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Traverse from East to West and from North to South and see the diversity of Uganda’s beautiful people, abundant flora and fauna. The mountainous Sipi Falls and one of the best parks in the world-Kidepo Valley National Park, meet the Karamojong warrior tribe, explore the River Nile right from the source, the savannah of Queen Elizabeth National Park, The Giant Murchison Falls and the rainforests of Kibale and Bwindi. It is the perfect combination of nature, culture & wildlife in the best budget range accommodation facilities and the safest tourist campsites in Uganda.
Entebbe International Airport, Uganda
Pickup upon arrival at Entebbe International Airport
Upon arrival at Entebbe International Airport you will be met by a Hospitable Africa Tours & Travel tour guide who will welcome you to Uganda – the Pearl of Africa. Thereafter, you will be transferred to your booked accommodation. In case you have had an early landing in Uganda, you may opt to go out for a short tour of the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre in Entebbe, just a stone’s throw away from your hotel with beautiful views on Lake Victoria.
You will be picked up very early in the morning and start you journey to Jinja. Along the way you will see Mabira Forest, Sugar plantations in Lugazi and finally the World’s longest river Nile. Jinja lies on the shore of Lake Victoria, about 3 hours East from Kampala. This town is famous as the historic source of the river Nile and at the same time the adrenaline capital of East Africa. Besides enjoying peaceful sunsets, birdlife and tranquility, this is also where visitors get their adventurous fix. Enjoy activities such as white-water rafting, kayaking, tubing, quad biking, mountain biking and horse riding. Jinja has a gorgeous natural setting with crumbling colonial architecture. It also has a vibrant downtown and broad leafy residential streets set next to the Nile River that you will also enjoy.
You will start your journey to Kumi District to the sipi falls on this day. A drive through the north-eastern part of Uganda, to the foothills of Mt Elgon you reach a plateau 1800m above sea level where the beautiful Sipi Falls are located. These green area has a spectacular series of waterfalls (some nearly 100m high), surrounded by village walking trails and lush green coffee-producing hills. There are three falls separated by steep hillsides. It is quite cool here compared to the other parts of Uganda with temperate weather conditions. You will relax and enjoy the fresh air and the calm environment away from city hustles and traffic. Later in the day, a coffee tour and community visits are some of the activities you can enjoy besides the hikes.
We take you to places where no one else will go. One of these examples is Karamoja; an area in North-Eastern Uganda where you can learn about traditional life of the Karamojong, the most traditional tribe still living in Uganda. In the early morning breakfast, you will leave for Moroto, an area occupied by the Karamojong tribe. On reaching, you will have a scenic nature walk through the highest mountain of Karamoja. During the walk we will set camp at a traditional village of the So Tepeth mountain people.
After this, you’ll meet the Karamojong living in a Kraal, better known as Manyatta or Boma in Swahili. A Kraal is basically a village made out of huts surrounded by fences made of wood and thorns. These are put up to keep the cattle in and to protect them against rival tribes and wild animals. Some of the Kraals are permanent and others are temporarily.
Wake up to the sights, sounds and smells of pastoral life and after breakfast we will continue our journey north through the rugged Karamoja scenery towards Kidepo Valley. In the morning you can still enjoy this unique opportunity to spend more time with the Karamojong tribe. After this thrilling experience it is time to travel to the most remote and pristine national park in the country: Kidepo Valley National Park.
In the rugged semi-arid valleys in the extreme northeast of Uganda, Kidepo Valley National Park lies hidden away in a lost and not frequently visited corner between Uganda’s borders with Sudan and Kenya. It is a long but very rewarding journey to get to this area with some of the most beautiful scenery in Uganda. You’ll experience an afternoon game drive in the wild Narus valley where herds of elephants & buffalos as well as beautiful sights of lions and leopards sitting on various valley rocks can be spotted.
Kidepo Valley national park is one of the few parks in Uganda where you can do a walking safari. An armed ranger is joining you for your safety and you will explore the wilderness on foot. During this activity you get the chance to experience the wildlife up-close, a totally different experience than game-viewing by car. Buffalo, waterbuck, giraffe, warthog, zebra, bush-buck and of course the naughty baboons can be seen all year round as well as many different bird species. The guide stops regularly, not merely searching for game, but telling you about birds, insects, trees, animal droppings, the medicinal use of plants and which animals eat which plants. This game park has a profusion of big game and hosts 475 bird species and over 80 mammal species, of which 28 were not known to occur (or very rarely) in any other Ugandan park. For example; ostriches, zebras, bat-eared foxes, aardwolves, caracals, cheetahs, and greater and lesser kudus.
