Confidence Guarantee - Read more
10 days

Safari in Uganda & gorilla tracking

Experience the absolute highlights of Uganda; Lake Victoria, the world’s second largest freshwater lake, the Equator and the 3 national parks Queen Elizabeth, Bwindi Impenetrable and Lake Mburu.

Safari in Uganda & gorilla tracking
Safari in Uganda & gorilla tracking
10 days

Safari in Uganda & gorilla tracking

Experience the absolute highlights of Uganda; Lake Victoria, the world’s second largest freshwater lake, the Equator and the 3 national parks Queen Elizabeth, Bwindi Impenetrable and Lake Mburu.

HomeAfricaUgandaSafari in Uganda & gorilla tracking
What is included in the price?
This package includes the following
  • Flights from the UK to Entebbe, including transfer
  • Local English-speaking guide/driver
  • 7 nights in Uganda with breakfast day 2 and full board days 3-9
  • Crossing the equator
  • Morning safari and boat tour in Queen Elizabeth National Park
  • Chimpanzee tracking – including licence (worth 200 USD)
  • Ishasha – safari in search of the tree-climbing lions
  • Gorilla tracking – including licence (worth 700 USD)
  • Lake Mburo National Park – safari after dark and walking safari among zebras
  • National park fees
  • Flights from Entebbe to the UK including transfer
  • ATOL certificate
  • 24-hour manned emergency telephone throughout the tour
  • Departure guarantee – The price is valid when at least 2 people travelling. Please ask for a price if you are travelling alone

THE TOUR IN SHORT

It’s hard to say Uganda without mentioning mountain gorillas – and the visit to the gentle, furry giants in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park will almost certainly be one of the absolute highlights of this holiday.

But Uganda is so much more than mountain gorillas! The country is often referred to as “The Pearl of Africa” – a name bestowed upon it by none other than Winston Churchill when he visited the country in 1907. Rainforests, lakes, rivers and picturesque savannahs as well as varied and unique wildlife are all part of the Ugandan landscape. There are water safaris, boat safaris and standard safaris in cars. There is hiking on volcanoes and rafting on rivers – and there is a meeting with both chimps and gorillas. There are stunning, lush, green landscapes wherever you look, and friendly, welcoming people.

This holiday takes you to Uganda’s absolute highlights: The world’s second largest freshwater lake Lake Victoria, the equator and the three national parks: Queen Elizabeth, Bwindi Impenetrable and Lake Mburu. Here, you get to see Africa’s iconic, unique animals such as elephants, lions, leopards, hippos, crocodiles, buffaloes, prey as well as chimpanzees and gorillas in the lush green forests.

Why choose this tour

  • Hike in the mountains and meet the mountain gorillas in their natural environment
  • The tour offers both chimpanzee and gorilla tracking, tree-climbing lions and water safaris with zebras
  • We have included both chimpanzee and gorilla permits worth a total of 900 USD
  • Discover why Churchill nicknamed Uganda “The Pearl of Africa”

Our prices always include

  • All international and domestic flights
  • All destination transfers
  • All specified excursions and activities
  • All accommodations
Detailed Itinerary
Day 1: Flight to Uganda

Today is departure day, and you fly to Entebbe with connecting flights along the way.

Day 2: Arrival at Entebbe, Uganda

On your arrival at the airport, you will be met by our local guide, who drives you to your hotel.

Entebbe is a lush and green city oozing charm. The town is located by Africa’s largest lake, Lake Victoria, and along the shores of the lake, there are sandy beaches from which you can swim in the lake.

You spend one night in Entebbe.

Day 3: Equator and Queen Elizabeth National Park

After breakfast, you head west towards Queen Elizabeth National Park. Uganda’s most popular national park, it contains immense biodiversity with savannah, forest and swamp areas. Naturally, the varied landscape attracts a variety of animals, and the park is a veritable paradise for bird lovers. More than 600 bird species and 95 different mammals inhabit the park, so there is plenty to see.

