This 14-day Uganda safari & Murchison Falls tour is one of Uganda’s top wildlife safaris, enabling guests to visit and discover Murchison Falls National Park in Uganda. You will get an exclusive wildlife safari tour in Uganda with a night at the famous Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary for an experiential rhino tracking experience.
The other safari sections across Uganda are the interesting chimpanzee tracking tour in Kibale Forest National Park and the search for tree-climbing lions in the Ishasha wilderness of Queen Elizabeth National Park. You will also visit Bwindi Impenetrable National Park for an amazing gorilla trekking safari and then end with a Lake Mburo National Park tour.
Uganda Safari & Murchison Falls Itinerary:
Day 1: Kampala – Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary
This morning, you will be transferred to Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary within a two-hour drive from Kampala, the capital of Uganda. Drive north-west through the famous Luwero Triangle and travel to Masindi via Ziwa Rhino Project. While you track the rhinos, visit the information center and the craft shop, while looking out for bushbucks, leopards, Uganda kobs, oribis, crocodiles, hippos and other wildlife species present on the ranch. The birdlife is also abundant, with even the rare shoebill stork present in the Lugogo swamp.
Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary offers peace and tranquility in beautiful surroundings. So, don’t miss out on the afternoon relaxing boat canoe rides in search for the rare shoebill stock.
Dinner and overnight stay at Ziwa Sanctuary Guest House (budget rooms). Meals: breakfast, lunch & dinner.
Day 2: Ziwa Sanctuary – Murchison Falls
After your morning breakfast, a visit to Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary for a rhino trekking experience is a must. In the afternoon you will visit the ‘top of the falls’ for a chance to view the magnificence of the Nile River.
Murchison Falls is cut into half by the famous River Nile, as a result, the river squeezes itself through the legendary impossibly narrow 7m gap in a cleft rock, creating a powerful explosion of white water. The falls are believed to be the most powerful natural flow of water anywhere on earth. So, superlatives like ‘awesome’, ‘stupendous’, ‘fantastic’ and ‘wow’ have been used to describe this amazing spectacle.
Dinner and overnight stay at Murchison River Lodge (mid-range facility). Meals plan breakfast, lunch & dinner.
Day 3: Ziwa Sanctuary – Murchison Falls
Begin the day with a cup of African coffee, and then proceed for a game drive in the park. Elephants, Cape buffaloes, Rothschild’s giraffes, Uganda kobs, hartebeest and waterbuck are common sightings. You may also spot oribis, bushbucks, Bohor reedbucks, bush duiker, warthogs and bush pigs. Large carnivores that include lions, leopards and spotted hyenas can also be spotted.
After lunch, you will go for a boat safari upstream the calm Victoria Nile to the base of Murchison Falls stopping just tens of meters from the “Devil’s Cauldron”. En-route, you will marvel at the toothsome hippos, crocodiles, elephants, waterbucks and kobs, over this 17 km stretch.
This is also a zone of many bird species such as Goliath heron, Egyptian goose, pelican bee-eater, kingfisher, hornbill, cormorants and the rare shoebill stork.
There, you will leave the boat and start your – quite heavy – hike to the top of the falls (for approx. 1 hour), to see where the world’s longest river explodes violently through a narrow cleft in the Rift Valley escarpment, to plunge into a frothing pool of about 43m below. Your driver/guide will be waiting for you to bring you back to the lodge.
Dinner and overnight stay at Murchison River Lodge (mid-range facility). Meals plan breakfast, lunch & dinner.
Day 4: Murchison Falls – Fort Portal
After breakfast, you will drive southwards via Hoima to Fort Portal. This is through a verdant countryside past traditional homesteads and farms along Albertine Rift escarpments. Fort Portal rests in the shadow of the fabled ‘Mountains of the Moon’, that is, Rwenzori Mountain ranges.
Fort Portal is one of the vibrant tourist towns in western Uganda. It is the seat of both Kabarole district and the Toro Kingdom. The town is located approximately 320 kilometers (200 mi) on an all-tarmac two-lane highway road, west of Kampala, Uganda’s capital and largest city.
Dinner and overnight stay at Mountains of the Moon Hotel (luxury facility). A stunning location overlooking the fabled ‘Mountains of the Moon’.
