The perfect safari for those who want to see a lot in a short time
This short safari punches well above its weight, packing in many of Uganda’s wildlife highlights including tracking the iconic mountain gorillas, highly sociable chimpanzees, search the famous tree climbing lion and the big cats that roam the Savannah. Enjoy all the smaller animals too and the amazing bird life.
There will be opportunities to learn all about conservation in action and to gain an insight into some of Uganda’s fascinating cultural life.
The itinerary is perhaps most suitable for those with less time available for their holiday but who want to pack as much as possible into that time.
There is a longer version for those who have more time and prefer a slower pace. It also includes a visit to Murchison Falls national park.
Tour Highlights
Gorilla and Chimpanzee tracking experiences
Track through the tropical rainforest tracking your gorilla and chimpanzee family. Once found, spend an hour observing them in their natural habitat: playing, eating, grooming or perhaps snoozing.
Visit a community conservation project
Visit Bigodi wetland, a successful community-run conservation project. A nature walk here will reveal a wealth of birds and primates and your local guide will also share insights into community life.
Cultural experiences with the Bahima
Visit the Bahima people and their beautiful Ankole Long-horned cows. Learn about cattle breeding and husbandry and gain an insight into their culture from smoking milk pots to making ghee.
Lion tracking experience
Join a researcher, as they go off-track, monitoring the big cats in the park. Enjoy excellent viewing and photography opportunities, learn more about the animals, their behavior and conservation efforts.
Boat cruise on Kazinga channel
Enjoy a relaxing boat cruise on Kazinga Channel that connects Lake Edward to Lake George. The channel is known for its high concentration of hippos. It also has elephants, buffaloes and water birds.Itinerary at a glance
Day 1: Arrival at Entebbe International Airport
Day 2: Drive to Kibale National Park. Swamp walk at a community conservation project
Day 3: Chimpanzee tracking. Travel to Queen Elizabeth National Park
Day 4: Lion tracking experience. Boat cruise on the Kazinga Channel
Day 5: Transfer to Ishasha sector for a game drive. Continue to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest
Day 6: Gorilla tracking. Community walk, if time allows
Day 7: Travel to Lake Mburo National Park. Cultural conservation visit
Day 8: Nature walk. Game drive
Day 9: Transfer to Entebbe. Flight home
Day-by-day itinerary
Day 1 - Arrive at Entebbe International Airport
Upon arrival at Entebbe International Airport, you will be met by your guide who will take you to your hotel. S/He will remain with you throughout your safari.
Accommodation: The Boma – Entebbe
Meal plan: Depending on time of arrival
Day 2 - Transfer to Kibale forest. Visit Bigodi wetland for primates and birds
Your guide will collect you from your hotel for your 07:00 transfer to Kibale national park (approx. 5 hours), having lunch en route. The journey is scenic as you pass by roadside markets, forests and tea plantations. In the late afternoon, travel a short distance to a wetland conservation project. See community conservation in action as a community guide takes you on a nature walk and explains how the project protects the wildlife and habitat while benefitting community members. Search for primates like the Red Colobus monkey, Grey-cheeked Mangabey and Red-tailed monkey. Also, look out for birds like the Great Blue Turaco, Hairy-breasted Barbet and various Sunbirds.
Accommodation: Turaco TreeTops Lodge, Kibale national park.
Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 3 - Chimpanzee tracking (12 years+). Transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park
07:30, together with your small group (max 8 people), you will get a briefing at the park headquarters about chimpanzee tracking. After, you will head out into the forest to track your chimpanzee family. When you find them, you may spend one hour with them observing their behaviour, in their natural habitat. Your site guide will tell you all about the chimps, the other flora and fauna in the forest, how they track forest animals and about the avifauna Kibale is famous for. After lunch, relax and enjoy the stunning scenery of the crater lakes region, as you make your way to Queen Elizabeth national park (approx. 3 hours).
