9-Day Uganda Mid-Range Safari

Upon arrival at Entebbe International Airport, an English-speaking Professional Tour Driver guide will receive and welcome you to Uganda – the Pearl of Africa. Thereafter, you will transfer to the booked accommodation. You will check in and take your rest – recovering from jet lag, adjusting to time difference. #Optional (extra cost): Just in case you reached early and interested in some activity, you may consider; a). excursion to the Entebbe Botanical Gardens to sight a few primates and birds, b). excursion to Mabamba wetland in search of shoebill stork, c). the Lake Victoria Sunset cruise to local islands and bays. Otherwise, check in and just take your rest.

Be up early, have breakfast and drive off to Zziwa Rhino Sanctuary. Once there, you will proceed for an hour of on-foot rhino tracking. From the rhino tracking, head to Masindi where you will have a lunch stop. After lunch, embark on the transfer to Murchison Falls NP. The highlights of this park include the roaring rapids of the Murchison, the rolling plains of Uganda’s largest National Park where you will have the chance of viewing lions, giraffes, hartebeest, buffalo, and elephants. Then surely, the concentration of hippos and the Nile crocodiles here will fascinate you. If interested and time allows, you can proceed for a late afternoon-evening game drive.

Have your breakfast, depart for an early morning game drive across the rolling plains of Uganda’s largest National Park and be on the look for wildlife including: lions, leopards (though hard to spot) among others. For any birder, there are quite a number of birds to sight too during the drive. Return to the accommodation for some rest time and lunch. After lunch, you will head out for the boat trip to the base of Murchison Falls where you will also be able to catch sight of more animals including Hippos and Crocodiles and several water birds. #Optional (extra cost): If interested, continue with a hike to the top of the falls. The hike may be a strenuous one but the thrill on reaching the top is unforgettable. Return to your accommodation and relax.

Today, you will have breakfast and then, depart right away for Kibale Forest National Park – popular for its primates like the chimpanzees, black and white colobus monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, L’Hoest’s monkey, Uganda mangabey (Lophocebus ugandae). The drive is quite long but incredibly scenic – passing through villages, lush green countryside and hills dotted with tea plantations that characterize this part of Uganda. The beautiful scenery will amaze you all the way. Upon arrival at the accommodation, check in and just relax. 

Have breakfast and head to the rangers’ post where you will receive some briefing on the dos and don’ts during chimp trekking. Thereafter, you will proceed to trek the chimps in the Kibale Forest. An experienced ranger-guide will take you chimp tracking (Kibale Forest) and you will be left amazed by the presence of primates here. Once you locate the chimpanzees, you will have a full hour in their presence. You will return to the lodge for lunch and thereafter you will head out for Queen Elizabeth National Park. Optional (no cost): If interested and time allows, you may go for a brief afternoon-evening game drive/safari.

Be up early and have your breakfast. Proceed for a morning game drive in the Kasenyi plains and be on the look for Cape buffalos, herds of elephants plus lions, leopards (though hard to spot) among others. Return to the accommodation for some rest time and lunch. After lunch, you will go for a 2-hour boat trip on the Kazinga Channel that connects Lakes George and Edward. During the trip, the sight of wildlife including giant hippos, elephants and crocodiles among others will fascinate you. You will also see many varieties of birds at the water shores. You will have dinner and overnight at your accommodation. Optional (extra cost): If interested, you may go for a twin lakes hike after the boat trip

Enjoy a relaxed breakfast and then travel to the Ishasha sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park – famously known for its resident tree-climbing lions. The chance of spotting these lions is about 70% though sometimes they are hard to spot (most especially when they are down in the grassland looking for prey). Should you get to spot them, the sight is picturesque and memorable. From Ishasha, you will continue to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. With a strenuous day ahead, you will do less on arrival but just check in your accommodation, relax as you prepare for the Bwindi gorilla trekking experience the following day. You can decide to visit the community or relax.

Have breakfast and move to the rangers’ post. You will receive some briefing on the dos and don’ts during trekking. Thereafter, you will enter the Bwindi Forest for your adventure. The area offers dramatic steeply forested landscape and is incredibly dense but crisscrossed by numerous animal trails allowing access to tourists. The time taken and the terrain vary with the movements of these great primates. Once you have located a gorilla group, you will be allowed an hour in their presence. The thrill of spending time observing these gentle but endangered giants is unforgettable. Return to the accommodation, check out and transfer to Lake Bunyonyi. Lake Bunyonyi is framed by lush, green-terraced hills that reach a height of (2,200 – 2,478m) but it’s the 29 islands of various shapes and sizes scattered across the water that make it most magical — you could admire them all day with a boat cruise.

Have a relaxed breakfast at the accommodation with a spectacular view of the Bunyonyi little islands just right in front of you and thereafter embark on your return journey to Entebbe Airport. Expect en route lunch and a stop at the Uganda Equator line mark in Kayabwe for some memorable photos and maybe buying some art pieces of interest. Proceed with the journey arriving late afternoon/evening for drop off at the airport to catch your flight back home (recommended for 19:00 onwards).