Day 5: Kibale Chimpanzee trekking – Queen Elizabeth National Park
Enjoy an early morning trek for chimpanzees and 10 other primates including the L’ Hoest’s, red-tailed colobus, and blue monkeys, red-tailed and grey-cheeked mangabeys. The guide will provide detailed explanations, not only on primates, but on all the forest fauna and flora and will ensure that your walk is both informative and enjoyable. This walk is excellent for viewing birdlife and seeing primates at close quarters.
Kibale Forest is the best reserve in Africa to view chimps, because it is a thick jungle with a towering canopy.
After lunch, you will proceed to Queen Elizabeth National Park following the mystical Rwenzori Mountain ranges, on much of your journey. A game drive en-route may be rewarded with views of lions, elephants, leopards, buffaloes, hyenas and a variety of antelope species.
Dinner and overnight stay at the spectacular Katara Safari Lodge, right on the edge of the Kyambura Gorge. Meals breakfast, lunch & dinner.
Day 6: Queen Elizabeth National Park – Part of Uganda Safari & Murchison Falls
Get on an early morning game drive in Uganda’s best national park, where all big game can be seen in abundance. Queen Elizabeth National Park’s diverse eco-system of grassy plains, tropical forest, rivers, swamps, lakes and volcanic craters is home to an incredible abundance of wildlife.
Game drives in this park, with the massive Rwenzori ranges as a backdrop provide excellent opportunities to see lions, leopards, giant forest hogs, Cape buffaloes, elephants, Defassa waterbucks, Ugandan kobs, topis and bushbucks. These two game drives and the boat trip are a memorable method of discovering a vast array of Ugandan wildlife.
In the afternoon you will enjoy a unique 2-hour boat cruise along the Kazinga channel and into Lakes Edward and George. This trip passes through possibly the highest concentration of hippos but many other animals may be seen drinking at the water’s edge. This launch cruise offers an excellent platform for photography, bird watching and game viewing. The prolific birdlife is colourful and stupendous with well over 550 resident species.
Dinner and overnight stay Katara Safari Lodge. Meals: breakfast, lunch & dinner.
Day 7: Queen Elizabeth National Park – Ishasha Sector
With previous day’s memories, you will enjoy your breakfast as you get ready for a visit to the bat Cave in Maramagambo forest, and a guided nature walk. This shall be at the blue lake and the Bat cave for an amazing view of the living million bats. Thereafter, you will drive to Ishasha sector on the southwestern side of Queen Elizabeth National Park – the most visited national park in Uganda.
The topography in this area of the national park is significantly different from the other areas of Queen Elizabeth National Park. The Ishasha sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park is home to the tree-climbing lions, which are unique to this area. The males of these lions sport manes that are black, another unique feature.
Dinner and overnight stay at Ishasha Wilderness Camp. Meals breakfast, lunch & dinner.
Day 8: Ishasha Sector
Early morning guided bush walk for a closer interaction with nature. The mid-morning will be spent on a game drive for the tree climbing lions. You will get lunch and relaxation moment at the camp, as well as sightseeing in the afternoon.
Dinner and overnight stay Ishasha Wilderness Camp. Meal plan: breakfast, lunch & dinner.
Day 9: Ishasha Sector – Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Enjoy an early morning breakfast and then be transferred to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park for an amazing gorilla tracking experience. You will drive through Kigezi highlands also known as the ‘Switzerland of Africa’, because of its terraced hillside and winding roads.
A gorilla trekking within the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest is a highlight of most of the visits done in Uganda. As a result, mountain gorillas are the major reason as to why very many people visit Uganda. On the other hand, Uganda is recognized as a very safe and more so secure country in which you can see these gorillas in serene surroundings. There’s also a substantial chimpanzee population and research shows that Bwindi is the only forest in Africa in which these two apes live together.
Dinner and overnight stay Buhoma Lodge. Meals: breakfast, lunch & dinner.
Day 10: Bwindi Gorilla Trekking – Part of Uganda Safari & Murchison Falls
Begin the day with breakfast ready for your gorilla trekking safari, which begins at 8:00 am with a briefing from Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) staff. Ensure that you carry along with you rain jacket, drinking water, snacks, and jungle boots among other protective gear.
