Introduction

Travel from North to West to South and see the diversity of Uganda’s flora and fauna. The savannas of Queen Elizabeth and Murchison Falls and the rainforests of Kibale and Bwindi. This tour through Uganda is the perfect combination of nature, culture & animals and you will overnight in the best mid-range accommodations in Uganda.     

Day 1: Arrival, transfer to Kampala

Day 2: Travel to Fort Portal/ Kibale Forest

Day 3: Chimpanzee Tracking in Kibale Forest and Swamp walk

Day 4: Travel to Queen Elizabeth National Park

Day 5: Safari and Boat Trip in Queen Elizabeth N.P.

Day 6: Travel to lake Mutanda

Day 7: Gorilla Tracking in Bwindi Forest

Day 8: Travel back to Kampala or Entebbe. 

Day 1: Welcome to Uganda!

Your guide will pick you up from Entebbe airport and transfers you to ViaVia Guesthouse, only a 10 minute drive. This is where your Laba Africa guide will find you tomorrow morning for the start of your tour after a good breakfast.

Depending on the time of your arrival, you might be able to explore the area. There are many options in Entebbe and easily organized . For example a visit to the Botanical gardens or the Ugandan Wildlife Education Centre (UWEC).                                                                                                          

ViaVia Entebbe is a very cosy accommodation in Entebbe, only 10 minutes away from the airport. All the rooms are self-contained and have a private terrace overlooking the dazzling garden. Relax in one of the hammocks while the resident monkeys play around in the trees, you can bath in your hot-tub, enjoy a romantic sunset and sit aside the campfire at night. The restaurant serves you fresh and healthy food, spiced with world flavours for a well-balanced international and local menu. ViaVia will give you a truly heartwarming experience that’s very hard to beat!

Accomodation :  Via Via Guest house

Journey time  : 10 minutes

Meal plan: No meals inclusive

Day 2: Kibale Forest

Today, you will undertake the journey to green Kibale Forest. The drive is incredibly scenic, passing through tea plantations and the lush green countryside which characterizes so much of Uganda. On arrival at the forest, you will enter a completely different world… some serious monkey business!

Kibale Forest National Park lies just outside the colonial town of Fort Portal and is made up of dense tropical rainforest. This park is considered one of the big highlights of Uganda due to some serious monkey business going on here. A big number of primates residing can be found here and particularly a visit to one of the habituated chimpanzee groups is a very memorable experience. The rare red colobus as well as the black and white colobus, red tailed monkey, olive baboon, the blue Monkey and l’hoest’s monkeys are also regularly seen here. Where would you find a better spot to experience encounters with nature; smelling the forest and listening to the many sounds. Your safari tent or cottage is surrounded by lush green diversity filled with countless bird species and butterflies

At your Lodge  you will have a  unique jungle experience at the border of Kibale Forest National Park with the most stunning view over the forest canopy and the snow-capped Rwenzori Mountains. You will stay at a modern at quiet locations in the forest. In the restaurant and lounge areas you’ll be welcome to try tasty meals meanwhile you have high chances of spotting the Red Colobus and Grey Cheeked Mangabey monkeys on the premises.

Journey time: 6 hours

Accomodation : Chimpanzee guest house

Meal plan : Break Fast and dinner

Day 3: Chimpanzee Trekking

Chimpanzees share 98% of human genes making them our closest living relatives. They are found in 21 countries throughout Africa, but are most easily sighted in Uganda due to their dense populations. Today, in Uganda, there are approximately 5,000 chimpanzees left in the wild. The Chimpanzee Trekking experience here is done on several well maintained walking trails. There is also a wonderfully diverse concentration of other primates, more than any other forest in East Africa, in fact. Besides our delightful cousins, the chimpanzees, you can find red colobus, red-tailed guenon, white-nosed monkey, gray-cheeked mangabey, blue monkey, L’Hoest’s monkey, and the black and white colobus monkey. In addition, you may see olive baboons, bush babies and nocturnal pottos.

The aim for your trekking through the jungle under the care of professional guide, is 1 hour of eye to eye contact with the chimpanzees. We can however cannot guarantee 100% for you to see them as they are still wild animals, nevertheless your chances are very good.

Your next activity will take you to the Bigodi Wetlands Sanctuary which features 8 primate species, over 200 bird species and many reptiles. During the walk – which takes 2 to 3 hours – you have a chance to many animals but the highlight is catching a glimpse of a famous bird; the Great Blue Turaco. The income from the walk is used for community development projects such as schools and hospitals.

Accomodation: Chimpanzee guest house

Meal plan :  Breakfast and dinner

Day 4: To Queen Elizabeth National Park

Scenic Queen Elizabeth National Park is located in south western Uganda and is most often included in visitors’ itineraries. It is the second largest park in the country and located at the base of the majestic Rwenzori Mountain range, next to Lake Edward and Lake George which are joined by the Kazinga channel. Few reserves in the world have such a high biodiversity with landscapes including savannah, bushland, wetlands and lush forests. On your first game drive, it is time to explore the Queen Elizabeth National Park with her 200 kilometers of well-maintained game viewing tracks. We advise for you to be alert and pro-active on your game drive to help the ranger spot as many animals as possible.

