11 Days Uganda Rwanda Primates Tour
This 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates tour will start from Kigali and end in Kampala. The safari will take you to Nyungwe national park where you will engage in chimpanzee trekking and interesting canopy walk. From Nyungwe national park you will connect to Volcanoes where you will engage in gorilla trekking and then transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park for another gorilla trekking activity to compare experiences. From Bwindi forest you will connect to Queen Elizabeth national park where you will view different wildlife species during the game drive and boat cruise. You will wrap up your safari with a tour to Kibale national park where you will go for a nature walk in Bigodi swamp and also visit the chimpanzees in their natural habitat.
Highlights of the 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates tour
Day 1: Pick up and transfer to Nyungwe national park
Day 2: Chimpanzee trekking and canopy walk
Day 3: Transfer to Volcanoes
Day 4: Gorilla trekking
Day 5: Transfer to Bwindi
Day 6: Gorilla trekking
Day 7: Transfer to Queen
Day 8: Morning game drive and boat cruise
Day 9: Game drive and transfer to Kibale national park
Day 10: Chimpanzee trekking and Bigodi swamp walk
Day 11: Departure to Kampala
Detailed itinerary
Day 1 of the 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates tour
Arrival and transfer to Nyungwe national park, upon arrival at Kigali international airport on the first day of your 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates safari, you will be welcomed by our driver guide who will brief you about the safari and then start the journey to Nyungwe national park. The national park is located in north western part of Rwanda and on the way you will have a stopover at the King’s Palace and Museum in Nyanza which formerly acted as the residence of King Mutara iii Rudahigwa. The King’s Palace is shaped like a beehive and offers views of long horned Inyambo cattle at the back which descended from the king’s heard and played an important role during ceremonies in honor of the King. During the tour at the museum in Nyanza you will view different collections of Africa’s tradition materials. After the tour at the king’s palace you will have lunch and then proceed with the journey to Nyungwe national park, upon arrival you will check into the lodge, have dinner and overnight.
Day 2: Chimpanzee trekking and canopy walk
Chimpanzee trekking, after an early breakfast on the second day of the 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates safari you will meet up with your driver guide to transfer to the park headquarters for the briefing about the rules and regulations of chimpanzee trekking. After the briefing you will be allocated a chimpanzee family to trek and a park guide who will be sharing information about the chimpanzees as well as conversant with trails in the forest. Chimpanzee Trekking in Nyungwe national park takes about 30 minutes to 4 hours or even longer depending on where they are located because they like to move from one place to another in search of food.
Once the chimpanzees are found you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural habitat where you will be able to learn more about their lifestyle, habits, behaviors, watch them feed, play, breastfeed, rest, hunt among others, take photos and record videos which gives you lifetime experiences on the safari. After the one hour encounter with the chimpanzees you will trek back to the park headquarters, meet up with your driver guide and drive back to the lodge for lunch.
Canopy walk, after lunch you will go for an interesting canopy walk which starts at Uwinka reception centre which is also the park headquarters. The canopy walkway is 200meters in length, 90 m long and Nyungwe national park is the only destination in East Africa offering this exciting activity. The canopy walk activity was opened in 2010 and the bridge is 60m above the forest and goes through huge trees across steep and deep valley filled with thick forest. The canopy walk takes about 2 hours and offers you with spectacular views of the bird species, butterflies, primates like blue monkeys, l’hoest monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys, tree species such as purple orchids among others. After the canopy walk you will trek back to the starting point where you will meet up with your driver guide to drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 3: Transfer to Volcanoes national park
After breakfast on the third day of the 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates safari, you will check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Volcanoes national park. You will have a stopover at Lake Kivu where you will have great views of the lake, beautiful landscape, sunrise, bird species among others along the lake shores. From Lake Kivu you will proceed with the journey to Volcanoes national park with another stopover for en-route lunch and upon arrival you will check into the lodge, have dinner and overnight.
