4 Days Ziwa Rhino Trekking and Murchison Falls Safari
This 4 Days Ziwa Rhino Trekking and Murchison Falls Safari pairs two genuinely distinct Ugandan wildlife experiences into one of the shortest, most efficient routes in the country. Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary is the only place in Uganda where wild rhinos can still be found and tracked on foot, the result of a re-introduction effort launched in 1997 by Rhino Fund Uganda, working alongside the Uganda Wildlife Authority, after the species was hunted to local extinction during Idi Amin’s presidency in the 1980s. Both black and southern white rhino were reintroduced, restoring a piece of Uganda’s environmental and cultural heritage that had been missing for decades.
The sanctuary sits in Nakasongola district, roughly 176 kilometres north of Kampala on the Gulu highway, spread across 7,000 hectares of savanna and woodland now home to around 22 rhinos, alongside genuinely strong shoebill tracking, canoe rides, birdwatching, and nature walks. From there, the route continues to Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda’s largest, home to the Big Four and the most powerful waterfall in Africa, for a full two days of game drives and a launch cruise to the base of the falls themselves.
Day 1: Transfer to Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, Nature Walk
Your driver-guide picka you from your location in Kampala for the three-to-four-hour drive to Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, the only place in the country to find wild rhinos. On arrival, check in to your accommodation, Amuka Safari Lodge for luxury and mid-range travelers or Ziwa Guesthouse for budget, before heading out in the afternoon for a nature walk around the sanctuary grounds. The walk offers a genuine window into the sanctuary’s broader wildlife beyond the rhinos themselves: Uganda kob, bushbuck, oribi, common grey duiker, warthog, vervet monkey, black-and-white colobus, and reedbuck are all realistic sightings. Return for dinner and an overnight stay.
Day 2: Rhino Trekking, Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park
After breakfast, meet your ranger guide for a briefing before setting out on foot in search of the sanctuary’s rhinos. This is a genuinely close, on-foot encounter, tracking the animals through the bush until you’re able to approach and spend real time in their presence before heading back.
After lunch, continue on to Murchison Falls National Park, roughly two to three hours away, entering through Kichumbanyobo Gate with an evening game drive along the way. Check in to your lodge, Paraa Safari Lodge for luxury, Pakuba Safari Lodge or Fort Murchison Lodge for mid-range, or Red Chilli Rest Camp or Heritage Safari Lodge for budget, for dinner and an overnight stay.
Day 3: Morning Game Drive and Launch Cruise
After an early breakfast, set out on a morning game drive lasting roughly three to five hours depending on what the park offers up that day. Murchison’s open savanna holds a genuinely strong resident population: elephant, Rothschild’s giraffe, buffalo, lion, hartebeest, Uganda kob, oribi, and waterbuck among them.
Return to the lodge for lunch before heading out again at 2pm for a launch cruise along the Nile, culminating in a striking, close-up view of Murchison Falls from the water below. Along the way, expect crocodile, hippo, and strong birdlife lining the riverbanks, kingfisher, cormorant, and bee-eater among them. After time spent at the base of the falls, sail back to meet your driver for the return to the lodge, with a further game drive en route, before dinner and a second overnight stay.
Day 4: Top of the Falls, Return to Kampala
After breakfast, drive to the top of Murchison Falls for a closer view of both the main falls and the neighbouring Uhuru Falls, roughly two hours in total before exiting the park. Lunch is served along the route depending on timing, before the four-to-five-hour drive back to Kampala or Entebbe, where you’ll be dropped at a location of your choosing.
Safari Includes
- Pick-up and drop-off in Kampala/Entebbe
- Rhino trekking and nature walk fees
- Park entrance fees
- Boat cruise fees
- 4×4 safari vehicle and fuel
- Full-time English-speaking guide/driver
- All accommodation as indicated in the itinerary
- All meals at the lodge: breakfast, lunch, and dinner
- Bottled drinking water while on safari
Safari Excludes
- Air tickets
- Optional activities
- Visa fees
- Personal expenses such as telephone calls, email, laundry, and beverages or meals not indicated in the itinerary
- Portage and wait-staff gratuity