Bush lodge is set in a unique location and has been designed  fitted by artisans from the local community. This lodge offers private safari tents on raised wooden floors with canvas walls, which can be rolled up. You can sit comfortably when watching the savannah plains with breath taking views across the park, the Rwenzori- and Virunga Mountains. With an en-suit open-air shower, you can experience an African sunrise properly or shower in the moonlight under the stars. Enjoy your delicious meals (made with fresh and local produce) on the restaurant veranda or next to the campfire. There is a new swimming pool which really invites for a refreshing dip in between game drives on a sunny day in this beautiful setting

Journey time : 4 hours

Accomodation: Bush lodge

Meal Plan: Dinner and Breakfast

Day 5: Park Game Drive & Boat Safari

After an early breakfast, you go for a long game drive in time to see the sun rise. The morning is the best time for a game drive as the African animal kingdom tends to me most active when during the golden hours of the first sunlight touching the savannah. You will continue the search for all the wildlife; elephant, buffalo, lion, waterbuck, leopard, Uganda kob, warthog and do not forget about the birds and the primates.

After lunch, you will take a boat safari along the Kazinga Channel. Here, you will see a lot of hippos (more than you can possibly imagine), as well as a variety of other animals which come to the waterhole to drink or bathe. You can expect to see: Buffalo, Crocodile, bathing Elephant, and a range of beautiful birds. This will undoubtedly be one of the highlights of your tour. After the boat-safari you game drive back to the lodge.

Accomodation: Bush lodge

Meal plan: Breakfast and Dinner

Day 6: To Lake Mutanda

Today you drive to Kisoro in the south-western part of Uganda; close to the borders with Rwanda and Congo. You cross a beautiful part of the country often referred to as ‘the Switzerland of Africa’. You will see a great country-side, bamboo forest and have great views over the Virunga Mountains. For lunch you will stop at a local restaurant on the road (lunch is not inclusive).

Jungle logde Lake at lake Mulehe offers one of the best views in Uganda! Perched on a peninsula in Lake Mulehe, isolated in the shadow of the Virunga Mountain Range, this lodge offers comfortable accommodation in a very unique corner of the country. Situated between Kisoro town, Mgahinga and Bwindi National Parks the lodge is a perfect base for a gorilla trekking, volcano hikers, bird-lovers as well for those looking for a secluded magical place in nature. Don’t forget to take your chance to dip in the lake as it is Bilharzia free, so safe to swim, peddle board or canoe amongst the locals going about their daily business on the lake! The sunset scenes are spectacular so make sure to be on one of the verandas (with a sundowner drink in hand) at that time. 

Journey time : 8 ½ hours

Accomodation : Jungle lodges

Meal plan : Dinner and break fast

Day 7: Gorilla Tracking and Lake Bunyonyi

Today is a very exciting day…. Prepare yourself for an encounter with one of Bwindi’s gentle giants: the rare Mountain Gorilla. For most people this is the absolute highlight of their tour in Uganda.
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is a highlight for many visitors as this is where they will be visiting the home of the gentle giants. The park lies in southwestern Uganda on the edge of the Rift Valley. Uganda’s oldest and most biologically diverse rainforests lies on the mist-covered hillsides. This magnificent forest dates back over 25,000 years, even surviving the last Ice Age (most forests disappeared). Bwindi forest has an incredible diversity of flora and fauna and is the only forest in Africa which can make claim to host both mountain gorillas and chimpanzees. In fact, half the worlds’ population of gorillas live here divided over nine habituated family groups. Also 5 other primate species, 120 species of mammal, over 220 butterflies and 360 birds species call Bwindi home. This it THE place to see the critically endangered mountain gorillas up close for your very own ‘Gorillas in the Mist’ moment.

Your trek will be an exciting (for some also challenging) journey along forested (sometimes slippery) slopes, entwined vines, bushes and bamboo before you eventually reach the gentle giants. En-route, your guide will point out signs of previous gorilla activity. Think of dung, nests and chewed bamboo shoots. The time to complete the gorilla trekking can be as little as 2 hours to as much as 7 hours! Once the the family of gorillas has been located, you will be allowed a maximum of one hour observing them. Coming face-to-face with the mountain gorillas is a truly humbling and emotional experience. This is a fantastic part of your tour you will definitely remember for the rest of your life.

Journey Time : 1 ½  hours

Accomodation: Hawks eye lodge

Meal plan   : Breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 8: Back to Kampala/Entebbe

After breakfast the time has come to head back to Kampala or Entebbe (Airport). Of course you stop at the equator, the best place for your souvenir shopping.

Your driver/guide will take you to your accommodation in Kampala/Entebbe or to Entebbe Airport (this is only possible if your departure flight leaves at 10 pm or later). Accommodation for tonight is not inclusive in the program. In case you wish us to include one (or more) nights in Kampala and/or Entebbe, please let us know.

Journey time : 10 hours

Accomodation: Not included

Meal plan:  Break fast