Day 4: Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park
Gorilla trekking, after an early breakfast on the fourth day of the 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates safari you will carry packed lunch and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kinigi park headquarters for a briefing about the rules and regulations of gorilla trekking. Gorilla trekking in Volcanoes national park is done in a group of 8 people where each group is allocated a gorilla family to trek and a park guide who is well conversant with trails in the forest. Trekking of the mountain gorillas in the park starts at 8:00 am and takes about 30 minutes to 7 hours depending on the location of the gorillas.
During trekking you will be able to view colorful bird species, animals, other primates like black and white colobus monkeys, l’hoest monkeys, plant species among others and once the gorillas are found you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural habitat. During the one hour with the mountain gorillas you will be able to learn about their lifestyle, behaviors, watch them carry out their daily activities like feeding, breast feeding, take photos, record the moments to show people back home among others. After the one hour with the gorillas you will trek back to the park headquarters, meet up with your driver guide and transfer to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 5: Transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park
On the fifth day of the 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates safari, you will have breakfast check out of the lodge and your driver guide will pick you up to transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park in southwestern Uganda. The journey takes about 3 to 4 hours drive passing via Cyanika border in Kisoro or Katuna border in Kabale. On the way you will have en-route lunch and great views of the rolling hills in Rwanda, Kigezi hills, terraced farmlands, beautiful landscapes among others. Upon arrival you will check into the lodge, have dinner and overnight.
Day 6: Gorilla trekking in Bwindi impenetrable national park
Gorilla trekking, after an early breakfast on the sixth day of the 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates safari, you will carry packed lunch and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to the park headquarters for a briefing about the gorilla trekking rules and regulations. After the briefing you will be grouped into 8 people where each group will be allocated a gorilla family to trek and park guide who is well conversant with trails in the jungle. Grouping of individuals in Bwindi national park is done according to various factors such age, physical fitness and personal preferences because gorilla trekking is strenuous therefore in case you are not physically fit you are advised to communicate with your driver guide so that you are allocated a gorilla family that is near to trek.
Gorilla trekking in the park takes 30 minutes to 7 hours depending on where the gorillas are located, during trekking you will have spectacular views of the forest birds such as Rwenzori batis, handsome francolin, animals like forest elephants, bush pigs, warthogs, primates like l’hoest monkeys, red tailed monkeys, chimpanzees, black and white colobus monkeys among others. When the gorillas are found you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural habitat which gives you an opportunity to learn more about their lifestyle, behaviors, watch them carry out their daily activities, take photos and record videos. After the face to face encounter with the gentle giants you will trek back to the park headquarters where you will be awarded a certificate for participating in gorilla trekking, meet up with your driver guide and transfer back to the lodge for an evening relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Day 7: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park
After breakfast on the seventh day of the 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates tour, you will check out of the lodge and your driver guide will pick you up to transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park which is the second largest protested area in Uganda. The journey takes about 2 to 3 hours drive and on your way you will pass via Ishasha sector where you will view the tree climbing lions lying up in the acacia, fig tree branches staring at the antelopes grazing in the open savannah plains. The tree climbing lions in Ishasha sector will be viewed during the game drive and they are believed to climb trees due to various reason such as to escape heat from the ground, run away from biting insects like tsetse flies, to have a clear view of the prey among others. After the game drive in Ishasha sector you will go for lunch and then continue to Queen Elizabeth national park where you will check into the lodge, have dinner and overnight.
Day 8: Morning game drive/lion tracking and afternoon boat cruise
Game drive/ lion tracking experience, on the eighth day of the 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates tour you will have an early breakfast and meet up with your driver guide to go for a morning game drive or lion tracking experience. The game drive is commonly done in Kasenyi plains during this interesting activity you should look out for animals like elephants, lions, leopards, Uganda kobs, waterbucks, buffaloes, giant forest hogs, bushbucks, warthogs, bird species like martial eagle, African skimmer, grey crowned crane, red throat spur fowl, yellow throated long crow among others. After the game drive you will drive to the lodge for lunch.
