10 Days Gorilla and Big 5 Safari, Uganda, Rwanda & Tanzania

Day 1: Arrival/Kigali

Upon your arrival at Kigali international airport, you will be met by your driver-guide and transferred to your Onomo hotel for dinner and overnight.

Day 2: Buhoma-Bwindi impenetrable forest

After breakfast, we pick you up from Onomo and transfer you across the border from Rwanda to Uganda.  Whilst today’s drive is around 5.5 hours long it is very scenic and you will get a sense of rural life in this part of the world.  We will check you in immediately at Bohoma Haven Community Lodge and have lunch.  After lunch we stretch your legs after the long drive and visit a nearby Batwa Community.  The Batwa (Pygmies) are the original inhabitants of Bwindi and are thought to be around 5000 years of forest dwellers in Bwindi.  Since the early 1990’s they are a displaced community and maintain their traditions and memories through cultural tours.  Many people on this experience clearly remember an existence as a forest dweller in the area and they will amaze you with their traditions and bush skills.  Their small stature is said to be an adaptation to rainforest living. After the very interesting and fun Batwa Experience, we will return you to your lodge for diner and overnight.

Day 3: Mountain gorilla trek

After breakfast drive to the Uganda Wildlife Authority Bwindi Park Headquarters.  The early morning briefing starts at 8 am and hear the rangers will give you information on the trek, gorilla behavior, and rules.  Then you head off into the Impenetrable Forest in search of these magnificent beasts.  The advanced tracking group gives your guides an indication of where the gorillas were located last night, however, these creatures constantly move in search of food so the trek can take 2-6 hours in total. When you come across the Gorillas you will sense the excitement as you get to spend an hour with the troop you have come across.  It is often described as one of the great natural animal encounters on the planet.  There are only around 1000 Mountain Gorillas left in the world and Bwindi has almost 1/3 of them.  After the trek, we return to your lodge for a freshen up and lunch before departing for the southern  Ishasha sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park which is about 90 minutes away.  At Ishasha we will have a game drive and we have also organized the local safari veterinarian and guide to tracking the famous tree-climbing lions for you. Midafternoon we will exit Ishasha and continue north in Queen Elizabeth National Park.  Dinner and overnight will be at Parkview Safari Lodge.

Day 4: Chimpanzee trek

After an early breakfast at we head of to Kalunzi Forest Reserve where the rangers will give you a trek briefing before we head off to find our closest living relative.  The Kalunzi Chimpanzees are considered extremely reliable with a trekking success rate of over 95%. In Uganda today, Efforts to actually conserve the chimpanzees are extensively acknowledged and well supported.  Actually, The Jane Goodall Foundation has played a major role in the overall conservation of not only these Chimpanzees but the Gorillas as well found in Uganda. You will most likely finish around 11 am.  From here we begin the 5-hour transfer back to Kigali arriving around 5 pm. Dinner and overnight will be at  Onomo hotel.

Day 5: Arusha

After breakfast, you will be transferred to Kigali airport for your flight to Kilimanjaro international airport. You will be picked up at Kilimanjaro international airport and drive to Tulia hotel in Arusha for dinner and overnight.

Day 6: Tarangire national park

After breakfast depart for Tarangire national park for game drive, with picnic lunch. Majestic baobab trees are an interesting feature of the park, dwarfing the animals that feed beneath them. Animals concentrate along the Tarangire River, which provides the only permanent water supply in the area. There is a great diversity of wildlife including lions, leopards, cheetahs, and up to six thousand elephants. In the late afternoon, you will continue to Eileen’s trees inn for dinner and overnight.

Day 7: Serengeti National Park

After breakfast, you will continue to Serengeti for a game drive with a picnic lunch. Serengeti is the park with the largest concentration of big mammals in the world and it is where you will see most of your exciting wildlife. The sightings will include pride of lions, cheetahs, leopards, elephants, giraffes, hippos, and many more. Dinner and overnight will be at Serengeti Osinon camp.

Day 8: Serengeti National Park

Morning and afternoon game drives in Central Serengeti National Park with early departures with early departure looking for active predators. All meals and overnight will be at Serengeti Osinon camp.

Day 9: Ngorongoro Crater

After an early breakfast, depart with picnic lunch and drive to Ngorongoro Crater for a full day of game drive. The crater has a good number of lions and cheetahs, hyenas, jackals, and lots more. It is the best place to spot the rare black rhino. In the late afternoon, you will continue to Marera lodge for meals and overnight.

Dec 10: Departure

After breakfast drive to Arusha for lunch, then continue to Kilimanjaro airport for your departure.