5 Days Bwindi Gorillas, Lake Mburo and Lake Bunyonyi Tour
5 Days Bwindi Gorillas, Lake Mburo and Lake Bunyonyi Tour is one of the incredible Uganda safaris that start and end in Kampala. During the tour you will be able to visit Lake Mburo national park where you will have great views of wild animals such as buffaloes, warthogs, elands, impalas, waterbucks, bushbucks, hippos, crocodiles, different bird species among others. From Lake Mburo national park you will connect to Bwindi impenetrable national park where you will engage in an exciting gorilla trekking activity, Bwindi impenetrable national park is also the best gorilla destination because it harbors the highest number of mountain gorillas. You will wrap up your safari with a tour to Lake Bunyonyi which is the deepest fresh water lake in Uganda that harbors different bird species and 29 islands.
Highlights of the 5 days Bwindi gorillas, Lake Mburo and Lake Bunyonyi tour
- Day 1: Pick up from Entebbe airport and transfer to Lake Mburo national park
- Day 2: Morning game drive and transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park
- Day 3: Gorilla trekking
- Day 4: Transfer to Lake Bunyonyi
- Day 5: Departure to Kampala
Detailed itinerary
Day 1 of the 5 days Bwindi gorillas, Lake Mburo and Lake Bunyonyi tour
Pick up and transfer to Lake Mburo national park, depending on your location on the first day of the 5 days Bwindi gorillas, Lake Mburo and Lake Bunyonyi tour, you will be welcomed by our representative who will brief you about the safari and then start the journey to Lake Mburo national park. The journey takes about 4 hours drive and on your way you will have a stopover at the Equator where you will buy some souvenirs, take photos and then proceed to Lake Mburo national park where you will check into the lodge and have lunch.
Boat cruise, after lunch you will you will drive to the landing site for an exciting boat cruise on Lake Mburo. During the boat cruise which starts at around 2:00pm and takes about 2 hours you will get an opportunity to view hippos in water, crocodiles basking on the banks, view buffaloes, warthogs, antelopes drinking water along the shores, view water birds such as the rare shoebill stork, hornbills, kingfishers, bee-eaters, fish eagles, cormorants, view fishermen organizing their fishing gears for night fishing among others. After the boat ride you will drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 2: Morning game drive and transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park
Morning game drive, after an early breakfast on the second day of the 5 days Bwindi gorillas, Lake Mburo and Lake Bunyonyi tour you will check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to go for a morning game drive in the park where you will be able to able to view animals like zebras, impalas, elands, buffaloes, warthogs, waterbucks, giraffes among others grazing in the open savannah plains, view predators like leopards if you are lucky, different bird species, have views of the sunrise among others. After the game drive you will drive out of the park and start the journey to Bwindi impenetrable national park in south western Uganda. On the way you will have en-route lunch in Mbarara town and then proceed the journey with stunning views of the terraced farmlands, rolling hills, Kigezi hills, homesteads, local people, beautiful scenery among others. Upon arrival you will check into the lodge, have dinner and overnight.
Day 3: Gorilla trekking in Bwindi impenetrable national park
Gorilla trekking, after an early breakfast on the third day of the 5 days Bwindi gorillas, lake Mburo and Lake Bunyonyi tour, you will carry packed lunch and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to the park headquarters for a briefing about the rules, regulations and expectations of gorilla trekking. After the briefing you will be allocated a habituated gorilla family to trek and a park guide who will lead you in the forest during trekking. Allocation of gorilla families in Bwindi impenetrable national park is done depending on your age, personal preferences and physical fitness because trekking is strenuous therefore in case you are not physically fit you are advised to communicate with your driver guide so that they allocate you a gorilla family that is easy to trek.
Trekking of the mountain gorillas in the park starts at about 8:00am and takes about 30 minutes to 8 hours depending on where the gorillas are located, during trekking you will have great views of other primate species such as chimpanzees, l’hoest monkeys, red tailed monkeys, forest birds, animals like forest elephants, buffaloes among others. Once the gorillas are found you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural habitat where you will be able to watch them carry out their daily activities like feeding, playing, resting, breastfeeding, learn about their behaviors, habits, take great photos and record the moments with a flash less camera. After the one hour with the mountain gorillas 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 4: Transfer to Lake Bunyonyi
After breakfast on the fourth day of the 5 days Bwindi gorillas, Lake Mburo and Lake Bunyonyi tour, you will check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Lake Bunyonyi in Kabale district. Lake Bunyonyi is the deepest lake in Uganda and the second deepest in Africa after Lake Tanganyika in Tanzania and was formed as a result of lava damning. The lake is comprised of 29 islands including the punishment island where girls who got pregnant before marriage were taken to die of starvation or as a result of drowning if they tried to swim across the lake. The journey takes about 3 hours and upon arrival you will go for canoeing activity where you will be able to explore the islands, have views of animals and water birds such as pied kingfisher, red chested sunbird, hornbills among others. After the canoe ride you will drive to the lodge for lunch.
Community tour, after lunch you will go for a community tour where you visit the Batwa and Bakiga people living in the community around the lake. During the community tour you will be able to interact with local people which gives you an opportunity to know more about their culture, tradition, visit their farmlands, local markets, homesteads, the traditional healer among others. After the community tour you will return back to the lodge for an evening relaxation, dinner and overnight.
Day 5: Departure to Kampala
On the last day of the 5 days Bwindi gorillas, Lake Mburo and Lake Bunyonyi tour, you will have a relaxed breakfast, check out of the lodge and meet up with your guide to transfer to Kampala. On the way you will have en-route lunch at Igongo cultural centre and then continue the journey to Kampala where your driver guide will drop you off at Entebbe international airport for your departure flight or drop off at the hotel depending on your schedule.
End of 5 days Bwindi gorillas, Lake Mburo and Lake Bunyonyi tour
Tour includes
- Gorilla trekking permit
- Park entrance fees
- Boat cruise fee
- Canoeing on Lake Bunyonyi
- Community tour
- 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.
