5 Days Uganda Gorilla and Chimpanzee Safari

OVERVIEW

5 Days / 4 Nights

5 Days Uganda Gorilla and Chimpanzee Safari to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park and Kibale National Park. This is a great opportunity to combine Gorilla tracking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (home to half of the world’s endangered mountain gorillas) with Chimpanzee trekking or Habituation experience in Kibale National Park. Kibale National Park has been declared as the best place to view habituated wild Chimpanzees. This all-inclusive tour will start and end in Entebbe or Kampala and includes return Airport transfers.

ITINERARY

Morning/Travel: At 7am, your driver guide will pick from your Hotel in Entebbe/Kampala you will drive to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. Your guide will make stopovers at the Equator crossing in Kayabwe for photography, a brief talk and some experiments

Afternoon/Lunch: You will proceed to Mbarara town for lunch en-route at a local restaurant You will then drive past beautiful banana plantations, farms and the amazing Hills of Kigezi.

Evening: You will arrive in the evening and check-in at the lodge for relaxation and overnight

Accommodation;

Budget: Rushaga Havens Lodge/Bakiga Lodge/Ride 4 A Woman

Mid Range: 4 Gorillas Lodge/Gorilla Leisure Lodge

Luxury: Gorilla Heights Lodge/Buhoma Lodge/Nkuringo Bwindi Gorilla Lodge/Kiho Lodge

Main Destination: Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Forest

Meals: Lunch & Dinner (Breakfast Not Included)

Drinks: Drinking Water
Morning/ Briefing: After your early morning breakfast, your guide will drive you to the Park Headquarters for briefing and joining others for briefing before heading into the forest for your gorilla trek. This trek can last for between 30 minutes to 7 hours depending on the location of mountain gorilla family on that particular day.

Trek/Observation: Once you find the gorillas, you will be allowed to spend one hour with them while observing their behaviour, taking photographs before you return to the Park Headquarters for your certificate that confirms that you have tracked gorillas in Uganda.

Afternoon: You will later have your packed Lunch before returning back to the Pak Headquarters

Evening: You will spend the evening relaxing at the Hotel, Later have dinner and overnight

Main Destination: Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Forest

Accommodation;

Budget: Rushaga Havens Lodge/Bakiga Lodge/Ride 4 A Woman

Mid Range: 4 Gorillas Lodge/Gorilla Leisure Lodge

Luxury: Gorilla Heights Lodge/Buhoma Lodge/Nkuringo Bwindi Gorilla Lodge/Kiho Lodge

Meals: All Meals Included

Drinks: Drinking Water
Morning/Transfer: After breakfast we will drive to Kibale National Park for overnight at Chimpanzee Forest Guest House. This journey will take you through Queen Elizabeth National Park where you will have chances of spotting some wild game as we drive through this Savannah dominated national park.

Afternoon/Lunch: You will also have another chance to cross the Equator at Kikolongo. You will also cross several Rivers that originate from Mountain Rwenzori as you go through Kasese district to Fort Portal. You will have a stop in Fort Portal town for lunch before proceeding.

Evening: Arrive at the Hotel in Kibale and check in at Chimpanzee Forest Guest House, you will relax and Later have dinner and overnight.

Main Destination: Kibale Forest National Park

Budget: Chimpanzee Forest Lodge/Isunga Lodge

Mid Range: Turaco Tree Tops Lodge

Luxury: Primate Lodge/Tabebuia Spa and safari Resort/ Ndali Lodge

Meals: All Meals Included

Drinks: Drinking Water
Morning/Briefing: After breakfast, you will drive to Kibale National Park Headquarters for briefing on the Dos and Don’ts of Chimpanzee trekking. You will be divided into small groups of six people headed by one guide who will then move with you into the forest to find one of the Chimpanzee families. Chimpanzees live in communities of between 50-250 individuals but usually breakup into small parties during the day to reduce competition on food. They will then recollect in the evening to build their nests.

Trekking and Observation: Once you find the Chimps, you will be allowed to spend one hour with the Chimps before returning to the lodge for lunch.

Afternoon: After lunch, you head out for wetland walk in the nearby Bigodi Village. Kibale National Park is popular for 13 recorded primates species and several bird species.

Evening: You will then return to the Hotel, relax, have dinner and overnight to end your day.