Accommodation: Buffalo Safari Lodge, Queen Elizabeth national park.
Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 4 - Lion tracking experience. Boat cruise on the Kazinga Channel
Today provides another outstanding wildlife experience as you move out early to spend 2-3 hours with the lion researchers. Get off the track and participate in their activities of the day which may include monitoring species, climate and habitat, learning about tracking and how tracking devices are used and learning about the animals. Later, visit a Salt Lake and learn about traditional methods of salt extraction. In the afternoon, take a fabulous boat cruise for approx. 3 hours along the Kazinga Channel which links Lakes Edward and George. Keep your eyes peeled for elephant, buffalo, hippos, crocodiles and a wide variety of birds.
Accommodation: Buffalo Safari Lodge, Queen Elizabeth national park.
Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 5 - Ishasha sector. Travel to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Transfer to Ishasha, the southern sector of the park, for a 2-hour game drive. This part of the park has got a rich biodiversity, and it is famous for the tree climbing lions. It is also home to a host of wildlife such as elephant, buffalo, different species of antelope and birds. Later, continue your journey approx. 2 hours to Bwindi Impenetrable national park – home of the endangered mountain gorillas and also a UNESCO world heritage site.
Accommodation: Engagi Lodge, Bwindi national park southern sector.
Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 6 - Gorilla tracking (15 years+)
One of the highlights of your safari starts at 07:30am as you join your tracking group for a briefing from wildlife rangers. Enjoy a forest walk as you track your gorilla family. Once you find them, you have the privilege of spending an hour in their company; watching as they eat, groom, play or move through the forest – memories you will surely treasure. Depending on the duration of your tracking (approx. 2-8 hours), you may have time after to a community walk and learn more about the communities, their involvement in tourism and how they help to conserve the gorillas.
Accommodation: Engagi Lodge, Bwindi national park southern sector.
Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 7 - Travel to Lake Mburo national park. Cultural conservation project.
Start today by transferring (approx. 4-5 hours) up towards Lake Mburo national park and spend the afternoon with the Bahima cattle keepers who live in the areas surrounding the park. This community project aims to conserve the Bahima culture and their Ankole long-horns breeding traditions. Participate in their daily activities which include milking, taking care of the calves, making fire to chase nuisance flies from the cows in the evening. Later that evening, there is a special session giving you the chance to interact with the park‘s Community Conservation staff to hear about the challenges and successes of their work.
Accommodation: Rwakobo Rock, Lake Mburo national park.
Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 8 - Nature walk. Game drive
Lake Mburo is one of Uganda’s smallest but most interesting parks. It has large populations of some species not found in many other Ugandan parks such as eland, zebra and impala. 07:00 you will explore the park on foot initially (for 2 hours), getting closer to the animals, making use of hides and viewing towers and seeing things that would not be visible from the road such as dens, carcasses and tracks. Then explore further afield on a game drive, touring the park’s tracks and visiting locations like watering holes.
Accommodation: Rwakobo Rock, Lake Mburo national park.
Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 9 - Transfer to Entebbe. Flight home
Start your journey back to Entebbe by driving via the equator. You will enjoy photo moments here, pose with a foot in each hemisphere. Continue to reach Entebbe in time for lunch. Depending on the time of your flight, your guide will be happy to take you to a crafts market for souvenir shopping. Later, he/she will drop you at the airport for your flight back home.
Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Extend or customise this itinerary
If you have specific interests or target species we will be happy to suggest alternative and additional activities that fit this itinerary. Simply get in touch.
Relax in comfort
This itinerary features a selection of mid-range properties. We are looking for a good location; somewhere clean, safe and comfortable. We want good service, good food and, where possible, strong responsible travel practices. We are happy to suggest alternative properties and properties in different price brackets.
Responsible travel highlights
We offer fabulous holidays that have a positive impact. We consider people and planet as much as profit and try to ensure, that overall, your visit to Uganda is a force for good. We don’t claim to be perfect but we actively try.
