7 Days Best of Uganda Safari
This 7 Days Best of Uganda Safari is the ultimate itinerary, taking you through some of the country’s most sought-after national parks, including Murchison Falls National Park, Kibale National Park, and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Along the way, you will enjoy outstanding activities such as game drives, boat cruises, chimpanzee tracking in Kibale, and gorilla trekking in Bwindi.
Highlights: 7 Days Best of Uganda Safari
Day 1: Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park, Ziwa Rhino Tracking, Top of the Falls
Day 2: Early-Morning Game Drive in Murchison Falls National Park, Boat Cruise
Day 3: Transfer to Kibale National Park, Tea Plantation Tour
Day 4: Chimpanzee Trekking in Kibale National Park, Bigodi Swamp Walk
Day 5: Transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Day 6: Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Day 7: Departure
Detailed Itinerary: 7 Days Best of Uganda Safari
Day 1: Transfer to Murchison Falls National Park, Ziwa Rhino Tracking, Top of the Falls
Your Uganda safari guide will pick you up from the airport, or from your hotel in Entebbe or Kampala, and brief you on the trip ahead. You will then transfer to Murchison Falls National Park, with a stop en route at the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary for rhino tracking on foot. After a lunch stop, continue to Murchison Falls, arriving in the late afternoon and enjoying striking views of the falls, which you will start to hear a couple of kilometres away.
Continue to your lodge to check in and relax while you wait for dinner and an overnight stay at Pakuba Safari Lodge.
Day 2: Early-Morning Game Drive in Murchison Falls National Park, Boat Cruise
On this second day of your safari, enjoy an early-morning game drive through Murchison Falls National Park in search of wildlife such as lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo, and antelope, among many others.
Return to the lodge for breakfast and relax for the rest of the morning. After lunch, head out for a boat safari on the Nile, taking you to the base of Murchison Falls, where you can watch the water thunder down with tremendous force. Look out for elephant and buffalo drinking or cooling off along the shore, as well as aquatic wildlife such as crocodile and hippo, along with a variety of birdlife. The boat ride lasts roughly two to three hours. Afterward, return to the lodge for dinner and an overnight stay, as above.
Day 3: Transfer to Kibale National Park, Tea Plantation Tour
Drive Time: 7–8 Hours
Wake up to an early breakfast at the lodge, then transfer to Kibale National Park, known as the primate capital of the world, home to more than ten primate species. You will stop for lunch en route before continuing on to the park.
In the evening, enjoy a tea plantation tour, watching how tea is grown, harvested, and processed right up until it reaches your cup. The plantations make for beautiful photographs, so be sure to ask your guide to help capture a few memorable shots.
Continue to your lodge to check in and relax while you wait for dinner and an overnight stay at Isunga Lodge / Chimpanzee Forest Guesthouse.
Day 4: Chimpanzee Trekking in Kibale National Park, Bigodi Swamp Walk
Wake up to an early breakfast at the lodge on this fourth day of your safari. Head to the briefing point for a debrief on chimpanzee trekking in Kibale National Park. You will be allocated into groups and set off hiking through the park in search of the chimpanzees, whom you will likely hear before you see, given their active and noisy nature. Spend up to an hour with them, then return to the lodge for a hot lunch.
Later in the afternoon, head out for a Bigodi swamp walk, an opportunity to enjoy wonderful birdlife and nature. Return to the lodge for dinner and an overnight stay, as above.
Day 5: Transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Drive Time: 6–8 Hours
After breakfast at the lodge, and with your packed lunch in hand, transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, taking in remarkable views of the Kigezi Highlands and surrounding communities along the way. Upon arrival, continue to your lodge to check in and relax as you look forward to the big day ahead: seeing the gorillas. Dinner and an overnight stay at Buhoma Haven Lodge.
Day 6: Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
After breakfast at the lodge, head out for a briefing at the park headquarters, where you will also enjoy a cultural performance by local women from the community. Once placed into groups of eight and allocated a gorilla family, you will trek through the impenetrable rainforest in the company of park rangers and guides in search of the gorillas. Once found, you will spend up to an hour in the company of these gentle giants. Gorilla trekking in Bwindi can take three to six hours or more, depending on the family’s location and the terrain.
Return to the starting point to meet your guide, then continue to the lodge for a late lunch. Relax for the rest of the afternoon at the lodge. Dinner and an overnight stay, as above.
Optional Activity: A visit to the Batwa pygmy community.
Day 7: Departure
Drive Time: 8–9 Hours
Wake up to a hearty breakfast at the lodge, check out, and transfer back to Kampala or Entebbe, with a lunch stop and the Equator water experiment along the way. You will be dropped off at the airport in time for your flight, or at your hotel in Entebbe or Kampala, bringing your safari to an end.