Main Destination: Kibale Forest National Park

Budget: Chimpanzee Forest Lodge/Isunga Lodge

Mid Range: Turaco Tree Tops Lodge

Luxury: Primate Lodge/Tabebuia Spa and safari Resort/ Ndali Lodge

Meals: All Meals Included

Drinks: Drinking Water
Morning/Drive back: After breakfast, you will drive to Kampala/Entebbe. The drive is very scenic as you will be using a different route from the one that took you to Bwindi

Afternoon/Lunch En route: You will proceed and have a lunch stopover in Mubende at a Local Restaurant.

Evening: You will arrive in Entebbe/Kampala in the evening and proceed to your post-tour accommodation (not included) or to Entebbe International Airport for your international departure flight to end the trip

Main Destination: Entebbe

Accommodation: End of Tour, No accommodation

Meals: Breakfast & Lunch

Drinks: Mineral Water

THINGS TO CONSIDER

Gorilla permits: We encourage you to book gorilla permits in advance so that we secure your trekking spot. Gorilla permits are served on first come first serve at Uganda wildlife Authority. Please contact us so that we book them for you.

Cost of the gorilla permit: The gorilla permits in Uganda cost USD800 for Non-Foreign residents, USD700 for East African Foreign Residents, USD500 for Rest of Africa Residents and UGX300,000 for East African Citizens, cost applies for trekking in Both Bwindi impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga National Park

Gorilla trekking Regions: Bwindi has 4 gorilla trekking sectors namely Buhoma, Ruhaga, Nkuringo and Ruhija. We shall book for you accommodation in respect to the permits location.

Physical Fitness: Gorilla trekking in Bwindi can be physically demanding, a certain level of fitness will be required, please ensure you are in good health and have a certain level of fitness before you leave your country.

Packing List: Please ensure you have comfortable walking/ hiking shoes that can handle the terrain in Bwindi, a rain Jacket, gloves, Camera, Binoculars,

Age Limit: The Minimum age for gorilla trekking in Uganda is 15 years and above, please ensure all travelers are aged 15years and above.

Accommodation Options: Please choose the accommodation that suits your budget, Bwindi has all options of Budget, Midrange and Luxury.

Means of Transport: You can opt to fly or drive to Bwindi, Flights take 1-2 hours, and driving takes 8-9 hours drive to Bwindi. For budget clients, we recommend use of safari vans, then others can opt for Safari Land Cruisers. All vehicles are comfortable with enough leg room, AC and are driven by our professional driver guides.

Best time to visit: Bwindi can be visited all year round for gorilla trekking, The most prefered time is June to September, December to February because they are the drier months of the year.

Gorilla trekking Regulations: Uganda Wildlife Authority has rules and regulations to adhere while on your gorilla trek.

Chances of Seeing the Gorillas: The chances of seeing gorillas are 98% because there are trackers who follow the movement of gorillas on a daily basis, they communicate to the Park guides and you walk in the direction they are.

Choose a gorilla family: You can choose your preferred gorilla family of the day of the trek, if you prefer a close/ easy trek due to your fitness level, please request it and communicate to your guide.

Gorilla Habituation experience: Bwindi has an option of spending 4 hours with the gorillas called gorillas habituation, the is only possible when you book a gorilla permit that costs USD1500 for Non- foreign residents, USD1000 for East African Residents, and UGX750,000 for East African Citizens

Other activities: There are several activities you can do in Bwindi namely Birding, Batwa cultural experience, Nature walks, Community visits. All these can supplement your gorilla trek in Bwindi.

Trip cost estimate: The cost of the 3day gorilla tour ranges from USD1300 to USD2860 per person, based on your travel style which is Budget to Luxury. The cost Includes gorilla permit, accommodation, Meals, transport, and all services.

About Bwindi: Bwindi impenetrable National Park is a UNESCO world heritage site, with half of the worlds gorilla population, it has more than 20 Habituated gorilla families in regions of Buhoma, Rushaga, Ruhija and Nkuringo.

PRICING PER PERSON

1 Person	USD 2,670
2 Persons	USD 2,020
3 Persons	USD 1,990
4 Persons	USD 1,970
5 Persons	USD 1,940
6 Persons	USD 1,900