4 Days Combined Uganda Safari Tour Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Safaris – Overview

The 4 Days Combined Uganda Safari Tour Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Safaris primarily centres on gorilla trekking in the destinations of Uganda and Rwanda.

Mountain gorilla trekking is organised in four National Parks on world scale and these include Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda, Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda and Virunga National Park in Democratic Republic of Congo.

This safari presents an opportunity to explore two of the listed destinations which at the same time, are the main gorilla trekking areas.

Bwindi features twelve (12) habituated gorilla groups in its four regions while Volcanoes features ten (10) habituated gorilla groups.

These destinations differ in terms of terrain and the vegetation nature which makes the tracking different and thus generating diverse experience.

The 4 Days Combined Uganda Safari Tour Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Safaris begins and ends in Kampala Uganda with a recreation on Lake Bunyonyi – the land of a thousand Islands.

4 Days Combined Uganda Safari Tour Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Safaris – Highlights

Day 1: Drive to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Make an en route stop at Uganda Equator crossing Kayabwe for amazing photo shoots and water experiments and Igongo Cultural Center for traditional Lunch

Day 2: Undertake Gorilla trekking & drive to Rwanda (Volcanoes National Park)

Day 3: Undertake gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park and transfer back to Uganda (Lake Bunyonyi)

Day 4: Undertake a morning boat ride and drive to Kampala

4 Days Combined Uganda Safari Tour Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Safaris – Detailed Itinerary

Day 1: Drive to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.

Make an en route stop at Uganda Equator crossing Kayabwe for amazing photo shoots and water experiments and Igongo Cultural Center for traditional Lunch

Early in the morning you will meet and greet our driver guide in your Kampala Hotel, home or any other meeting place and then he will brief you more about the safari.

Immediately After the briefing and your early morning breakfast, you will embark on the 9 – 10 hour journey drive to the southwest of Uganda.

After covering drive distance of 77km, you will make a stopover at the Equator crossing – Kayabwe for photo shooting and participating in the magnificent water experiments to evidence the separation of the northern and southern hemispheres.

After the wonderful stop over at the Equator, you will return to your vehicle and continue with highly rewarding drive through the farmed hill sides and the urban environments of Masaka to Igongo.

You will have stop at Igongo cultural center situated just 12km to Mbarara town for lunch. The delicious meal served at Kahwa Kanuzire restaurant in Igongo will give you a real taste of Ugandan traditional cuisine.

After Lunch you will proceed with your drive through Mbarara Town to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.

You will arrive in Bwindi in the evening and drive direct to your lodge for check in, relaxation, Dinner and overnight.

Accommodation:
Upmarket / Luxury: Chameleon Hill Lodge / Buhoma Lodge
Midrange / Standard: Gorilla Mist Camp / Gorilla Valley Lodge
Budget / Basic: Broadbill Forest Camp

Day 2: Undertake Gorilla trekking & Drive to Rwanda (Volcanoes National Park)

On your second day, you will be required to wake up very early in the morning, take your breakfast, pack your lunch, water, cameras, and drive to the Park Headquarters for briefing from the park rangers about the code conduct of gorilla trekking activity.

After the short briefing, you will be divided in groups of 8 individuals and UWA ranger guide will lead you to start the challenging but highly rewarding trek through the impenetrable jungle of Bwindi with its rugged landscape involving steep slopes, valleys, swamps, and rocky areas amidst amazing jungle melodies coming from different bird species which is an interesting experience of its own.

After long distance walk of like 2-8hours, you will finally come across these endangered apes thriving in their ancient natural habitat foraging in group.

You will be given one hour to marvel at the stunning gorillas as they welcome you, interact, take photos of these apes, and finally say bye when your one hour with them is used up.

After that life time experience, you will retreat from the activity to the park head Quarters and embark on the transfer to Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park via the Chanika border post arriving in the evening for relaxation, dinner and overnight

Accommodation:
Upmarket / Luxury: Mount Gorilla View Lodge / Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge / Virunga Lodge
Midrange / Standard: Hotel La Palme / Le Bambou Gorilla Lodge
Budget / Basic: Muhabura Hotel

Day : Undertake Gorilla Trekking in Volcanoes National Park and Transfer Back to Uganda (Lake Bunyonyi)

After a good breakfast at your lodge, you gather at the Volcanoes Park Headquarters Kinigi for the gorilla trekking experience.

The encounter commences at 8am in the morning with gorilla family allocation and briefing but an earlier arrival offers you chances of enjoying the magical performances of the Kinyarwanda dance troupe and a self served warm cup of coffee.

You embark on the hike through the jungle of Volcanoes on the slopes of the Virunga Volcanoes traversing the challenging landscapes, slippery surfaces, the dense jungle whilst enjoying the impressive bird songs and other jungle sounds.

Your moment with the mountain gorillas is a lifetime exciting memory as you will view them forage, play, socialize, and care for the young among other aspects.

The viewing is limited to one hour for conservation purposes though the entire trekking experience can last from 2 – 8 hours.

Return from the activity and embark on the 120km transfer about 3 hours drive to Lake Bunyonyi Uganda enjoying the amazing sceneries of the Virunga Mountains and the fascinating Kigezi Highlands

Accommodation:
Upmarket / Luxury: Birdnest @Lake Bunyonyi Resort
Midrange / Standard: Lake Bunyonyi Eco Resort
Budget / Basic: Byoona Amagara Island Retreat

Day 4: Undertake a Morning Boat Ride and Drive to Kampala

Undertake a thrilling boat ride on the lake of a thousand Islands as it has been dubbed due to count of 29 Islands that comprise it.

The lake is surrounded by the magical hills of Kigezi and stands as the second deepest in Africa. You interact with the lake surrounding and Island communities as they traverse the lake for fish and connection to and from the main land.

You retreat from the ride and embark on the transfer to Kampala 437km about 7 hours drive with a lunch stop at Igongo Cultural Center 12km past Mbarara town.

End of the 4 Days Combined Uganda Safari Tour Rwanda Gorilla Trekking Safaris

Safari Inclusions

• Gorilla Permit (for gorilla trekking safaris)
• Chimpanzee Permit (for chimpanzee trekking safaris)
• Full Board Accommodation on Safari
• Transportation in either 4X4 Safari Van or 4X4 Safari Land Cruiser all with Pop up roof & AC
• Fuel
• Professional English Speaking driver guide. Any other foreign language speaking guide can be arranged on request.
• Entrance fees to the tourist sites including Protected areas mentioned
• Activity fees of the tourist activities mentioned
• Bottled water while on safari
• Border crossing fees (for cross border safaris)

Safari Exclusions

• General tips for the driver guide, site guides and service staff at the lodges
• Laundry Services
• Other Beverages / drinks of personal nature like Alcohol
• International Flights (Arranged on request)
• Domestic Flights (Arranged on request)
• Visas
• Optional Activity fees
• Other extras not mentioned in the Itinerary
• Airport Transfer (Arranged on request)
• Accommodation in Kampala or Kigali unless it is part of the Itinerary (Arranged on request)