14 Days Best Of Northern and Western Uganda, Best Tour Safari Package, Primates & Wildlife Adventure.

Trip Overview

The 14-day best of northern and western Uganda primates and wildlife adventure starts and ends in Entebbe. The safari will begin with the Mabamba wetland visit where you will search for the famous and rare shoebill. The safari will continue to Sipi Falls and while there, you will have a glimpse of the three beautiful and eye-catching waterfalls of Sipi. This safari will continue to Kidepo Valley National Park where the traveler will see the amazing wild treasure. Kidepo is one of Africa’s last great wilderness areas with a rugged savannah landscape. The safari will proceed to Murchison Falls National Park which is Uganda’s most visited and largest savannah national park. Murchison Falls also has Africa’s most powerful waterfalls and most travelers come to Uganda specifically to see the falls. The journey will continue to Kibale Forest National Park and while there, you will get a chance of seeing chimpanzees and watching them play and feed for 2 hours.

Your Northern and Western Uganda tout will continue to Queen Elizabeth National Park famous for the Kazinga channel and many animal species including the tree-climbing lions found in the Ishasha sector of the park. The other animal species found in the park include birds, elephants, kobs, and antelopes among others. Finally, this safari continues to Bwindi impenetrable national park in western Uganda. This park has got over 340 mountain gorillas making it half of the mountain gorillas remaining in the world.

Safari Gallery: Northern and Western Uganda Tour

Detailed Itinerary: Northern and Western Uganda Tour

Day 1: Arrival & transfer to the hotel

Upon arrival, you will be met and greeted by your English-speaking driver guide. He will briefly take you through the trip plan and then transfer you to the hotel for relaxation and dinner.

Accommodation: Papyrus guest house (Midrange)/ Via Via Entebbe (Budget)

Meal plan: Bed & Breakfast

Day 2: Mabamba swamp boat and transfer to Sipi Falls

After breakfast, proceed to Mabamba to search for the rare shoebill stock. After the shoebill search, we shall proceed to Sipi Falls which is found in Kapchorwa which is north of Mbale. The other neighboring districts of Sipi Falls are Sironko and Mbale. As you move towards the Kenyan border, there is Lays Mountain Elgon National Park and it is at its edge that you will embrace the Sipi Falls. A series of three of these waterfalls make up the Sipi Falls.

Accommodation: Rafiki lodge sip (Midrange)/ Sipi valley resort (Budget)

Mel plan: Full board

Day 3: Hiking to visit all the three waterfalls at Sipi

After an early morning breakfast, you will meet your local guide and start off the hike to visit all three waterfalls.  You will follow a trail 7 to 8km long that goes through the local communities and their farmlands of tea and banana plantations which are the main cash crops grown in the area. Between visiting the waterfalls, you are treated to breathtaking landscape scenery from the green slopes of mountain Elgon to the distant flat plain plains of Karamoja in the distance. Each waterfall offers an experience from another, from the plunge, beautiful views, and cakes, to rainbows. The entire hike will 3 to 4 hours, visiting the first waterfalls from to descending the second and finally to the third at the end of the trail which is the biggest and the main one. At the end of the fun, you will return to the lodge for lunch and afterward proceed to visit the caves.

Accommodation: Rafiki lodge sip (Midrange)/ Sipi valley resort (Budget)

Mel plan: Full board

Day 4: Transfer to Kidepo Valley National Park

After an early morning breakfast at the hotel, you will embark on your journey to Kidepo National Park. Being the land of nomadic pastoralists, you can always have a glance at the large herds of cattle and the small huts (Manyattas) that make up the people’s homesteads. You will drive to Kidepo Valley National Park arriving in the afternoon and checking in for lunch. After lunch, you will proceed for a guided walk in Karenga where you will visit the Karamajong homestead settings famously known as the Manyattas. You will be invited to the cultural performances.

Accommodation: Zebra Safari Lodge (Midrange)/ Savannah Safari Lodge (Budget)

Meal plan: Full board

Day 5: Game drive and evening game drive

Rising to the sounds of mother nature, have an early breakfast and go for a morning game drive in the true African wilderness along the Kanangorok hot springs which has a variety of wildlife such as Elephants, Antelopes, buffaloes, and Giraffes and you are likely to spot lions, cheetahs and leopards as well.

After lunch, you will set out for an evening game drive in the Narus Valley. Kidepo Valley National Park has a great variety of animal species of which 28 of them do not occur in any other Ugandan national park. The Narus Valley offers an opportunity to see the park’s wildlife almost throughout the year. Here you have an opportunity to see the animals up close.

Accommodation: Zebra Safari Lodge (Midrange)/ Savannah Safari Lodge (Budget)

Meal plan: Full board

Day 6: Transfer to Zziwa Rhino Sanctuary.

After breakfast, you will check out of the lodge and drive to Zziwa Rhino Sanctuary with an en-route lunch. Upon arrival, you will check in at the lodge for relaxation and dinner.

Accommodation: Amuka lodge (Midrange)/ Masindi hotel (Budget)

Meal plan: Full board

Day 7: Rhino Tracking at Zziwa & transfer to Murchison Falls

Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel and then track you through these black and white Rhinos. This sanctuary was established mainly to protect these rhinos from danger and poachers.

After rhino tracking, you will continue to Murchison Falls National Park and do an afternoon boat cruise. This boat will allow you to get close to the water animals which include over 4000 hippos as well as the Nile crocodiles. The Nile has many stunning bird lives that can also enjoyed while taking your boat trip; these include the bee eaters, colored kingfishers, shoebill storks, and grey-throated, and yellow-billed birds.

