The ultimate trip that any traveler will long for is the 18-day safari through the greatest of Uganda. The itinerary will provide visitors the best chance to thoroughly explore Uganda’s most popular safari locations and have the greatest chance of witnessing much more than just the fabled big five African wildlife. The 18-day safari trip in Uganda will begin and end in either Entebbe or Kampala.
The only wildlife adventure available in the Bwindi Impenetrable Rain Forest is mountain gorilla tracking. Travelers have a good chance of discovering the connections between semi-arid, wetland, grassland, and tropical rainforest environments. It is a collection of Uganda’s tourism opportunities that allow visitors to enjoy the area’s natural splendor by automobile, boat, or on foot. When visiting Jinja, the location of the Nile’s source, and taking a quick tour of Kampala, tourists have the opportunity to engage with local residents in their safari sites to exchange life stories and gain a more rounded perspective.
This 18-day safari through Uganda’s wildlife was created to give visitors access to the country’s top attractions. The true experience begins in Kampala, where you will go to the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary to monitor rhinos before continuing to the Kidepo National Park for a game drive and a village tour. You’ll travel to Murchison Falls National Park to go on a boat tour and game drive. In order to monitor chimpanzees and take a stroll through Bigodi Swamp, you will next be escorted to Kibale National Park. After the driver takes you to Queen Elizabeth Park for two game drives in the Kasenyi and Ishasha sectors of the park and a sunset launch cruise, you will head to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park to search for mountain gorillas. You will be escorted to Lake Bunyonyi for bird observation and canoeing after the gorilla treks, and then to Lake Mburo National Park for a wildlife drive. You will go from Lake Mburo to Jinja via Kampala city to go white-water rafting and see the Great River Nile’s origins. You’ll be driven from Jinja to Entebbe Airport so you may fly out.
Day 1: Transfer to Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary
Your driver will meet you when you arrive and act as a guide for the duration of the trip. He will go through the itinerary with you, get to know you, and learn about your hobbies before taking you to the Ziwa rhino reserve for rhino tracking. In Uganda, rhinos went extinct many years ago as a result of excessive poaching for their prized horns. They have now been restored in the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary with the intention of reintroducing them in some of Uganda’s National Parks once their population increases. The trip into the reserve takes 3–4 hours. You will take a side trip to the reserve because it will be your first opportunity to see animals in Uganda.
Spend a long night in the sanctuary and leave plenty of time for the trip to Kidepo Valley National Park the following day. Dinner and overnight stay at the Amuka Safari Lodge.
Day 2: Transfer to kidepo national park
You will eat breakfast this morning before leaving to continue traveling north into Kidepo National Park. After crossing the Nile, you’ll stroll through a relatively flat region of northern Uganda with hot temperatures. After eating lunch in Kitgum Town, spend a few hours checking into the national park. To view and explore the Kidepo Valley and find a pristine Uganda safari location, we advise taking a sunset drive. Dinner and overnight at Apoka safari lodge, Ngamoru safari lodge, and Adele lodge options
DAY 3: Game drive and community tour
After eating breakfast early in the morning, your driver will pick you up together with a ranger guide to take you to an area with a lot of animals before sunrise. After having lunch in the area and touring Kidepo and Narus valleys while viewing every kind of mammal and bird found in the park, you’ll be escorted to an indigenous community to witness people who have lived their entire lives surrounded by wildlife. They will use song, dance, and theatre to communicate their stories while promoting their culture. Bring you back to the resort so you can rehydrate before dinner is served. An overnight at Ngamoru safari lodge, Adele lodge, and Apoka safari lodge.
DAY 4: Game drive and transfer to Murchison falls national park
Get up early, eat breakfast, and leave the lodge for quick morning game drives before traveling for six hours to Murchison Falls National Park. After you check into the park and take a little stroll to the top of the falls, have lunch in Gulu town on the way there. Check into the wilderness lodge you reserved, have a bath to relax, and spend the evening talking around the campfire while you wait for food to be served. Dinner and overnight at Murchison River Lodge or Pakuba Safari Lodge, Nile safari lodge options.