There is ample opportunity to enjoy the landscape along the way to the national park. You get a good view of the western section of the Rift Valley and Lake George and Lake Edward, the Mountains of the Moon and the Kyambura Gorge. You pass Katwe, a salty crater lake, where you can see how salt is extracted using traditional methods. Along the way, you also stop at the equator and Mbrara, where there is lunch break at Igongo Cultural Centre.

Having arrived at the destination, you check in to your hotel where you will be spending two nights.

Day 4: Morning game drive and afternoon boat ride

It’s an early start today, with a morning safari in Queen Elizabeth National Park. It’s worth getting up early to enjoy the sunrise in the northern part of the park in the Kasenyi area. The area attracts antelopes, and with prey come predators. The early morning hours are the perfect time to watch the big cats in action on their daily hunts. You drive around the savannah and by crater lakes in search of leopards, lions, hyenas, antelopes and other wildlife, before returning to the hotel where breakfast awaits. The hot hours in the middle of the day are spent relaxing by the pool.

In the afternoon, there is a boat trip on the Kazinga Channel, which connects the two lakes, Lake George and Lake Edward. The 42-kilometre long channel attracts a great many animals and offers every opportunity for you to see crocodiles, hippos and other animals cooling off in the refreshing water. Along the banks of the channel, you may be lucky enough to see elephants and buffaloes, and perhaps even European migratory birds, which gather in large flocks.

Day 5: Chimpanzee Tracking – tree-climbing lions in Ishasha

Man’s closest living relative is the chimpanzee, with very few DNA differences between the two species. They are some of the most intelligent primates, using “tools” as a matter of course and sleeping in nests every night, which they build from branches and leaves. Meeting these relatives is quite simply a unique experience, and today you get to walk among the chimps at Kyambura Gorge. The tour out to the chimpanzees takes place in the company of a trained guide, who knows the chimpanzee group you are going to visit. The monkeys are – by nature and having learnt from experience – extremely timid and fearful, and getting them accustomed to people is a long-winded process. The goal might be the chimpanzees, but remember to enjoy the tour out to them. The landscape in the gorge is breathtaking, and several mammals and birds live here. Having spent up to an hour with the chimpanzees, you make you way out of the gorge and lunch awaits.

In the afternoon, the tour heads south towards Ishasha, which is famous for its tree-climbing lions. Either this afternoon or alternatively tomorrow morning, there is a morning game drive in search of the tree-climbing lions, among other animals. They tend  to climb the trees to get away from flies and to seek shade from the baking sun. It is not common practice for lions to climb trees, but this happens in some national parks in Tanzania as well as in Uganda.

Accommodation:
Day 6: Ishasha – Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park

If you didn’t go on a game drive in Ishasha yesterday, it is, of course, the first thing on the itinerary today. The day today offers a drive to the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park, stopping for lunch in Kihihi. From here, you head on to Buhoma, where you arrive in the evening.

Day 7: Gorilla Tracking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park

Today is likely to be the absolute highlight of the tour to Uganda for most people. You are going on a hike in the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park in search of mountain gorillas. There are only around 800 wild mountain gorillas left in the world – half of which are found in Uganda, in Bwindi National Park, among other places.

It’s an early start today, and we recommend you start the day with a hearty breakfast before the drive to the national park’s headquarters. You’ll need the energy and to be in reasonably good shape to get the most out of today’s experiences. As there’s no way of knowing which group of mountain gorillas you’ll be visiting, it’s difficult to say how far you will have to walk to get to the “your” group. While you are registered and instructed in how the hike will take place, scouts are sent out to look for the gorillas so that you won’t have to walk all over the forest to find them. Thanks to the scouts, the chances of actually seeing a band of gorillas are really good.

From the rangers’ headquarters, you set out with guides through thick vines of creepers and undergrowth to find the gorillas. The heavily wooded landscape is incredibly dense but traversed by numerous animal trails that facilitate your passage. Remember to enjoy the hike through the forest and look out for other animals and birds.

