8-Day Luxury Gorilla Safari Across Uganda & Rwanda
Meet the Gorillas of Uganda and Rwanda – 8 Days Luxury Safari : This Uganda and Rwanda combined safari offers one of the most incredible wildlife experiences you will ever encounter in a lifetime.
Coming face to face with endangered mountain gorillas in their natural habitat is truly an unforgettable experience. In addition to visiting Bwindi Forest, explore Queen Elizabeth National Park with its impressive wildlife species including the rare tree climbing lions. Later cross the border into the Land of a Thousand Hills to explore Volcanoes National Park and trek another habituated gorilla family, visit the Genocide Memorial in Kigali – the capital of Rwanda giving you a haunting insight into the horrific past from which Rwanda has risen as a phoenix to become one of the cleanest and safest countries in Africa.
Highlights
Day 1: Entebbe
Day 2: Queen Elizabeth National Park
Day 3: Queen Elizabeth National Park
Day 4: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Day 5: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Day 6: Volcanoes National Park
Day 7: Volcanoes National Park
Day 8: Departure
Day By Day Itinerary
Day 1: Entebbe
On arrival at Entebbe International Airport you will be met by our representative and transferred to Hotel No.5 – a beautiful boutique lodge set on the shores of Lake Victoria in Entebbe.
Spend the rest of day at leisure, should you like to explore the city of Entebbe. A private day tour can be arranged, on which you will explore the local markets, hunt for souvenirs or crafts, meander through the Botanical Gardens or relax with a boat cruise on Lake Victoria. You will find a number restaurants, bars and clubs where you can sample the local beernda, catch a game of football and meet the friendly locals.
ndaAfter breakfast, transfer to the Entebbe International Airport for a domestic flight to Kihihi Airstrip, from where you will meet our guide and head to your camp – Ishasha Wilderness Camp – an idyllic retreat providing a cosy and relaxed space, your base for exploring Queen Elizabeth National Park.
Set in the Great Rift Valley, Queen Elizabeth National Park is home to a variety of wildlife including elephants, lions, Uganda kobs, baboons, and many bird species. From the viewing deck at the camp, expect to see resident troops of black and white colobus and vervet monkeys. If you are lucky you will spot Henry, the lone hippo, wallowing lazily below. Game freely roams through the camp, with elephants making frequent guest appearances.
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 3: Queen Elizabeth National Park
Today is dedicated to exploring Queen Elizabeth National Park on game drives, looking out for huge herds of elephants, buffaloes, Uganda kobs and of course the famous tree-climbing lions found in the area – the Ishasha Sector.
Enjoy late afternoon sundowners beside the Ntungwe River, or from a scenic viewing point along the ridge overlooking Ishasha.
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 4: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
After breakfast, depart for Bwindi Impenetrable National Park on a 2-3 hour scenic drive. Time permitting, you may visit a Community Project en route. Immerse yourself in Agartha’s Taste of Uganda Tour – a fun, educational experience for the inquisitive visitors wondering how a rural Ugandan lady lives. Watch how the local crops are transformed into local staples such as millet porridge and kalo bread.
Continue with your journey to Volcanoes National Park, a World Heritage Site and one of the richest ecosystems in East Africa, home to over 120 mammal species, 345 species of birds, 200 species of butterflies and 160 species of trees. Bwindi is sanctuary to one half of the world’s population of the endangered Mountain Gorillas, making it an extremely valuable conservation site.
On arrival at Buhoma Lodge, you will check in and spend the rest of the day at rest, dinner and overnight getting ready for tomorrow’s early wake up call.
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 5: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Today is for gorilla trekking, one of the most humbling and enthralling wildlife experiences imaginable. Coming face to face with a troop/family of endangered mountain gorillas is something word cannot perfect describe.
Gorilla Trekking is a strenuous experience with treks ranging from 45 minutes up to eight hours, at high altitudes in hot African conditions. The reward is the thrill of the one you spend quietly observing these giants once you find them, making the hike worth it.
Although mountain gorillas are wild animals and it should be noted their sightings cannot be guaranteed, however viewing success rate in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is over 95%. After a memorable encounter, head back to Buhoma Lodge for a complimentary massage, or pay visit to the Batwa Pygmy village for a cultural experience.
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 6: Volcanoes National Park
After breakfast at your lodge, depart for Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda on a drive through the “Little Switizerland” along winding mountain roads, and through rural villages, to the border of Rwanda, Kisoro. Here, you can see the Virunga Massifs on a clear day – standing sentry along the border – a row of massive, dormant volcanoes watching over the region. It is a long journey of approximately 7-8 hours on the road with an additional hour border crossing.
Volcanoes National Park is the most famous safari destination in Rwanda known for being a sanctuary for the rare mountain gorillas. Thousands of visitors flock to park to experience a face to face encounter with these intriguing creatures. The misty forested Volcanoes National Park is set high on slopes of the volcanic Virunga Mountains.
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 7: Volcanoes National Park
Today we have an unforgettable encounter with mountain gorillas on gorilla trekking experience, discover one of the 10 habituated gorilla families living within Volcanoes National Park. Before the trek starts, visitors will have a briefing session while enjoy a cup of coffee, and separated into groups of 8 depending on their physical abilities. Each of the group is guided and two scouts.
Trek into the forests searching for mountain gorillas, the trek takes approximately 2to 4 hours or more depending on the movement of the gorilla family and where they spent their previous night. Spend one hour with the gorillas watching them go on with their life in the forest, take amazing photos and videos as you learn more about how they thrive in the misty forest.
Later return to the starting point, meet your driver-guide and return to your lodge for an evening of rest, enjoy dinner and overnight stay.
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 8: Departure
Today is the last day of your Safari, after breakfast you will check out of the lodge and depart for Kigali – the bustling capital of Rwanda with a visit to the haunting Genocide Museum, a grim reminder of the senseless massacre of innocent lives in 1994. Kigali Genocide Memorial Site is a final resting place for more than 250,000 victims of the Genocide against the Tutsi, a place for remembrance and learning. Also, it sheds light on other massacres around the world, including Cambodia, the Balkans and the Holocaust.
You will be dropped off at the airport for a late flight back home.
End of Your Safari.