After an early breakfast we’ll leave the camp and have one last chance to enjoy the beauty of Kidepo and maybe get a sight of any animals we missed. From the park gates it is a two-hour drive through the rugged landscape (and roads!) of northern Uganda to Kitugum and then a further hour to Gulu where we will stop for lunch. From Gulu we’ll head south on good roads to the northern gates of Murchison Falls NP, Uganda’s best-known and biggest nature reserve. With the impressive and powerful Murchison waterfall and its remarkable animal populations, this is a must visit in the Pearl of Africa We’ll have the opportunity to take a slow drive in the late afternoon through the park before setting up camp in the delta area of the park.
After an early breakfast, it is time to explore the park. On the Game drive, you will spot as many animals as possible. While driving through the park you can come eye-to-eye with the African animal kingdom. Hopefully you see them all; elephants, giraffes, buffaloes, lions, leopards, different species of antelope and many tropical birds. They are all there! A professional ranger with extensive knowledge on the park and its inhabitants will join you in your car. The park is especially known for its massive elephant population, huge array of bird species and big herds of buffalo. The afternoon boat safari towards the Murchison Falls is a very special activity, it takes approximately 3 hours and goes along the Victoria Nile to the base of the Falls. If you like hiking, the boat can drop you near the waterfalls and you can hike up to the top (this takes around 1 or 1,5 hours). The views are amazing!
Today, before you transfer to Kibale you will Visit the Delta. The Nile Delta is the area where the Victoria Nile flows into Lake Albert. The banks of the delta are home to hundreds of bird species including the rare and prehistoric-looking shoe bill stork and papyrus endemic species. A boat safari through the delta is a “must do” for every birdwatcher. During this (approximately) 5-hour boat tour you enjoy a breakfast while enjoy the peaceful scenery and while approaching Lake Albert you may see more fishermen in canoes catches of tilapia fish and local people fetching water from the Nile and if lucky wild game along the banks. You may also see many hippo, crocodile and if lucky you can witness elephant bathing in the river. Also keep an eye on the treetops as you can often spot monkeys such as eastern fringed monkeys and baboons. The boat trip starts early in the morning during the soft light, golden hours for photographers.
Today you will track the most famous inhabitants of Kibale National Park, the chimpanzees. Chimpanzees share 98% of human genes making them our closest living relatives. They are found in 21 countries throughout Africa, but are most easily sighted in Uganda due to their dense populations. Today, in Uganda, there are approximately 5,000 chimpanzees left in the wild. The Chimpanzee Trekking experience here is done on several well maintained walking trails. There is also a wonderfully diverse concentration of other primates, more than any other forest in East Africa, in fact. Besides our delightful cousins, the chimpanzees, you can find red colobus, red-tailed guenon, white-nosed monkey, gray-cheeked mangabey, blue monkey, L’Hoest’s monkey, and the black and white colobus monkey. After tracking, you have the opportunity for a guided walk through the swamps of Bigodi swamps. This activity will take you to the Bigodi Wetlands Sanctuary which features 8 primate species over 200 bird species.
Queen Elizabeth National Park is located in south western Uganda and is most often included in visitors’ itineraries. It is the second largest park in the country and located at the base of the majestic Rwenzori Mountain range, next to Lake Edward and Lake George which are joined by the Kazinga channel. Few reserves in the world have such a high biodiversity with landscapes including savannah, bushland, wetlands and lush forests. On your first game drive, it is time to explore the Queen Elizabeth National Park with it’s 200 kilometers of well-maintained game viewing tracks with an astonishing 5000 hippos, 2500 elephants and over 10,000 buffalo thriving in its grasslands and shorelines, this park guarantees sightings of some of Africa’s most iconic species. Expect elephants, giraffes, buffaloes, different species of antelope and just maybe some of the exciting predators such as; lion, leopard, civet, genal and serval cat sightings.
After you have enjoyed your breakfast you will be taken for a morning game drive in time to see the sun rise. The morning is the best time for a game drive as the African animal kingdom tends to be most active when during the golden hours of the first sunlight touching the Savannah. You will continue the search for all the wildlife; elephant, buffalo, lion, water-buck, leopard, Uganda kob, warthog and do not forget about the birds and the primates.
After lunch, you will take a boat safari along the Kazinga Channel. Here, you will see a lot of hippos (more than you can possibly imagine), as well as a variety of other animals which come to the waterhole to drink or bathe. You can expect to see: Buffalo, Crocodile, bathing Elephant, and a range of beautiful birds. This will undoubtedly be one of the highlights of your tour.