Accommodation: Tilenga safari lodge (Midrange)/ Heritage safari lodge (Budget)

Meal plan: Full board

Day 8: Morning game drive and afternoon hike to the top of the falls

Enjoy your breakfast at your hotel, after proceeding to search for the wildlife species on a game drive. You will get a chance to view many species including; giraffes, lions, elephants, buffaloes, birds, and many more. The guide will take you back to the lodge to have your lunch at the lodge as you prepare to hike the top of the falls. Hiking to the top of the falls which will give you beautiful views of these waterfalls. You will gaze at the Nile River which is the longest river in the world, it’s forced through a small gap that is just 7m wide and it flows 43 meters down making it look very beautiful to the viewers.

Accommodation: Tilenga safari lodge (Midrange)/ Heritage safari lodge (Budget)

Meal plan: Full board

Day 9: Transfer to Kibale Forest National Park

After breakfast, you will check out of the lodge and drive to Kibale Forest National Park. You will be able to enjoy an impressive sight of the legendary “mountains of the moon” which you will see on the road to Fort Portal. You will also pass through many traditional villages as you enjoy local people carrying out agriculture.

Kibale Forest National Park is one of the great rainforests in Africa. This forest is mainly famous for around 13 primate species with chimpanzees being the main tracked chimpanzees. The other primate species include the golden monkeys, and black and white colobus monkeys, as well as the bird species.

On arrival at the park, you will check into your lodge for relaxation as you wait for dinner.

Accommodation: Turacco treetops (Midrange)/ Kibale forest camp (Budget)

Meal plan: Full board

Day 10: Chimpanzee trekking and transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park.

Wake up so early and head to Kanyanchu by 8:00 am to start your chimpanzee trek in the Kibale forest. Chimpanzees are considered to be the closest relatives of human beings since they share 98% of their DNA with that of human beings. As you proceed with the search of these beautiful chimps, you will view many other primate and animal species including the LHoests monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, grey-cheeked mangabeys, bush babies, and many bird species including yellow-spotted nictor, ramped tinker, crowed eagle.

This national park is on an average of 3,300 feet in elevation and it’s a rainforest with many chimpanzee communities, each troop of these chimpanzees has over 100 individuals which is a competed social structure. In their groups, the adult males dominate the group and always defend the whole community against any danger and incursions by the females from outside. These primates are located by listening to their pant-hooting calls and then hurrying to the place where they are calling from. You get a chance to observe them as they play, feed; socialize as well as jump around the trees.

Immediately after the long trek, you will return to the lodge and transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park where you will check in at the lodge upon arrival.

Accommodation: Aardvark safari lodge (Midrange)/ Bush lodge (Budget)

Meal plan: Full board

Day 11: Morning game drive and afternoon boat cruise

Arise early enough and after breakfast, enjoy a morning game drive where you will see various animals like elephants, elands, antelopes, buffaloes, and lions among others. After having your lunch at the lodge, you will transfer you will do the afternoon and set out for a boat cruise on Kazinga channel where you will see various of animals like crocodiles, hippos, water bucks, and buffaloes as well as birds like storks, and kingfishers among others.

Accommodation: Aardvark safari lodge (Midrange)/ Bush lodge (Budget)

Meal plan: Full board

Day 12: Transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

After breakfast, you will check out of the lodge and embark on Bwindi Forest a home to mountain gorillas covering an area of 331.sq.km. Pass through the Ishasha sector where you will take pleasure in watching tree-climbing lions, also enjoy various spectacular landscapes on your way. Arrive in the park and have a guided nature walk, have dinner, and an overnight stay at any lodge of your choice.

Saying goodbye to Queen Elizabeth National Park is never easy. It has an uncanny ability to charm visitors with its peaceful and tranquil atmosphere, stunning landscapes, and great wildlife viewing. The safari will continue westwards leaving the Ankole kingdom, and heading to Bwindi and the Kigezi kingdom, home to the heavyweights!

Accommodation: Ichumbi gorilla lodge (Midrange)/ Gorilla hills lodge

Meal plan: Full board

Day 13: Gorilla trekking and community visit

On this day, you will have a great time meeting with the mountain gorillas in Bwindi’s impenetrable forest! After a tasty breakfast, your guide will pick you up from the lodge, head for briefing, and later enjoy the fullness of the mist forest as you see the gentle giants and other wildlife species like buffaloes, elephants, monkeys, butterflies, and different bird species. Only one hour is permitted to you with the gorillas. Locating gorillas can take a few hours or the whole day depending on how far they moved from the place they spent the previous night. After the trek, in the evening you could go for a guided nature walk or a community visit.

Accommodation: Ichumbi gorilla lodge (Midrange)/ Gorilla hills lodge

Meal plan: Full board

Day 14: Transfer to Entebbe for your flight back home

After breakfast, you will check out of the lodge and transfer back to Entebbe International Airport for your flight back home.

End of  your Northern and Western Uganda Tour

Inclusions

• 1 chimpanzee permit per person
• 1 rhino tracking permit
• 1 gorilla permit per person
• Accommodation as mentioned above
• Meals as mentioned above
• Game drives
• Boat cruises
• Park entrance fees
• Cultural tours
• Sipi falls hike
• Mabamba wetland visit
• Transportation
• English speaking guide
• All transfers
• All activities mentioned above

Excludes

• Tips & gratuities
• Activities not mentioned above
• Personal expenses
• Alcoholic drinks