Boat cruise, after lunch you will go for an amazing boat cruise on Kazinga channel a water body that joins Lake Edward and Lake George. The boat cruise is done in three schedules for example the morning scheduled boat cruise, the afternoon scheduled boat cruise and the evening scheduled boat cruise. Each scheduled boat ride takes about 2 to 3 hours and during the afternoon scheduled boat cruise you will be able to take beautiful pictures, have spectacular views of the landscape, fishermen organizing their fishing gears, view large concentrations of hippos and Nile crocodiles in water, elephants, buffaloes, antelopes among others along the water banks, aquatic birds like fish eagle, long tailed cormorants, spur winged plover, squacco heron, black crake, papyrus gonolek, African jacana among others. After the interesting boat ride you will meet up with your guide and transfer to the lodge for an evening relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Day 9: Morning game drive and transfer to Kibale national park
Game drive, on the ninth day of the 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates safari you will have breakfast and meet up with your driver guide to go for another morning game drive in the park. During the game drive you will have an opportunity to view some of the wildlife species that you will have missed during the previous game drive. After the game drive you will drive to Katwe Crater Lake where you will have great views of the landscape, migratory birds and the local people who will be extracting rock salt from the lake and selling it to traders to earn a living. From Lake Katwe you will drive back to the lodge for lunch.
Transfer to Kibale national park, after lunch you will check out of the lodge, meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kibale national park. The journey takes about 3 hours drive and on the way you will have spectacular views of the Rwenzori Mountains, crater lakes, beautiful scenery, tea plantations, primates like baboons among others. Upon arrival you will check into the lodge, have dinner and overnight.
Day 10: Chimpanzee trekking and Bigodi swamp walk
Chimpanzee trekking, after an early breakfast on the tenth day of the 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates tour your driver guide will pick you up from the lodge to transfer to Kanyachu visitors center for a briefing about the rules, regulations and expectations of chimpanzee trekking. After the briefing you will be grouped into 6 people where each group will be allocated a chimpanzee family to trek, a park guide who is well conversant with trails in the forest and then start trekking. Chimpanzee trekking in Kibale national park takes about 30 minutes to 4 hours or even longer depending on where the chimpanzees are located because they like to move from one place to another in search of food.
During trekking you will be able to view different bird species, plant and tree species, animals like elephants, buffaloes, bush pigs, warthogs, primates like vervet monkeys, l’hoest monkeys, red tailed monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys among others. Once the chimpanzees are found you will be able to spend one hour with them in their natural habitat which helps you to watch them feed, breastfeed, hunt, play, rest, learn about their lifestyle, take photos and record the moments. After spending one hour with the chimpanzees you will trek back to the park headquarters where you will meet up with your driver guide to transfer to the lodge for lunch.
Bigodi swamp walk, after lunch you will go for nature walk in Bigodi wetland a sanctuary that is managed by community tourism initiative and has transformed the lives of people in Bigodi. During the guided swamp walk you will pass through boardwalks, papyrus plants where you will be able to view bird species like great blue turaco, barbets, hornbills, papyrus gonolek, weavers, plant and tree species, primates like red tailed monkeys, l’hoest monkeys, grey cheeked mangabey, black and white colobus monkeys, baboons, animals like antelopes among others. After the swamp walk you will meet up with your driver guide at the starting point and drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 11: Departure to Kampala
On the last day of the 11 days Uganda Rwanda primates tour, you will have an ultimate breakfast, check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to start the journey to Kampala. On the way you will have a stopover at Igongo Cultural Center for lunch and another stopover at the Equator in Kayabwe where you will be able to buy souvenirs and take good pictures. From the Equator you will continue to Kampala where you will reach early evening and your driver guide will drop you off at Entebbe international airport for your next flight or drop off at any place of convenience.
End of 11 days Uganda Rwanda Primates tour
Tour includes
- Gorilla trekking permits
- Chimpanzee trekking permits
- Canopy walk
- Bigodi swamp walk
- Park entrance fees
- Boat cruise fee on Kazinga channel
- Services of an English speaking driver guide
- Full board accommodation
- Pick up and drop off
- Vehicle and fuel
- Bottled water
Tour excludes
- Air flight tickets
- Visas
- Optional activities not included on the itinerary
- Personal expenses like buying souvenirs, crafts, drinks, laundry services, tips among others.