Early in the morning you will go for a hike in the Kyambura gorge another gem in the far eastern corner of Queen Elizabeth National Park. This gorge is also called the “Valley of Apes” and is another world on its own. Drained by River Kayambura it now has a rich wildlife bio-diversity, including a family of 16 chimpanzees and many bird species. The view from the top is very impressive as you look down a gorge filled with lush green tropical vegetation amidst an impressive valley. A hike through the gorge gives you the opportunity to see chimpanzees and other types of primates including red-tailed monkey, black-and-white colobus, baboons and vervet monkeys. After the hike you will drive in about 2,5 hours to the southern part of Queen Elizabeth National Park (Ishasha sector). This part is famous for its’ tree-climbing lions. This is the most memorable sight in the park as you have never seen such photogenic lions posing for your camera before.
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is a highlight for many visitors as this is where they will be visiting the home of the gentle giants. The park lies in southwestern Uganda on the edge of the Rift Valley. Uganda’s oldest and most biologically diverse rainforests lies on the mist-covered hillsides. This magnificent forest dates back over 25,000 years, even surviving the last Ice Age (most forests disappeared). Bwindi forest has an incredible diversity of flora and fauna and is the only forest in Africa which can make claim to host both mountain gorillas and chimpanzees. In fact, half the worlds’ population of gorillas live here divided over nine habituated family groups. Also 5 other primate species, 120 species of mammal, over 220 butterflies and 360 bird’s species call Bwindi home. This is the place to see the critically endangered mountain gorillas up close for your very own ‘Gorillas in the Mist’ moment. We then head to the edge of the forest to meet a very exciting bunch- The Batwa forest pygmy tribe that have lived in these jungles for ages, the Batwa love showing off their culture to tourists, so be sure to be engaged in their hunting technique demonstrations, animated traditional dances, cooking styles and their religious sessions that involve smoking a large amount of marijuana in hand-made smoking pipes.
After breakfast, we shall start our journey to lake Bunyonyi in kabale District. Lake Bunyonyi is framed by lush, green-terraced hills that reach a height of (2,200 – 2,478m) with 29 islands of various shapes and sizes scattered across the water that make it most magical — you could admire them all day. You shall have an exciting boat ride on Lake Bunyonyi. In the afternoon you may have optional activities; a Canoe boat ride, a swim in the Bilharzia free lake, you may also explore a nearby village. Residents are happy for you visit and are open to explain their daily lives.
Main Destination: Lake Bunyonyi Islands
After your breakfast, and brief visit of Kabale town, you will start your journey to Lake Mburo. Lake Mburo is a small national Park but should certainly not be underestimated. This is the only place in southern Uganda to see zebras and the only park in the country with impalas, slender mongoose and giant bush rats. You can also look for hyenas, leopards, topis, elands and the beautiful Rothschild’s giraffes, not to mention the lake itself which is teeming with hippos and crocodiles. There are a lot of wonderful activities on offer, such as horse-riding, bush walks, boat safari on the lake and a mountain bike safari. It is exciting to approach the wildlife at such close range, especially combining the fresh air with the beautiful scenery of Lake Mburo National Park. En-route lunch in Mbarara town and visit to the Igongo cultural Center.
What sets Lake Mburo Park apart from others is that Nature walks can be taken anywhere within the park with an armed Uganda Wildlife Authority Guide at your side. On an early morning guided walk you often encounter hyenas that are returning to their dens after a night of being on the prowl – at the same time you can often see hippos returning from grazing during the night and returning to Lake Mburo to keep cool during the day and protect their sensitive skin from the sun. On a nature walk you will often see Zebras, Giraffes, Eland, Topi and other antelopes, buffalos, birds, butterflies. In the afternoon, a boat ride on Lake Mburo gets you in touch with the flora and fauna of the lake. Along the bank, you will see lots of animals coming to water especially during the dry season. There are hippos, crocodiles, buffaloes, antelopes, zebra.
Early in the morning have a guided nature walk again, return to the camp for a healthy breakfast. After, you will start your journey back to Entebbe. You will go cross the equator and experience being the Northern and Southern Hemisphere the same time an also have time to take photos. Buy a few souvenirs in the craft shops and have a quick picnic lunch. Later you depart to the Entebbe International Airport in time for your departing flight. Thanks for choosing Hospitable Africa Tours & Travel for your Safari, We wish you a Safe Journey.
