9 Days Pearl of Africa Classic Safari

Your driver-guide picks you up early at your hotel or residence in Kampala or Entebbe and gives you a briefing before you head north. You pass rural settlements, cultivated fields and roadside markets as the landscape changes towards northern Uganda.

Depending on your departure time, you can add an optional stop at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary for a guided rhino-tracking walk on foot and learn about the conservation work protecting Uganda’s southern white rhinos. This needs extra time and fees and should be arranged in advance.

You continue towards Murchison Falls National Park and reach your lodge, where you check in, enjoy the natural surroundings and have dinner before tomorrow’s wildlife activities.

After an early breakfast you head out on a morning game drive in Murchison Falls National Park, when animals move through the savannah and woodland. Look for elephants, Rothschild’s giraffes, buffaloes, Uganda kobs, hartebeests, waterbucks, warthogs and, with luck, lions. Your guide helps you identify species, explains their behaviour and stops for photography where park rules allow.

You return to the lodge for lunch and a short rest, then take the afternoon boat cruise on the Nile towards the base of Murchison Falls. You pass hippos in the water, Nile crocodiles on the banks and elephants and buffaloes at the shoreline, along with many waterbirds. As you near the lower falls, you see the river moving towards the narrow gorge. The exact approach point and duration depend on operating conditions and safety instructions.

You return to the lodge in the evening for dinner and overnight.

After an early breakfast you check out and visit the top of Murchison Falls. From the designated viewpoints you watch the Nile forced through a narrow rocky gorge, feel the spray and hear the thunder of the water. You have time for photographs and to learn about the area’s geology before returning to the vehicle.

You then begin the long journey south-west towards Kibale Forest National Park, passing rural communities, cultivated fields and trading centres, with a lunch stop on the way. You continue towards Fort Portal and the Kibale area, where the scenery turns greener and more densely vegetated, and reach your lodge in the late afternoon or evening.

After dinner your guide briefs you on the reporting time, clothing and preparation for tomorrow’s chimpanzee tracking. Visiting the falls and reaching Kibale on the same day needs an early start and careful timing, so the schedule is confirmed when the route and lodge are chosen.

After breakfast you go to the visitor centre for a briefing on forest safety and responsible primate viewing, then enter Kibale Forest with experienced guides. The forest is home to chimpanzees as well as other monkeys, forest birds, butterflies and many plants, and your guide helps you read signs of wildlife as you walk.

When the chimpanzees are found, you have a regulated period to watch them in their natural habitat. You may see them feeding, grooming, playing or travelling through the trees, and each encounter is different. Follow your guide’s instructions and the park rules.

You return to the lodge for lunch and a rest. In the afternoon you can add an optional guided visit to Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary, where a local guide shows you the wetland habitats, birds and wildlife and explains how community livelihoods and conservation connect. This depends on time, availability and your package. Dinner and overnight at the lodge. Chimpanzee tracking needs a permit confirmed in advance.

After breakfast you check out and travel to Queen Elizabeth National Park through the countryside of western Uganda, with cultivated hillsides and trading centres around Fort Portal. You reach your lodge around lunchtime, depending on the route and road conditions.

After lunch and a short rest, you take an afternoon game drive if timing allows, mainly around the Kasenyi plains. Look for elephants, buffaloes, Uganda kobs, waterbucks, warthogs and other antelope, and perhaps lions resting in the grass. Your guide explains the animals’ behaviour and the importance of the park’s habitats, and the softer afternoon light is good for photography.

You spend the evening over dinner, ready for tomorrow’s game drive and Kazinga Channel cruise.

After an early breakfast you head out on a morning game drive across the park’s wildlife-rich plains in search of elephants, buffaloes, antelopes and predators. Your guide chooses routes according to conditions and recent sightings and helps you learn about the animals and their habitats.

You return to the lodge for lunch or a short rest, then go to the Kazinga Channel for an afternoon boat cruise. The channel links Lake George and Lake Edward and draws a remarkable concentration of wildlife to its banks. From the boat you see hippos in the water, Nile crocodiles on the shore and elephants and buffaloes gathering near the water, along with fish eagles, kingfishers, pelicans and other waterbirds, depending on the season.

The cruise gives a different perspective from a game drive. Dinner and overnight at the lodge.

After breakfast you check out and travel to the Ishasha sector in the south of Queen Elizabeth National Park, known for lions that sometimes rest in large fig trees. You explore the tracks and scan the trees and grassland, and you may also see elephants, buffaloes, antelopes and many birds. Tree-climbing lion sightings are not guaranteed, but the search is a rewarding way to see another part of the park.

You then continue through the green highlands of south-western Uganda, where the scenery changes to steep hillsides, cultivated slopes and dense vegetation around one of Africa’s most important mountain gorilla habitats.

You reach your lodge in the correct gorilla trekking sector in the afternoon or evening, check in, have dinner and receive a briefing about tomorrow’s trek. Prepare your daypack, hiking boots, waterproof clothing, drinking water and camera.

After an early breakfast you go to the park briefing centre, present your confirmed gorilla permit and identification, and attend the mandatory briefing on forest safety, gorilla behaviour and responsible viewing. With authorised guides and trackers you then enter Bwindi’s montane rainforest in search of a habituated mountain gorilla family.

The trail runs through dense vegetation, steep slopes and sometimes muddy ground, and the time needed to find the gorillas depends on their movements and the conditions. Along the way your guide explains the forest’s ecology, biodiversity and conservation importance. Once you find the gorillas, you normally have one hour with them under the standard trekking rules.

You may see a silverback resting or feeding, mothers with infants and young gorillas playing. Follow the park team’s instructions, keep the required distance and photograph responsibly. After the trek you return to the briefing centre and your lodge for lunch or a packed meal, then rest and reflect before dinner and your last night.

After breakfast you check out and begin the return journey to Kampala or Entebbe. The day is given entirely to the road transfer, with no extra scheduled activities, so you can travel without a tight programme. You pass rolling hills, cultivated countryside, rural settlements and local trading centres, with a meal stop on the way.

You are expected to arrive in the late afternoon or evening, depending on traffic and road conditions. Because the drive from Bwindi is long, travellers with international flights should allow plenty of time between arrival and departure. If your flight is early or has a fixed check-in deadline, consider an extra night or a suitable domestic flight in advance.