DAY 5: Game Drive and Boat Cruise
After breakfast, you and your guide will depart in search of some nocturnal wildlife before they head back to their hiding places. Go to the Nile Delta where you might see giraffes, elephants, several antelope species, buffalo, a large variety of birds, and if you’re lucky, lions and leopards. For lunch, you will head back to the lodge.
After lunch, you’ll take a boat ride to the base of the beautiful Murchison Falls to see enormous creatures like buffalo, hippos, and crocodiles lazing around and planning ambushes to kill while they forage for water. Several water-loving creatures, including resident birds and the unusual shoebill. Continue traveling upstream until you reach the base of the falls, where you can see how water squeezes through a small gorge before exploding in what are thought to be the strongest and most powerful falls.
Dinner and overnight at Murchison River Lodge, Pakuba Safari Lodge, and Nile safari lodge options.
DAY 6: Morning game drive and a nature walk
You’ll head back to the northern bank of the River Nile for another game drive after an early breakfast in search of some of the wild animals you might have missed during your earlier game excursions. Elephants, buffaloes, antelopes, spotted hyenas, lions, warthogs, and elephants are possible to see. There are also good opportunities to see the endangered Shoebill stock and other migratory birds.
The Kaniyo Pabidi or Albert Nile delta trails will be used for the afternoon nature walk, which will provide you with amazing views and sounds of numerous water birds, as well as other animals and primates. This will take roughly two hours, but you’ll get to see some amazing wildlife, including animals, birds like kingfishers, hornbills, sunbirds, tree species, and other exciting park elements that will make the trip unforgettable.
Dinner and overnight at Murchison River Lodge, Pakuba Safari Lodge, and Nile safari lodge options.
DAY 7: Transfer to Kibale National Park.
You will travel through Fort Portal town on Day 7 of your 18-Day safari to reach Kibale Forest, National Park. West of Murchison Falls National Park, the trip is 400 kilometers long and takes about 8 hours to drive. Before arriving at Kibale Forest National Park, the route passes through indigenous tribes working on their farms, tea plantations, and sugarcane estates. Before heading to the resort to check in, you’ll stop at Fort Portal Town for lunch. There are no major activities planned for today, although you can drive about Fort Portal for sightseeing if time permits.
Dinner and overnight at Chimpanzee Forest Guest House, Isunga Lodge, and primate lodge options.
DAY 8: Chimpanzee trekking and Bigodi Wetland Walk
After breakfast, you will be driven to the Kanyanchu headquarters of Kibale National Park. Before rangers take you into the jungle for chimpanzee trekking, you will gather here with fellow trekkers for a briefing. You will be escorted on a guided primate walk inside Kibale Forest National Park by a knowledgeable and experienced ranger/guide. Visits to one of the chimpanzee habituated communities are possible in this forest. You are permitted to spend an hour watching these Great Apes in action. You are permitted to take pictures. Therefore, be sure your cameras are close by. In addition to the 13 other primate species found in Kibale National Park, you can see them while hiking with the chimpanzees.
You will trek to Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary in the afternoon for more park wilderness, which will boost your chance of seeing more species and provide you another opportunity to engage with the locals and support their initiatives.
Dinner and overnight at Chimpanzee Forest Guest House, Isunga Lodge, and primate lodge options
DAY 9: Transfer to Queen Elizabeth National Park
After breakfast, you will drive for 3–4 hours through the slopes of Rwenzori National Park to Queen Elizabeth National Park, crossing the Equator at Kikorongo.
Everyone’s dream vacation spot, Queen Elizabeth National Park is an exceptional tourist attraction that provides something to everyone. After taking a break for lunch at the Mweya Safari Lodge, you will drive to the Katwe Lakeside Plains to engage in salt mining operations. Some of the area’s water-loving animals can be seen here while sipping water from salt mines, and a nighttime game drive puts you in close proximity to creatures winding down for the day.
