22 Jun Five Inspiring Safaris Routes to Discover in Uganda and Rwanda
At Venture Uganda Travel, we’re proud to specialise in tailor-made tours to Uganda and Rwanda built around any combination of the following exciting activities:
🦍 Primates, wildlife, birding and conservation
🌍 Community and culture
🥾 Adventure and outdoor
🌿 Scenery and down time
🎓 Education (primarily for universities and schools, but we have some crossover visits)
Most clients will take one of five ‘base’ routes, which are then carefully adapted into a personalised itinerary designed around their individual interests and requirements.
Pick ‘n’ Mix
In this blog post, we thought we’d share those five ‘base’ routes and show examples of how a selection of activities can be incorporated to form a tour.
These are just examples. You can pick your choice of activities/experiences from our extensive range, and we will add them to the mix and send you an itinerary to consider.
To make an enquiry, please tell us:
- Which country you are interested in
- Who you will be travelling with (family, group, solo etc)
- The requirements (accommodation standard and room type, any special needs)
- Any travel dates/season being considered or duration
- Key experiences interested in (e.g. gorilla tracking)
- General interests: wildlife, culture, outdoor, education
Our philosophy is that travel, done well, is a good thing. We love to help people enjoy and learn from our destinations while leaving a positive impact. So, all of our itineraries are designed with sustainability in mind.
Uganda: Classic Western Safari Circuit (c.15 nights)
This route takes in wildlife highlights like gorilla tracking and tours the national parks to see the Big 5, along with an array of other wildlife.
We have then woven in some conservation experiences to supplement the wildlife viewing, outdoor activities to keep you active, cultural experiences to learn more about local life, and opportunities to relax and enjoy breathtaking scenery.
There is also a chance to plant some trees at our forest project, adding to a host of sustainability features.
- Entebbe/Kampala guided tour: Explore a choice of religious/cultural/historic sites
- Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary: Rhino tracking nature walk – this is the only place you can see rhinos in Uganda!
- Mango farm tour: Learn from locals and enjoy this delicious fruit
- Murchison Falls National Park: Plenty of exciting activities to do here including game drives, Nile boat cruise, top of the falls for spectacular viewing, visit community project supported by park’s revenue sharing scheme
- Lake Albert: Search for nocturnal animals on a night drive
- Kibale National Park: Chimpanzee tracking, explore Amabeere cultural site and take a gentle hike around the crater lake
- Queen Elizabeth National Park: Game drive (north), Kazinga Channel boat cruise for wildlife, game drive (south), tree planting at Venture project
- Mgahinga National Park: Gorilla tracking, Batwa tribe forest living experience
- Lake Mutanda: Relax on the lake with a scenic boat ride
- Lake Mburo National Park: Game drive and guided safari walk among the animals
- Masaka: Learn how to make bark cloth on a cultural experience
- Entebbe: Sunset boat cruise to the equator line
To see a sample itinerary using this route, please visit our website.
Uganda: Short Western Circuit (c. 9 nights)
This route is perhaps best suited for those with less time available but who still want a jam-packed holiday with unmissable wildlife and cultural experiences.The tour may be shorter, but it still knows how to pack a punch!
- Entebbe: Birding by local boat for the sought-after Shoebill
- Kibale National Park: Track chimpanzees, join community members brewing local banana gin
- Queen Elizabeth National Park: Exhilarating game drives, Kazinga Channel boat cruise on the lookout for wildlife like elephant, buffalo and crocodile
- Bwindi Impenetrable National Park: Unforgettable gorilla tracking, visit the local community, take a scenic nature walk
- Lake Mburo National Park: Enjoy a game drive, horseback or cycling safari,
- Masaka: A local farmer shows you round their coffee farm, visit traditional drum makers and try some African drumming
- Entebbe: Explore local craft markets and find a souvenir to take home!
Short on time? Check out a full itinerary using this route on our website.
Uganda: Eastern Circuit (c. 12 nights)
Get ready to release your inner explorer on our Eastern Circuit. This route takes you off-the-beaten-track to explore some of the less frequently visited parts of Uganda.
Expect epic river sports, waterfall hikes, incredible cultural experiences and, of course, opportunities to enjoy amazing wildlife along the way.
- Entebbe: Ngamba Island chimpanzee sanctuary on Lake Victoria
- Jinja: Choice of river sports such as kayaking and rafting
- Sipi Falls: Run in the footsteps of Olympic champions, 3 waterfalls hike, get to know the locals through cooking with the mamas or cave storytelling
- Pain Upe: Go in search of cheetahs, ostriches, and giraffes on a fantastic game drive
- Moroto: Cultural walk with a local tribe, visit the largest traditional village in East Africa, meet nomadic cattle keepers, and learn from a traditional healer
- Kidepo: Safari walk among the wildlife or explore far and wide on a game drive
- Option to: Fly back to Entebbe or drive back via Murchison Falls National Park.
Find an itinerary for adventure seekers on our website.
Rwanda: Classic Tour (c. 12 nights)
Rwanda is a much smaller country than Uganda, so most clients choose to take a ‘whole country’ circuit.
This route takes you to three national parks covering sweeping savanna, western highlands and tropical rainforest. It also spends time at the lake and gives a taste of city life.
- Kigali: A visit to the Kigali Genocide Memorial provides the context to modern-day Rwanda
- Akagera National Park: Go behind-the-scenes of conservation work, visit local community development organisations and the community centre to learn about park-supported activities. Take a fabulous game drive and/or boat cruise for wildlife viewing.
- Volcanoes National Park: Track a gorilla family through the forest and learn more about efforts to protect these endangered primates, visit the Gorilla Guardians – a community village with former poachers. Also track golden monkeys in this stunning location.
- Lake Kivu: Explore the lake by kayak or take a gentle lakeside walk and visit a coffee farm
- Nyungwe National Park: Opportunity to go chimp tracking and enjoy the famous canopy walk.
- Butare: Discover more fascinating heritage at the Ethnographic Museum and King’s Palace.
If it’s Rwanda you’re looking to explore, check out an itinerary using one route around the country.
Gorilla Tracking Extension to either Rwanda or Uganda (c. 3-4 nights)
These routes simply fly into the country, go to the tracking region and return.
International flight into:
- Kigali, Rwanda (4-5 hours’ drive to Volcanoes NP) or
- Entebbe, Uganda (9-10 hours’ drive to Bwindi NP).
Alternatively, take a c.1-hour domestic flight from Entebbe to Kihihi for north Bwindi NP or Kisoro for south Bwindi NP and Mgahinga NP or
- fly into Rwanda and drive 5-6 hours into Uganda to track.
Gorilla tracking: Starts at 07:30, so you must stay locally the night before (and possibly after) which provides the chance to take in some other local activities too. Tracking takes, on average, between 3-6 hours.
Other gorilla-related activities in Rwanda: Visit the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Gorilla Fund, the tomb of Dian Fossey or ex-poachers, The Gorilla Guardians. In September, there is an annual gorilla naming festival too!
Other gorilla activities in Uganda: Visit Conservation Through Public Health, an NGO set up by award-winning conservationist and gorilla vet Dr Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka.
There are also many other non-gorilla-related activities in these regions.
Visit our tours to see more information about gorilla tracking, or speak to our friendly team!