When you reach your “family”, you spend an hour with the band. Although you are not allowed to approach the gorillas, it is not uncommon for them to come right up close to you – if they do, you just have to sit quite still. They are completely harmless, but they can be big, strong and heavy! It’s amazing sitting right next to the gentle giants and observing and taking pictures of them while listening to them grunt and grumble to each other. Being with these beautiful yet endangered creatures is an extraordinary feeling.

When the visit to the gorillas is over, you walk back through the forest and drive back to the lodge. The rest of the day is yours to digest the experiences and check your camera for good pictures.

Day 8: Lake Mburo National Park

The time has come to say goodbye to Bwindi. The tour heads back east, where today’s stop is at Lake Mburo National Park. Covering an area of just 260 km2, the park is Uganda’s second-largest, not to mention a true gem offering stunning scenery and abundant wildlife. The afternoon can be spent relaxing before the unusual safari experience in the evening. You’re going on a night game drive to look for the nocturnal animals that you almost never see during the day.

Accommodation:
Day 9: Homeward bound

Lake Mburo National Park is one of the few national parks in Uganda where you can go on a walking safari on foot, and naturally, you’ll be taking advantage of that today. It’s a completely different way of going on safari, as the focus here is on tracks, scents and plants rather than on getting as close to the animals as you can. However, there is a good chance of seeing some of the animals – you often get fairly close to zebras on the walk, for example.

From Lake Mburo, you head back to Entebbe, where you can have a shower and change clothes before eating dinner with the guide. You will be driven to the airport when it’s time to start your journey home.

Day 10: Arrival in the UK

You land in the UK late morning.

Day Distance Approx km
Day 2 Airport to hotel 5
Day 3 Entebbe till Queen Elizabeth N. P. 600
Day 4 Game drive in Queen Elizabeth N. P. and the boat trip ---
Day 5 Queen Elizabeth N. P. to Ishasha 95
Day 6 Ishasha to Bwindi 55
Day 7 Gorilla tracking ---
Day 8 Bwindi to Mburo Park 300
Day 9 Transfer to airport 250
Combine with
Choose from the options below
Beach holiday in Zanzibar
6 nights

Surrounded by the waters of the Indian Ocean, Zanzibar consists of the main islands of Unguja (also called ‘Zanzibar’) and Pemba, as well as a number of smaller islands. The island of Zanzibar is a treasure trove of natural and cultural treats. Brilliant white sandy beaches, azure seas and a truly amazing coral reef. A warm and sunny climate all year round. A dramatic history, liberally sprinkled with Arabian sultans, Portuguese seafarers, unscrupulous slavers and European explorers who have all left their mark on the island. And one of the most fascinating towns in Africa, dotted with fine examples of beautiful Arabian architecture. Not forgetting the delicious Swahili cuisine and the accommodating population …

When would you like to travel?
Departure dates
All prices shown are per person
Please note that the price of a single room only applies when travelling at least two people. Please contact us if you’re travelling alone.
REVIEWS
Travellers' tales
BEFORE YOU TRAVEL
Good to know
Africa
Catriona Hodge

Catriona is passionate about helping other people fulfill their travel dreams, as she knows how much travel has only improved her life for the better!

Opening hours
Monday-Thursday 9-15
Friday 9-13
WHY TRAVEL WITH TOURCOMPASS?
Why people choose us
  • Personal service by travel experts with first-hand knowledge
  • Dedicated booking team ensures a smooth journey
  • 24/7 assistance while on tour
  • Well-planned itineraries with thoughtfully selected highlights
  • All tours include flights, transfers and accommodations
  • Various options available to tailor your tour
  • Accommodation in great locations
  • Carefully selected local guides with comprehensive knowledge
  • Favoured by thousands of guests since 2006
  • All tours tried and quality checked by our own team
  • Long-term relationships with an extensive network of partners
  • We guarantee you the best prices
  • Excellent working relationships with our partners ensure the best quality and prices
  • We optimise our logistics and processes so you only pay for what matters the most
  • ATOL protected
  • Member of ABTA
  • Personal liability insurance
EXPLORE
Check out all our exciting destinations