You can drive straight to the Mweya jetty for an afternoon boat cruise on the Kazinga Channel or you can stop at the lodge for lunch. One of the delights of Queen Elizabeth National Park is this two-hour boat ride. It gives you the chance to view more than 300species of birds out of 600 species recorded in the park. On the boat, travelers may also see antelopes, crocodiles, elephants, buffaloes, and hippos.
Dinner and overnight at Elephant Hub Lodge, Pumba Safari Lodge, and Mweya safari lodge.
DAY 10: Early Game drive and Boat Cruise
Breakfast in the morning then travels to the Kasenyi plains for a game drive to make up for anything you might have missed during your evening game drive. As you go around and frolic in the savanna plains, keep an eye out for animals like hippos, leopards, elephants, buffalos, warthogs, waterbucks, Uganda kobs, and other species as well as the unusual bird species that call the park home. Because large cats are out hunting for prey at this hour of the morning, there is a minor chance of seeing lions and leopards.
After lunch, head back to the resort and then drive straight to the Mweya jetty for an afternoon boat cruise on the Kazinga Channel. One of Queen Elizabeth National Park’s highlights is this two-hour boat ride. You can unwind while getting up close to animals like antelope, crocodiles, elephants, buffaloes, and hippos that live along the water’s edge. Return to the lodge for a midday beverage.
Dinner and overnight at Elephant Hub Lodge, Enganzi dame lodge, and Ihamba lakeside safari lodge options.
DAY 11: Chimp trekking and drive viewing in Ishasha sector
You will be taken to Kyambura after breakfast so that you can meet up with the other trekkers for a briefing before beginning your chimpanzee walk in the Kyambura canyon. While engaging with chimpanzees, your knowledgeable ranger guide will assist you in recognizing various flora and animal species that are native to this canyon. Once you have located the chimps, you will be given an hour to photograph and observe their activity. After finishing the hike, head back to the resort for lunch and a quick rest.
Later, go for the Ishasha sector in the western section of the park, traveling through the savannah woodlands in search of the area’s distinctive wildlife, which includes a pride of lions that prefer to rest in tree branches. Other species can also be seen in this sector.
Dinner and overnight at Elephant Hub Lodge, Enganzi dame lodge, and Ihamba lakeside safari lodge, options
DAY 12: Game drive and transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
After a leisurely breakfast, check out of the lodge, and a morning game drive to see the animals feasting and grazing on grassland vegetation, your driver will pick you up. After that, you’ll continue your journey to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park in southwest Uganda, home to about half of the world’s mountain gorillas. The Kigezi highlands’ rolling slopes and terraced gardens of Irish potatoes will be a fresh experience for you as you go to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
Dinner and overnight at Bwindi gorilla lodge, Buhoma haven lodge, and Bwindi view lodge options
DAY 13: Gorilla tracking and transfer to Lake Bunyonyi
After breakfast, you will travel to the park’s main office to meet up with other trekkers and wait to be assigned a gorilla family to trek with. The cultural band will amuse you with cultural song, dance, and drama before the park staff fully briefs you on gorilla guidelines. After that, a ranger guide will transport you to the gorilla family’s starting location so you can begin your trek through the stunning Impenetrable Bwindi Forest.
Depending on where the mountain gorillas are, this trip could take anything from 30 minutes to three-quarters of a day. You will get an hour to observe and take pictures of the gorillas after you locate them. Even while it can seem like too little time has passed, the experience you gain will be worthwhile. The rainforest is home to a thriving wildlife population, and you can explore it to find a special habitat that is unlike any other place you could go on vacation in Uganda. You will then return to the park’s administrative center, where you will receive a certificate for your gorilla trekking experience as thanks for your contribution to the conservation of these endangered mountain gorillas. If you didn’t pack a lunch, get back to the lodge to get it before you leave for Lake Bunyonyi and sign out.