Preserving tribal heritage
The traditional ways of life, culture and languages of many of Uganda’s tribes, like the Bahima, are under threat from ’modernisation’. Authentic community tourism experiences can provide a reason for tribal peoples to practice their traditions, to share them with visitors and preserve them by making them income-generating.
Inclusive economic growth
Gorilla conservation is a success story. Tourism provides employment for local people, and they are able to sell services such as accommodation, guiding, crafts etc. They are therefore protective of the gorillas and gorilla numbers have increased recently. Poaching for bush meat, and encroachment into the forest, have reduced dramatically.
Distributing tourism benefits
The KAMFRED project in Bigod is a community-run project that protects a local swamp which is home to a number of primates like the White Colubus monkey and birds. The swamp is open to the public. The revenue generated has funded different community projects over the years from tree nurseries to healthcare.
Inclusive economic growth
Fees paid to community projects and site guides play a crucial role in distributing tourism benefits more broadly within the community and stimulating local development. By directly supporting these initiatives, tourists contribute to the sustainability of the destinations they visit, ensuring that economic growth is inclusive.Our guests regularly spot…
Gorilla
Chimpanzees
Giraffe
Zebra
Elephant
Lion
Impala
Jackal
Hippo
Eland
Buffalo
Crocodile
Wart hog
Mongoose
Various primates
Insects and butterflies
Various reptiles
Numerous bird species
Where the tour goes
Tour Gallery
Tour information
Duration: 8 nights/ 9 days
Tour Type: Private
Price: Please contact our travel consultants who will be happy to provide detailed price information and options
Included in this price
1 gorilla, 1 chimp tracking permit each
Full-board accommodation in a double room
safari-modified Land Cruiser with English-speaking driver/guide and fuel for this itinerary
All entrance and other fees for the activities included in the itinerary
All entrance and other fees for the activities included in the itinerary
Mineral water in transit
All government taxes
Not included in this price
International flights
Visas
Travel insurance
Personal expenses: alcohol, laundry services and souvenirs
Drinks during meals
Tips (normally 5–10% and around $10 per person, per day for your guide)
Read our Important Booking Information page for booking terms and conditions, payment information and insurance advice.
What Lydia says about this safari…
This short itinerary gives you a taste of Uganda’s classic highlights in a limited time, while also offering the chance to learn about conservation efforts and the country’s fascinating culture. If you have more time, you could extend your trip to explore more national parks and deepen your experience.
Lydia, Venture Uganda Travel Consultant
Extend & Customise
If you have specific interests or target species we will be happy to suggest alternative and additional activities that fit this itinerary.
Enquire now
Got any questions?
If there’s anything you’re not sure about or you would just like to chat about this itinerary, email: philo@ventureuganda.org. Tell me when you’re free, leave a contact email/whatsapp No. and I’ll be in touch.
Ask a question
Ready to book?
Please complete our Enquiry form and we’ll be in touch. Remember to mention the optional activities you would like to book and what kind of room you’d like. You may also find it really useful to look over our important information page where you can find out our terms and insurance policies.
Enquire Today
Travel with Confidence
Sustainability
Responsible travel is something we care deeply about. We try our best to ensure your holiday has a positive impact on wildlife, people and places.
Here to Support
We are available 24/7. Our trained, professional staff are by your side in case of any emergencies, big or small. We’ve got your back.
We’re Recommended
We offer a great experience, tailored to you, but don’t take our word for it, read our reviews.
We’re Local
Uganda is our home so we’ll show you the highlights and take you off-the-beaten track to experience the real Uganda.
Personal Service
Our dedicated travel consultants are experts at preparing tailor-made holidays for solos, couples, group and family travellers.
Expert Local Guides
Our guides are instrumental to ensuring our travellers have an unforgettable experience. We only use the best and our clients love them.