9 Days Chimpanzee and Gorilla Tour
This 9 Days Chimpanzee and Gorilla Tour experience on which you will encounter Uganda’s remarkable primates that is the chimpanzees in the forests of Kibale and Mountain gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
In addition to chimpanzees and mountain gorillas, you will also visit Uganda’s popular wildlife destination – Queen Elizabeth National Park where you will spot a variety of wildlife species including lions, leopards, buffaloes, zebras, gazelles among others.
Places to Visit : Kibale National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
Highlights for 9 Days Chimpanzee and Gorilla Tour
Day 1: Arrival at Entebbe Airport – Uganda
Day 2: Kampala – Kibale National Park
Day 3: Full Day in Kibale National Park
Day 4: Transfer From Kibale National Park to Queen Elizabeth National Park
Day 5: Queen Elizabeth National Park
Day 6: Transfer From Queen Elizabeth National Park to Bwindi
Day 7: Gorilla Trekking
Day 8: Transfer from Bwindi to Kampala
Day 9: Departure
9 Days Chimpanzee and Gorilla Tour Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival at Entebbe Airport – Uganda
On arrival at Entebbe International Airport, you will be welcomed by our company representative then transfer you to your hotel in Kampala, depending on time of arrival, there is an option of a city tour. Have dinner and stay overnight.
Accommodation: Mestil Hotel
Meal Plan: Dinner
Day 2: Kampala – Kibale National Park
After breakfast, you will depart from Kampala and head west via Fort Portal to Kibale National Park, with en-route stop for lunch. Fort Portal town rests in the shadow of “Mountains of the Moon” – Rwenzori Mountain and is famous for the many tea plantations.
Continue to Kibale National Park with a drive through the region of Crater Lakes and enjoy stunning beauty, you will have a short tour around the crater lake and head to your lodge. Check- in and spend the evening, have dinner and stay overnight.
Accommodation: Primate Lodge Kabale
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 3: Full Day in Kibale National Park
After breakfast at the lodge, you will head to the park’s headquarters for chimpanzee trekking experience, you will join other trekkers at the park’s headquarters for briefing about chimpanzee trekking and how to behalf while in Kibale forests and presence of chimpanzees.
Kibale Forest is reputable for hosting the greatest variety and highest concertation of primates in East Africa, with your guide you will walk into the tropical forests in search for the chimpanzees. You will spot other primates living in the forests such as red-tailed monkey, black-and-white colobus monkey, and many birds.
When you locate the chimpanzees, you will have 1 hour of staying in the presence of the chimpanzees while observing their behavior and taking among pictures. Return to the lodge for lunch and in the afternoon, you will go for a Bigodi Swamp Walk offering you a totally different nature. This walk is an initiative of the local community and is known for its rich diversity of birds and primates which you will see during the walk.
Accommodation: Primate Lodge Kibale
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 4: Transfer From Kibale National Park to Queen Elizabeth National Park
After breakfast, you will transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park, along the way you will enjoy scenic beauty of the crater lakes, tea plantations and the lush green vegetation in the area. Have en-route lunch and when you arrive in the park, you will have afternoon game drive as you head to your lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
Accommodation: Mweya Safari Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 5: Queen Elizabeth National Park
Have early coffee and head to the Kasenyi Plains the mating ground for the Uganda Kobs where you will spot predators such as lions and leopards hunting, other animals to lookout for include elephants, buffaloes among others.
Return to the lodge for lunch and in the afternoon, you will go for a boat cruise along the Kazinga Channel giving you the opportunity to enjoy wildlife such as hippos and Nile crocodiles in the waters and cape buffaloes, elephants and many bird species along the banks of the channel. The Kazinga Channel is a place where you will find the highest concentration of Hippos in East Africa, return to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
Accommodation: Mweya Safari Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 6: Transfer From Queen Elizabeth National Park to Bwindi
After breakfast, you will head for a game drive in the Ishasha Sector where you will spot the tree climbing lions, continue to the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park with en-route lunch. When you arrive in Bwindi, you will check in at your lodge and spend the evening relaxing. Have dinner and stay overnight.
Accommodation: Buhoma Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 7: Gorilla Trekking
After breakfast, you will head to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park for gorilla trekking experience, you will join other trekkers at the park’s headquarters for briefing about gorilla trekking and rules and regulations to follow.
You will be grouped into 8 people and be assigned a gorilla family to trek and head into the forests of Bwindi looking for gorillas, the trek takes approximately 2 hours to 6 hours or more depending on the feeding range of the gorillas and where they spent their previous night.
Once you find the gorillas, you will spend one hour in their presence taking pictures and observing their amazing behavior which is similar to human presence, you can take pictures as long as your flashlight is off.
Trek back to the park’s headquarters to pick your chimpanzee trekking permit and head back to your lodge or to the Batwa Village for a cultural encounter and interaction with the Batwa People. Return to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
Accommodation: Buhoma Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 8: Transfer from Bwindi to Kampala
Have a leisure breakfast then set off back to Kampala or Entebbe on a long drive of over 8 hours, along the way you will be rewarded with stunning views of winding roads and hills, have stopovers at various sites such as the Uganda Equator and the drum center and many others.
When you arrive in Kampala, you will be dropped off at your hotel in Kampala for dinner and overnight stay.
Accommodation: Buhoma Lodge
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 9: Departure
After a leisure breakfast, you will be transferred to the airport for your international flight back home. Depending on your flight schedule, you can do a city tour around Kampala visiting some of the famous historical sites such as Kasubi tombs. Then be dropped off at the airport.
End of 9 Days Chimpanzee and Gorilla Tour
INCLUSIONS
- Gorilla Permit
- All activities (unless labeled as optional)
- All accommodation as stated in the itinerary
- A professional driver/guide
- All Taxes/VAT
- All Meals (as specified in the day-by-day section)
- Drinking water on all days
EXCLUSIONS
- International flights (from/to home)
- Tips (tipping guideline US$20.00 pp per day)
- Personal items (souvenirs, travel insurance, visa fees, etc.)
- Services not mentioned in the program
- Travel insurance and medical repatriation
- Items of a personal nature
