. The open savannah dotted with Acacia and Euphorbia trees providing a habitat for elephants, lions, leopards, Uganda kobs, big herds of buffaloes and many other animals.
Destination: Queen Elizabeth National Park
Accommodation:
- Mweya Safari Lodge
- Buffalo Safari Lodge
- Irungu Forest Safari Lodge
Meal Arrangement: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 6: Morning game drive and afternoon boat cruise.
On this day, after your breakfast, you will head out for a morning game drive in the northern section of the park “Kasenyi planes” where you will interface with the savannah animals. The game drives are best done in the morning hours when mammals are just coming out of their hiding places looking for food and also in the late evening hours when they return back to their resting caves or grounds. Your morning game drive might take about 3 hours and later on you will continue to Mweya peninsular at Kazinga channel for a boat cruise.
A boat cruise along the Kazinga Channel will offer you one of the greatest wildlife experiences in Africa and Uganda in particular. Prepare to see countless hippos, crocodiles, buffaloes, elephants, water birds and many of the other park animals drinking from the channel. You will return to the lodge with a short evening game drive as you end your day with a sunset view while resting at your accommodation.
Destination: Queen Elizabeth National Park
Accommodation:
- Mweya Safari Lodge
- Buffalo Safari Lodge
- Irungu Forest Safari Lodge
Meal Arrangement: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 7: Chimpanzee trekking in Kalinzu forest and Transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
On this day, you will wake up the on an early morning breakfast so that you are able to reach Kalinzu forest on time. This day will be an adventurous one, as you will be able to see humans’ closest cousins; the chimpanzees in Kalinzu forest. You will have a delicious breakfast and head out for a briefing session from our professional tour guides. You will then proceed to the forest for chimpanzee trekking. The forest is a habitat to over 300 chimpanzees and around 70 chimpanzee communities have been habituated for tourism purposes.
Chimpanzee trekking in Kalinzu forest takes 3 to 4 hours before you meet the chimpanzee community depending on the trail that you take. This is also because chimpanzees keep moving from one place to another in search for food.
After the exciting chimpanzee trekking experience, you will head for lunch as you leave the park heading southwards to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
Upon arrival in Bwindi, you will check in at your lodge for relaxation and overnight stay as you wait for Gorilla tracking the following day.
Destination: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Accommodation:
- Mahogany springs lodge
- Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge
- Gorilla closeup lodge.
Meal Arrangement: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 8: Gorilla trekking experience and transfer to Mgahinga Gorilla National Park
On this adventurous day, you wake up on an early morning breakfast and report to Bwindi Park headquarters for a short briefing with the leader tracker/ ranger guide before you start on your day activity. From here you will head into the montane forest for an encounter with the mountain gorillas.
Always watch out for their voices and listen to them grumble and the young as they swing from tree to tree, and marvel at the sheer size of the dominant male; the silverback. It is an extraordinary feeling sitting in the dense rain forest knowing you are with a few of the last remaining mountain gorillas. The beauty of this rainforest is spectacular and it offers a dramatic steeply forested landscape which is incredibly dense, but crisscrossed by numerous animal trails allowing access to tourists. You will look for these endangered species and finding them will depending on the last nesting location of the previous night. The time taken to track the gorillas can be range from 4 to 7 hours or beyond. Once you locate a gorilla group, you will be allowed only one hour in their presence. The thrill of spending time observing these gentle and endangered giants is an awesome, exciting and one in a life experience to be long savored.
This will sum up your dream expectations as you walk back to the vehicle and drive out of the park transferring to Mgahinga Gorilla National Park. On arrival at your lodge, you’ll check in for relaxation and leisure as you wait for dinner and overnight stay.
Destination: Mgahinga Gorilla National Park
Accommodation:
- Mutanda Lake Resort
- Chameleon Hill Lodge
- Travelers Rest Inn
Meal Arrangement: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day. 9 Golden monkey tracking and Transfer to Lake Mburo National Park
On this day, you will wake up very early in the morning for breakfast and head at the park headquarters for a short briefing. Golden monkey trekking in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park involves travelers hiking through the forest in search of the golden monkeys in their natural habitat. The activity starts at 8 am with a briefing from the ranger guide or lead tracker. You then head out in search of the golden monkeys using the Gahinga trail. Once you locate the Golden monkeys, you’ll be limited to only one hour in their presence and then head back to your starting point. The trekking may take about 2 to 4 hours depending on where they last nested the previous night. After you will return to the vehicle and check out of the park as you head to Lake Mburo National Park.
