Tour Overview
This 6-day Uganda great apes safari will take you to the home of the gentle giants (Mountain Gorillas) – Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. After your date with the gentle giants, you will travel to Mgahinga for a Batwa ‘pygmies’ cultural experience via Lake Bunyonyi and concludes with a visit to the Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary offshore at Entebbe.
DETAILED ITINERARY:
Day 1: Arrival in Uganda
You arrive at Entebbe airport, located on a peninsula that juts out into the largest fresh-water lake in Africa, where a representative/guide from Noworks tours and travel will welcome you and transfer you to Eureka Place Hotel Kampala.
Meal Plan: No meals inclusive
Day 2: Drive to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
You are up early and enjoy your breakfast. After your breakfast at 6.00am, your driver/guide will pick you up from your hotel/lodge in Kampala to commence your transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (up to 11 hours). You can make a stop at the Equator Crossing at Kayabwe for some fun pictures, refreshment or ignore that for when you return. You will continue your journey with a stop in Mbarara for your quick lunch at Igongo Cultural Centre/Agip Motel. After lunch, you will continue onto Kisoro via Kabale. Once in Kisoro, you will continue on to the Rushaga area. On arrival, you will check-in at Gorilla Valley Lodge dinner and overnight stay.
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 3: Gorilla tracking & relax at lodge
Get up at 6.00am for a quick breakfast and transfer to the Rushaga gate of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park – which is 25 kilometres (1 hour drive) away. With packed lunch in your carry-on, your guide will deliver you to the Rushaga tracking point before 8:00 am for registration and a briefing on what to expect before commencing your tracking. The guides will then take you through the bush, pushing your way through the undergrowth, parting thick creepers, to track the gorillas. (Tracking can take from half an hour to 5 hours – a reasonable degree of fitness is required as well as a sturdy pair of walking shoes). When you finally locate the family that you are tracking, sit in the forest among the gorillas, listening to them grumble to each other, and marvel at the sheer size of the dominant male; the silverback. It is an extraordinary feeling sitting in the dense rainforest in the knowledge you are in the presence of the few remaining Mountain Gorillas in the wild. After the mandatory 1 hour is up, the rangers and guides will lead you back to the starting point where your guide will be waiting for you to return you back to the lodge. Have the rest of the day to yourself.
What to bring for gorilla tracking/trekking: light hiking boots, light rain jacket, daypack, 2 litres of water, gardening gloves, binoculars, camera, long trousers either jeans/khakis, long-sleeved shirt, wide-brimmed hat, sun glasses, insect repellent and an energy bar (s). Â
 Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 4: Transfer to Mgahinga & Batwa Trail Experience
This morning, enjoy your breakfast and commence your transfer to Mgahinga National Park for your Batwa ‘Pygmies’ trail experience. The Batwa are one of the oldest peoples in Africa. They roamed the forests looking for fruits and honey, and hunted with bows and trained dogs. As the woods were cut down by the Bantu people, Batwa numbers dwindled. A visit to the Batwa trail permits visitors to discover the magic of the indigenous people old home while partaking in nature walks and learning about the group’s cultural heritage.
During this moving cultural encounter tour, the Batwa demonstrate hunting techniques; gather honey; point out medicinal plants and demonstrate bamboo cups. Guests are finally invited to the sacred Ngarama Cave, once home to the Batwa King, where the women of the community perform a sorrowful song which echoes eerily around the depths of the dark cave, and leaves guests with a striking and moving sense of the richness of this fading culture. This is truly a unique experience for visitors to learn about the traditional culture of the indigenous people. After this activity, you will transfer to Lake Bunyonyi. Dinner and overnight at Sharp Island Gorilla Lodge.
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 5: Transfer to Entebbe
After breakfast, you can opt for a quick tour of some of Lake Bunyonyi’s beautiful islands or straight away begin your journey to Entebbe via Kampala with a lunch stop in Mbarara town. After lunch, you continue onto Kampala with another stop at the Equator crossing for some fun photo shoots and a visit to the crafts village. Dinner and overnight at Eureka Place Hotel Kampala.
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 6: Ngamba Island Visit and Departure
After an early breakfast, you will be transferred to the Water Front at Entebbe where you will take a boat ride to Ngamba Island (23km) – the Chimpanzee Sanctuary. Upon arrival at Ngamba Island, you will be welcomed by the duty caregiver of the Chimpanzees. Pre-arranged supplementary feeding times (11.00 am & 3.00 pm each day) brings the chimpanzees within meters of the raised walkway specially designed for easy viewing and provides excellent photographic opportunities. After having lunch you will take a boat ride back to Entebbe. Your guide will drop you off at the airport in time to catch your flight to your next destination.
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch
Package Includes
- Accommodation in standard rooms as described above (or similar) according to the option chosen
- On the ground transport in 7-seater Safari Mini Vans
- Game drives, excursions and sight-seeing activities (if any) as described above
- Activities (if any) as outlined in detailed itinerary
- Transfers as indicated in the itinerary
- Meals as indicated in the itinerary
- Services of an English-speaking driver guide
- Gorilla Permits
- Batwa Trail experience
- Bottled water whilst on safari (2 half-litre bottles per person per day)
Package Excludes
- Personal expenses such travel and medical insurance, excess baggage fee, communication charges that include, emails, faxes and phone calls beverages including water, soft drinks, luxury champagne, spirits or meals not included in the itinerary
- Gratuity for porterage/ waiters at hotels, camps and airports
- Gratuity for your professional driver guide
- Cost of obtaining Visas ($50)
- Any optional tours and excursions not mentioned in the itinerary
- Travel Insurance
- International + Airfare
