7 Days Chimpanzee and Gorilla trekking safari
This 7 days chimpanzee and gorilla trekking safari is one of the extraordinary Uganda safaris that takes you to Kibale national park which harbors 13 primate species, including chimpanzees, olive baboons, black and white colobus monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, vervet monkeys, blue monkeys, and l’hoest monkeys, among others.
You will also visit Queen Elizabeth national park the second largest protected area in Uganda harboring abundant wildlife species like the big four mammals and the misty Bwindi impenetrable national park where you will engage in a gorilla trekking activity that will give you an opportunity to spend time with the gorillas as you learn more about their lifestyle and behaviors.
Highlights of the 7 days chimpanzee and gorilla trekking safari
Day 1: Pick up and transfer to Kibale national park
Day 2: Chimpanzee trekking and Bigodi swamp walk
Day 3: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park
Day 4: Game drive and boat cruise
Day 5: Transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park
Day 6: Gorilla trekking and transfer to Lake Bunyonyi
Day 7: Departure to Kampala
Detailed itinerary
Day 1 of the 7 days chimpanzee and gorilla trekking safari
Transfer to Kibale national park, depending on the time of arrival, you will be welcomed by our driver guide, who will give you a short briefing about your safari and then start the journey to Kibale national park. You will pass via the Masaka-Mbarara road with a stopover at the Equator for snacks and photographs.
On your way, you will have an en-route lunch in Mbarara and then continue with the journey to Kibale national park. Upon arrival, you will check into the lodge, have dinner and overnight.
Day 2: Chimpanzee trekking and Bigodi swamp walk
Chimpanzee trekking;
Take breakfast and later meet up with your driver guide and transfer to the park headquarters for a briefing about the rules, regulations and expectations of chimpanzee trekking. After the briefing, you will be allocated a chimpanzee group to trek and a park guide who will be sharing relevant information about the chimpanzees and also be well conversant with the trails in the jungle.
Chimpanzee trekking in Kibale national park starts at around 8:00am and takes 30 minutes to 4 hours depending on the location of the chimpanzees and once found, you will be allowed to spend one hour with them in their natural environment.
During the one hour you will be able to learn more about the chimpanzee’s lifestyle, behaviors, habits, take photos and record the moments to show people back home. After the encounter with the chimpanzees you will trek back to the park headquarters, meet up with your driver guide to transfer to the lodge for lunch.
Bigodi swamp walk:
After lunch, you will go for a guided nature walk in Bigodi Swamp, where you will pass through the lush vegetation in the sanctuary. Nature walk in Bigodi swamp takes about 3 hours walking through the forest boardwalks and pathways and gives you an opportunity to view various bird species like the great blue turaco, hornbills, kingfishers, and primates like red-tailed monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys, l’hoest monkeys, blue monkeys, grey checked mangabey and some animals like bushbucks and otters among others in a top tree house in the canopy. After the nature walk you will meet up with your driver guide and drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 3: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth national park
Wake up, have a hearty breakfast, check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide for the crater lakes tour, where you will have spectacular views of the explosion craters, landscape, Rwenzori mountains, tea plantations, Kichwamba escarpments, Lake George, Kibale national park among others. After the crater lakes tour, you will start the journey to Queen Elizabeth national park which takes about 3 hours to drive with an en-route lunch on the way.
After lunch you will continue with the journey to the park where you will have great views of the animals as you drive to the lodge. Upon arrival, you will check in, have dinner and overnight.
Day 4: Game drive/lion tracking and boat cruise
Game drive:
After an early breakfast, meet up with your driver guide and go for a morning game drive or lion tracking experience in Kasenyi plains.
Game drive is the most popular activity in Queen Elizabeth national park and it’s commonly done in Kasenyi plains due to the fact that it harbors abundant wildlife species including the lions, leopards, elephants, buffaloes, warthogs, bushbucks, waterbucks, Uganda kobs among others. After the game drive you will drive back to the lodge for lunch.
Boat cruise:
After lunch, you will go for a boat cruise activity on Kazinga Channel, a water body that connects Lake George and Lake Edward. The boat cruise starts at 2:00pm at a landing site near the luxury Mweya safari lodge and takes about 2 hours.
During the boat cruise you will cruise near animals like hippos and Nile crocodiles in water, elephants, buffaloes, waterbucks, warthogs along the water shores drinking water and water birds like the cormorants, herons, kingfishers, fish eagles among others. After the boat cruise, you will head to the lodge for evening relaxation, dinner, and overnight.
Day 5: Transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park
This is the day to go to the home of the gentle ginats in Uganda. Have breakfast and check out of the lodge, then meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Bwindi impenetrable national park which is located in southwestern Uganda.
On your way, you will pass via the Ishasha sector in the southern part of Queen Elizabeth National Park, where you will have an opportunity to view the tree-climbing lions lying up in the fig and acacia tree branches. After the game drive in the Ishasha sector, you will have lunch and then continue with the journey to Bwindi impenetrable national park where you will check into the lodge upon arrival, have dinner and overnight.
Day 6: Gorilla trekking in Bwindi impenetrable national park
Gorilla trekking:
After enjoying your hearty breakfast, carry a packed lunch, meet up with your driver guide and transfer to the park headquarters for a briefing about gorilla trekking rules, regulations and expectations. After the briefing, you will be grouped into 8 people, allocated a gorilla family to trek and a park guide who is well conversant with the trails in the forest.
Grouping of individuals is done according to age, physical fitness and personal preferences; therefore, in case you are not physically fit, you are advised to communicate with your guide so that they allocate you a gorilla group that is near to trek.
Trekking of gorillas in Bwindi impenetrable national park starts at around 8:00am and takes 30 minutes to 7 hours depending on the location of the gorillas and once they are found, you will be allowed to spend one hour with the gorillas in their natural habitat, which gives you an opportunity to take photos, record videos, learn more about their habits, behaviors, and lifestyle, among other things, which gives you fascinating and exciting experiences.
After the one-hour encounter with the gorillas, you will trek back to the park headquarters, where you will be awarded a certificate for participating in gorilla trekking and afterwards meet up with your driver guide to transfer to the lodge for late lunch.
After lunch you will check out of the lodge, meet up with your driver guide and transfer to Lake Bunyonyi in Kabale, where you will engage in canoeing on the deepest lake in Uganda and the second deepest lake in Africa. During the boat ride, you will explore some of the 29 islands on Lake Bunyonyi, have beautiful scenery of the landscape and terraced farmlands, and enjoy the sunset, among other things. After the boat cruise you will drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 7: Departure to Kampala
This is the last day of the Uganda primates tour. Take breakfast and check out of the lodge and meet up with your driver guide to transfer to Kampala. You will pass via Kabale town, Ntungamo and Mbarara town, where you will have en-route lunch at Igongo cultural centre.
After lunch you will proceed with the journey to Kampala, where your driver guide will drop you off at any place of convenience or at Entebbe airport in case you have a flight to catch.
End of 7-day chimpanzee and gorilla trekking safari
Tour includes
- Gorilla trekking permit
- Chimpanzee trekking permit
- Nature walk in Bigodi swamp
- Boat cruise fee
- Canoeing on Lake Bunyonyi
- Crater lakes tour
- An English-speaking driver guide
- Full board accommodation
- Park entrance fee
- 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, hiring a porter, and tips, among others.