Uganda safari travelers can experience a variety of unusual sights and noises at Lake Bunyonyi. Additionally, it makes for a wonderful rest stop after a grueling day of gorilla trekking through the Bwindi rainforest. If you want to enjoy beautiful scenery, check into your lodge or hotel near the lakeshore.
Dinner and overnight at Birdnest Resort, Acadia cottages, Bunyonyi overland camp, and chameleon lodge options.
DAY 14: Experience Lake Bunyonyi
A large number of tiny birds in this region is how Lake Bunyonyi earned its name. According to reports, Lake Bunyonyi is the second-deepest lake in all of East Africa and the deepest lake in Uganda. You won’t be let down by Lake Bunyonyi’s magnificence, for sure. After breakfast, embark on a canoe trip to discover the 12 floating islands that are located further within this lake.
You can choose to explore the many Islands, some of which have a fascinating history, such as Punishment Island, where women were abandoned and left to perish after getting pregnant before marriage. You will undoubtedly appreciate this all-day activity. As an alternative, you might go for a trek up one of the nearby hills or take a tour of the neighborhood to meet the nearby Batwa people.
Dinner and overnight at Birdnest Resort.
DAY 15: Transfer to Lake Mburo National Park
Drive to Lake Mburo National Park after breakfast, passing through the Kigezi Highlands, and then descend to the Great Lakes Museum to discover more about the western Ugandan civilizations. After lunch at the lodge, take a boat tour to discover the tranquility of the park. After the boat trip, you’ll get the chance to see creatures including impalas, giraffes, zebras, sitatungas, topis, elands, hyenas, and many bird species on your journey back to the lodge. On an evening wildlife drive, though, there is also a good chance of seeing leopards.
Dinner and overnight at Leopard nest, Mpogo lodge, Rwakobo Rock, and Mihingo safari lodge options
DAY 16: Game Drive and transfer to Kampala
You will leave on a morning game drive after breakfast in order to spot the park’s early risers and grazers; at this time, many animals are out feeding on the lush grass. Your final day in the wilderness will be spent enjoying the grasslands, where you might see some of the bird species found in Lake Mburo National Park. To complete your trip circuit, you will depart from Lake Mburo after your game drive experience and travel for 3–4 hours to Kampala. En route, you will stop near the equator at Kayabwe for lunch, photos, and souvenirs. Kampala will be reached in the evening. Check into your hotel, relax from the exhaustion of the wilderness, and keep your memories of the Uganda safari. For live music from bands all over the world, you could choose to visit a nightclub.
DAY 17: Transfer to the source of the Nile
After breakfast, you will depart for Jinja, which is located 80 kilometers east of Kampala and serves as Uganda’s main tourism entry point. Jinja is also renowned as the country’s center of adventure. Before crossing the Nile Bridge that leads to Jinja city, the route will take you past small settlements, the Mabira forest, tea estates, sugarcane plantations, and roadside markets.
You will take a boat trip from the source of the Nile to numerous islands on the Victoria Nile; the trip gives you the chance to see many landmarks like the Bujagali dam built on the falls, view different bird species on the Nile, and see other small primates.
When visiting the Nile, grade 5 white water rafting is another exhilarating experience you should not miss. There are also a variety of other exciting activities available, such as quad biking, tubing on the Nile, bungee jumping, horseback riding, and many others. Given that Jinja City is 120 kilometers from Entebbe International Airport, you are free to choose your lodging as long as it does not conflict with your travel reservations. For dinner and overnight, Nile river lodge and 2 friends’ lodge options.
DAY 18: Departure
Take your time eating breakfast and getting ready to leave the lodge. Your driver will be there to take you to the airport to catch your flight, capping off your unforgettable 18-day best of Uganda safari in Uganda.
End of the safari