The guides will lead you inside the jungle to see the shy primates for a group you have been booked for. Do not forget to take your lunch boxes and all the necessary gear to track the rare mountain gorillas, perhaps one of the most exciting wildlife experiences on earth. The tracking may take between 2 and 6 hours but it’s well worth the effort.
With time permitting, you will spend the afternoon on a community foot safari to explore the lifestyle of the people living and surrounding the Park. Return to camp exhilarated to relieve the encounter with friends over a drink.
Dinner and overnight stay Buhoma Lodge. Meals: breakfast, lunch & dinner.
Day 11: Second Gorilla Trekking – Part of Uganda Safari & Murchison Falls
After breakfast, you will go for the second gorilla tracking experience but with another gorilla family group, before returning in the afternoon. The thrill of your encounter will erase the difficulties of the potentially strenuous trek. So, spend time in awe watching the gorillas go about their activities.
Each encounter is different and has its own rewards, but you are likely to enjoy the close view of adults feeding, grooming and resting as the youngsters frolic and swing from vines in a delightfully playful display. You will return to the camp exhilarated to relieve the encounter with friends over a drink.
Dinner and overnight stay Buhoma Lodge. Meals: breakfast, lunch & dinner.
Day 12: Bwindi Forest – Lake Mburo National Park
After early morning breakfast, you will begin the day with a boat canoe ride along Lake Bunyonyi before driving to Lake Mburo National Park with a visit to Igongo Cultural Village, to explore and learn the culture of the Bahima and Ankole, before continuing to Lake Mburo National Park. Igongo is a place where the future meets the past.
The park is renowned for zebras, impalas, buffaloes, hippos, topis and elands. The bird species include the crested crane, pelicans, fish eagle, herons and many other water birds including the rare shoebill.
With the view of Lake Mburo National Park, Uganda’s fourth national park, contains an entire rich diversity and plant species together with Lake Mburo and other four lakes within the park. These attracts hippos, crocodiles, different fish species and a variety of water birds like Pelicans, Fish Eagle, and Herons. Your afternoon will be spent on a sun set game drive for wildlife photography.
Dinner and overnight stay at Mburo Safari Lodge. Meal plan breakfast, lunch & dinner.
Day 13: Lake Mburo National Park
After early breakfast, get ready for a morning bush walk in the Park, which is an extension of the Tanzanian plains with big herds of zebras, impalas, elands, warthogs, buffaloes and other savannah species. For birders, this is one of the best place to find African Fin foot, Papyrus, and Bush Shrike among others. The evening is spent on an evening boat cruise amidst hippos, which is amazing. You will also relax at the Lodge while observing game moving in the park.
Dinner and overnight stay at Mburo Safari Lodge. Meal plan breakfast, lunch & dinner.
Uganda Safari & Murchison Falls Inclusions:
- Accommodation as mentioned
- 1 night at Lake Victoria Serena Hotel and dinner
- 1 night at Ziwa Sanctuary Guest house with all meals -(Budget rooms)
- 2 nights at Murchison River Lodge with all meals – (Mid Lodge facility)
- 1 night at Mountains of the Moon Hotel with all meals
- 2 nights at Katara Safari Lodge with all meals
- 2 nights at Ishasha Wildness Camp with all meals
- 3 nights at Buhoma Lodge with all meals
- 2 nights Mburo Safari Lodge with meals as per itinerary
- 2 Gorilla permits per person
- Ziwa Rhino Trekking
- Canoe ride in Ziwa
- Hike to the Top of the Falls
- Ferry crossings
- Igongo cultural village visit
- Boat Trips
- Park Fees
- Kibale Chimpanzee chimps Permits
- Bat Cave visit
- Guided nature walks
- Bush walk
- Enroute lunches
- Game drives
- Private transport in a 4×4 tourist converted jeep
- Services of an English speaking driver-guide
- Bottled drinking water while trekking and in vehicle
- All taxes on the services quoted above
Excludes:
Expenses of personal nature like: Visa, drinks, laundry, tips to local guides, telephone, porter fee while trekking, personal insurance, and tobacco.