You will drive through the hills of Kisoro and Kabale, and have lunch on your way as you reach the park. On arrival to Lake Mburo National Park, you will check in at your lodge and relax as you wait for an evening game drive to see the gentle mammals of the peaceful park. The nature walk will give an opportunity to see a lot of animals like the Zebras, giraffes, antelopes, hippos, buffaloes, Topis, elands, waterbucks and bushbucks among many other animals. You will later return to the lodge for rest with the whispers of the wild.
Destination: Lake Mburo National Park
Accommodation:
- Mihingo lodge
- Rwakobo Rock lodge
- Eagles Nest
Meal Arrangement: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 10: Morning nature walk and transfer back to Kampala
After an early breakfast at the lodge, by 7am you will check out of the lodge and head for a guided nature walk with a ranger guide. Lake Mburo national park is an ideal place to do guided nature walks, and you will begin with a drive, then walk on foot to have an adventure closer to nature. The activity and drive can take about 1 or 2 hours and then drive to then drive to Kampala.
You’ll live this beautiful part of the world as you check out of the park and head to Entebbe, having lunch at Uganda’s Equator. You will take some pictures and buy some souvenirs, then drive straight to Kampala.
Destination: Kampala
Accommodation:
- Protea Hotel
- Fairway Hotel
- Bushpig backpackers
Meal Arrangement: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 11: Drive to Jinja Adventure City for River Nile discovery
On this you will wake up on a lazy breakfast and drive to Jinja adventure city, passing through different town on your way. You will have you first stop branching off the main road heading to the Historical Ssezibwa waterfalls which are approximately 32 kilometers east of Kampala city in Mukono District.
The falls are about seven meters high and with the sweet hissing sound created by the falling water which forms beautiful scenery. This is complemented by the natural vegetation cover and the undulating and steep rocks over which the waters fall.
The site also presents several tourist activities such as bird watching, camping and rock climbing to the top of the falls.
You will check out and continue to the Mabira forest for 2 hours where we have a forest walk The Mabira forest is a rainforest area covering about 300 square kilometers (120 square miles) situated in Buikwe District between Lugazi and Mabira forest is a habitat to over 300 bird species and many Ugandan primate species. The forest is great, it is still a perfect place nature walks inside it. You will walk for over an hour under tree canopies without spotting the sky, thereafter have your sky adventure in the forest ‘zip lining’.
Later you will drive to jinja and cross the bridge to the other part of Uganda full of adventurous activities.
Jinja is the second biggest and busiest city after Kampala, and it is located in Eastern Uganda. Founded in 1907, Jinja city is about 85kms away from Kampala and it is suitably located on Lake Victoria shores and it is where the Source of the River Nile is located.
You will have lunch and head for a boat cruise to the source of River Nile. Here you will cruise to the main point where the Nile starts from and later return to your accommodation for dinner and over stay. You may also have a night out in jinja to enjoy the night life in Jinja.
Destination: Jinja
Accommodation:
- Jinja Nile Resort
- Source of the Nile Hotel
- 2 friends Guest house
Meal Arrangement: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.
Day 12: Quad biking and transfer to Entebbe International Airport
Begin your day with a morning breakfast at your accommodation, there after head the big day activity. You will transfer from your hotel and go for Quad biking, on arrival, you’ll be briefed about the whole activity and all you have to know before getting on the bikes. You’ll then dress up in protective gears and ride off to explore the trails on four wheels. Then activity will take about 3 hours as you enjoy the beautiful surroundings of the place. Later you will have driven back to Kampala and have your lunch as you proceed to Entebbe International Airport in for your flight.
Meal Arrangement: Breakfast and Lunch.
End of your 12-Day Best of Uganda Wildlife and Adventure Safari